Fortune Letters with Jim Makos

Combining a passion for music with betting expertise spelled success! Read the episode's highlights in just 3 minutes: https://www.jimmakos.com/bet-eurovision-bulgaria/ 🎬 CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 00:48 First contact with the contest 01:19 Everything comes down to odds and probability 02:42 Where did I find Bulgaria’s probability? 04:33 Why did I only bet €10? 05:54 My actual profit was muc...

Like everyone else, I thought I was eating less food and spending less money—until I started tracking everything, from calories down to the very last euro I spent. 🔗 LINKS App I use to log calories: ⁠https://www.loseit.com/⁠ App I use to track income/expenses: ⁠https://jmks.co/ynab 🎦 Podcast episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/RUqxpsTZilY 🎙️ Podcasting Challenges as a Non-Native Speaker: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

I never thought I’d be giving my daughter her first cell phone in elementary school—let alone an iPhone. So today I explain what led me to make that decision as a father. 🎬 CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro 00:33 When I Got My First Cell Phone 02:20 Why I Got Her a Phone in 6th Grade 04:22 Why an iPhone? 05:51 Which iPhone I Bought and Why 11:46 The Moment She Had Been Waiting For 🙏 SUPPORT If you’d like to...

I read some dystopian predictions about the future of YouTube and the changes AI will bring to it, and today I’m talking about how I plan my next steps as a video creator facing AI. 🙏 SUPPORT If you’d like to help me out, I can send you the original scripts of each episode straight to your inbox for free a few hours before they go live, in exchange for your email address: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://jmks.c...

What those three months working in a call center taught me and how they pushed me straight into entrepreneurship. 🙏 SUPPORT If you’d like to help me out, I can send you the original scripts of each episode straight to your inbox for free a few hours before they go live, in exchange for your email address: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://jmks.co/support⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ You may also donate directly: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://jmks...

What led me to drop out of university, how my life has evolved since, and what lessons I’m still learning even today from that decision? 🙏 SUPPORT If you’d like to help me out, I can send you the original scripts of each episode straight to your inbox for free a few hours before they go live, in exchange for your email address: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://jmks.co/support⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ You may also donate directly:...

Back in the day, every Amazon order felt like a celebration: I’d hit “buy” before noon, and the very next day at exactly 3 p.m., the intercom would buzz. “Mr. Jim, UPS here—a package for you.” I’d gotten to the point where I’d ask the delivery guy about his wife and the baby. That’s how often he showed up. I didn’t mind dropping an extra 25-30€ on expedited shipping. This year, late November, I de...

From zero to 30+ pieces across platforms: How I overcame perfectionism, ditched endless planning, and built a sustainable routine inspired by Casey Neistat. Discover why starting messy beats waiting forever, and how social media changed my game. If you're a creator stuck in analysis paralysis, this is your wake-up call – plus tips on personal branding and content workflow. 🙏 SUPPORT If you’d...

In the world of financial influencers, there’s this fairy tale going around that sells you the hope that you can nail saving easily by just quitting your morning coffee. 🙏 SUPPORT If you’d like to help me out, I can send you the original scripts of each episode straight to your inbox for free a few hours before they go live, in exchange for your email address: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://jmks.co/support⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Yo...

Many have hated money, but nobody has hated fame. What we do with our lives shapes the reputation we end up with. And sometimes it’s not the one we wanted. 🙏 SUPPORT If you’d like to help me out, I can send you the original scripts of each episode straight to your inbox for free a few hours before they go live, in exchange for your email address: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://jmks.co/support⁠⁠⁠⁠ You may also donat...

The budgeting I’ve been doing for the past 10 years lets me take full advantage of Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals without wasting money on unused subscriptions. 🙏 SUPPORT If you’d like to help me out, I can send you the original scripts of each episode straight to your inbox for free two days before they go live, in exchange for your email address: ⁠⁠⁠https://jmks.co/support⁠⁠⁠ You may also...

To end up healthy and happy when I’m old, I made a promise to myself that I now have to keep for the next 40 years. 🙏 SUPPORT If you’d like to help me out, I can send you the original scripts of each episode straight to your inbox for free two days before they go live, in exchange for your email address: ⁠⁠https://jmks.co/support⁠⁠ You may also donate directly: ⁠https://jmks.co/donate⁠ 🧠  TIMEST...

Some people pick AI chatbots and tools based on features. Others, like me, let pure vanity affect their decisions! Like an X handle! 🙏 SUPPORT If you’d like to help me out, I can send you the original scripts of each episode straight to your inbox for free two days before they go live, in exchange for your email address: ⁠https://jmks.co/support⁠ You may also donate directly: https://jmks.co/dona...

How a shower thought led me to break down my philosophy on life. We’ve all inserted the coin. The game’s already started. Are you ready to go for the high score? 🙏 SUPPORT If you’d like to help me out, I can send you the original scripts of each episode straight to your inbox for free the moment they go live in exchange for your email address: ⁠https://jmks.co/support⁠ You may also donate directl...

I went for a Temu pickup and came out… empty-handed! It’s the first time a courier package of mine ever went missing, but the whole experience made me reconnect with the outside world. 🙏 SUPPORT If you’d like to help me out, in return, I can send you the original scripts of each episode straight to your inbox the moment they go live: ⁠https://jmks.co/support⁠ 🧠  TIMESTAMPS 00:00 The story of a m...

What if the one habit you’re thinking of cutting is actually the one thing keeping you balanced? In this episode, I share how daily walking transformed not just my body, but my mind, creativity, and discipline. From early-morning walks by the sea to solving work problems on the move, walking became my daily reset — a simple ritual that fuels focus, peace, and better decisions. If you’ve ever strug...

In my free time today, I’m talking about how one simple but powerful rule — thinking in probabilities — has helped me make better decisions in life, work, and relationships. From my early days playing Blackjack and poker to how I now approach creating content on YouTube , I explain how the logic of risk and reward can completely change the way you see everything around you — your investments, heal...

I went for a ride with the roof down and came up with a new idea for the title of my podcast! 🎬 Chapters 00:00 - Intro 01:01 - Changing the podcast title 01:57 - YouTube update 04:17 - Work from home and business life 06:35 - I am getting old 08:41 - How I filmed this video podcast 10:45 - Why I made this podcast 12:46 - The best advice for content creators 🎦 Podcast episode on YouTube: https://...

Updating you about health, wealth, and family issues currently playing out in my life, before we left Skyros Island. 🎬 CHAPTERS00:00 Why I’m recording this podcast 01:56 Why I didn’t script this episode 02:37 What I’m discussing today 03:57 What I did in Skyros for 10 days 06:19 Walks with wife & swimming in April 09:33 How I counted calories 10:33 Work Talk 14:10 Health Talk 19:08 Wealth Tal...

In this episode of The Makos Cast, I dive into the pros and cons of teleprompter reading versus off-the-cuff talking. As a documentary filmmaker, I’ve tested both methods while filming myself in interviews. I’m sharing insights based on my recent experience, like how a teleprompter improves precision, but spontaneity shines when speaking off the cuff. 🔗 LINKS 🎦 Podcast episode on YouTube: ⁠https...

Recently, I had to explain the cryptocurrency market to a beginner who happened to be a legal advisor and was interested in buying Bitcoin. At the same event, I showed another dad how to buy Ethereum. So, today, I am telling that story and what we all learned from it. 🔗 LINKS - Why I don't talk about gambling as a professional gambler: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/jimmakos/episodes...

As I have built a career based on predictions as a professional gambler, I thought of sharing my predictions on Artificial Intelligence and how AI will affect different lines of work. 🔗 LINKS - How I expect AI will disrupt the Gambling industry: https://jimmakos.com/ai-gambling-disrupt/ 🎦 Podcast episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/imhK24xSXII 🎙️ Podcasting Challenges as a Non-Native Speaker: ⁠...

I didn’t post online 74% of the notes I took down in August. So, in today’s podcast, I’m going through all the ideas and thoughts I had in August and took down on my Notion database. (That 74% is an estimate; I didn't actually calculate the percentage) 🔗 LINKS 🎦 Podcast episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/jpVMiq4X0k0 🎙️ Podcasting Challenges as a Non-Native Speaker: ⁠⁠https://jimmakos.com/p...

Ever wondered why a professional gambler like me stays silent about the very thing that made me successful? I’ve spent years making money from gambling, but today, I’m going to reveal why I don’t talk much about it and why I never promoted gambling as a path to success. 🔗 LINKS 🎦 Podcast episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/FY6X9K28VXo How to Become a Professional Gambler: https://jimmakos.com/p...

Can a talking head video grow a YouTube channel? I used to doubt that. But no more. After my latest podcast episode flopped, I almost didn't upload this very episode. Thanks to this video by a Japanese man, I now believe authentic, raw, real talk on camera may be the best video I can make! And it's not an outlier. More and more talking head videos make it into my YouTube feed on a daily ba...