Episode #108: Slow-Traveling the Silk Road, Shamanic Rituals in Nepal, and Co-Founding Galactic Fed with Irina Papuc

Episode Summary

Irina Papuc takes us through her upbringing in Chicago, her experience living and traveling through Europe, and her decision to move to Taiwan for a year to teach English. She shares her lessons from her time in Taiwan including living with Buddhist nuns and learning the value of minimalism and simplicity. She then shares her experiences on her travels through Asia, including water-gun fights on Buddha’s birthday in Myanmar and the Holi Festival of Colors in Vrindavan, India. Next, she takes us on her motorcycle trip through Nepal, including her experience living with a Shaman in the mountains and learning Nepalese Shamanic rituals. Irina then shares her journey slow-traveling the Silk Road without a phone, and detaching from the outside world. She tells stories of staying in yurts and drinking hot horse milk in Kyrgyzstan, attending a Tajik wedding near the border with Afghanistan, sleeping on rooftops in Uzbekistan, and crossing the Caspian Sea on a commercial ship. She then shares her experience hitchhiking around Georgia, avoiding mines in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, traveling to the Syrian border in Turkey, touring the town of Hasankeyf before it gets submerged under water. She also reflects on the conclusion of her journey when she eventually made it back to Romania to re-connect with her roots and meet some of her family members for the first time. Next she talks about co-founding Galactic Fed, a multi-national digital marketing agency, and explains how she selected the right business partner. She explains why she founded it as a fully-remote company, how she differentiated her business and scaled it to nearly 100 staff in 3 years, and explains the biggest mistakes businesses are making today with their SEO. She gives tips on managing a fully distributed team and shares her personal productivity, nutrition and fitness routines. FULL SHOW NOTES AVAILABLE AT: www.TheMaverickShow.com

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About the Guest

Irina Papuc

Irina Papuc is the co-founder and Managing Partner at Galactic Fed, a multi-national, remote-first marketing agency that she built while traveling the world and scaled to nearly 100 staff people in under 3 years. Galactic Fed provides companies with a suite of services ranging from copywriting and paid media to SEO strategy and analytics. Irina’s clients range from Fortune 100 companies to startups and small businesses. Born in Romania, as a small child Irina immigrated to the U.S. with her grandparent. She then grew up primarily in Chicago and is now a full time digital nomad who has traveled to over 40 countries. She attended Universities in 3 different countries, has an undergraduate degree in Particle Physics and a Masters Degree in Cultural Anthropology.

What You'll Learn

Irina’s Tips for Solo-Female Travelers
How to Avoid the Biggest Mistakes Businesses are Currently Making with SEO
How to Select the Right Business Partner and Manage a Distributed Team

Links From the Episode

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