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
Episode #108: Slow-Traveling the Silk Road, Shamanic Rituals in Nepal, and Co-Founding Galactic Fed with Irina Papuc
Episode Summary
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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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#1 BOOK THAT IRINA RECOMMENDS
TOP 3 FAVORITE TRAVEL DESTINATIONS
TOP 3 BUCKET DESTINATIONS
LOCATION WHERE THE INTERVIEW TOOK PLACE
SPORTS TEAMS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
COMPANY WHERE IRINA WORKED AND MET HER BUSINESS PARTNER
VIDEO GAME MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
MOVIE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
FESTIVALS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
OTHER PLACES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
- Armenia
- Azerbaijan
- Indonesia, Bali
- China
- Georgia
- Germany
- Hong Kong
- India
- Kazakhstan
- Kyrgyzstan
- Myanmar
- Nagorno-Karabakh
- Transylvania , Romania
- South Korea
- Sweden
- Geneva, Switzerland
- Taiwan
- Tajikistan
- Nepal
- Turkey
- Uzbekistan
CONTACT IRINA
Time Stamped Show Notes
[3:22] Irina’s upbringing in Chicago
- Culturally diverse upbringing
- Early interest in travel
- Entrepreneurial tendencies
[7:51] Irina’s Travel Experiences in Europe
- Living in Germany
- Backpacking around Europe
- Studying abroad in Sweden
[11:30] Irina’s Year Teaching English in Taiwan
- Getting rejected from Korea and pivoting to move to Taiwan
- Teaching Kindergarten and adults in Taiwan
- Learning about fruits in Taiwan
- Lessons from living with Buddhist nuns
- Meditation and breathwork techniques
- Learning the value of minimalism and simplicity
[22:13] Irina’s Experience in Southeast Asia
- Impressions of Myanmar
- Water-gun fights on Buddha’s birthday
[27:34] Irina’s Experience in India
- Living in New Delhi
- Holi Festival of Colors in Vrindavan
[35:22] Irina’s Experience in Nepal
- Motorcycle trip from Delhi to Kathmandu
- Her Serendipitous motorcycle accident in the mountains of Nepal
- Nepalese hospitality from local villagers
- Staying with a Shaman in the mountains of Nepal
- Learning Nepalese Shamanic rituals
[43:07] Slow-Traveling the Silk Road in Central Asia
- History of the Silk Road
- Staying with semi-nomadic locals in Kyrgyzstan
- Trying hot horse milk for the first time
- Shopping at one of the world’s largest bazaars in Bishkek
- Learning about Central Asian hospitality
- Traveling to the border of Tajikistan and Afghanistan
- Attending a Tajik wedding
- Sleeping in the back of a station wagon
- Minimalist Living with no phone for a year
- Sleeping on rooftops in Uzbekistan under the moonlight
- Driving through Kazakhstan to the Caspian Sea
- Crossing the Caspian Sea on a Commercial Ship
[59:32] Irina’s Experience in the Caucuses
- The Nagorno-Karabakh region
- Driving through ancient towns in the Caucuses
- Hitchhiking in Georgia
- Traveling from Eastern to Western Turkey
- Going to the Syrian border
- Touring Hasankeyf before it gets submerged under water
[1:06:16] Visiting Romania and Re-Connecting with her Family
[1:08:24] Irina’s Reflections on her World Travels
- What travel means to Irina
- Thriving in fast changing environments
- Taking calculated risks
- Tips for solo female travelers
[1:14:02] Co-Founding Her Digital Marketing Agency, Galactic Fed
- Tips on selecting the right business partner
- Galactic Fed’s Service Offerings for SEO and Paid Media
- Galactic Fed’s Point of Differentiation
- Showcasing real results from real clients
- The biggest mistakes companies are making right now with SEO
- How Irinia scaled Galactic Fed to nearly 100 staff in under 3 years
- Tips for managing a fully distributed team
- The importance of caring deeply about the problem you’re working to solve
[1:27:35] Irina’s Personal Productivity Techniques
- Her ideal travel schedule
- Her week structure and day structure
- Her morning routines, fitness and nutrition regimen
[1:30:56] The Lightning Round
- #1 Book Recommendation
- #1 Travel Hack Recommendation
- #1 Person with whom Irina would most like to have dinner
- #1 Piece of Advice Irina would give to her 18-year old self
- Top 3 Favorite Travel Destinations
- Top 3 Bucket List Destinations
[1:33:00] Contact Irina
