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A Major ReviewMeta Update: Why I’m Stepping Away and Seeking a Successor

January 11th, 2021

Hey RM community – in the spirit of full transparency, I’ve decided to make a public announcement…  

It’s been a wild adventure since launching the site 2016, and I deeply appreciate all the support our community has shown over the years.  However, I’ve decided it’s time for me to move on. 

Why?

This decision really came down to a personal life choice.  For the past 12 years, I’ve been blessed to have been able to make a living working on my own projects from the comfort of my own home.  

Over the last few years, I’ve been getting more and more burnt out by sitting at home and staring at a computer screen for work.  Maybe it was the pandemic that accentuated this feeling, or maybe it was just the natural progression of my career, but my motivation has been waning in the last few years, despite every attempt to revive it.

Seriously, I’ve tried every trick in the book to jumpstart my mojo – pomodoros, time blocking, accountabilabuddies, scheduling, even building a walking desk, etc. None of these external changes were able to fix the internal burn-out I was feeling.  I used to jump out of bed in the morning ready to get cracking on my projects – but recently these projects have brought nothing but dread and procrastination.

When I first started ReviewMeta, I really enjoyed running the site, but these days it feels more like the site is running me.  I’ve made the decision that the healthiest path forward is to step away.

What’s next for me? 

Just before the pandemic started at the beginning of 2020, I got my EMT certificate and have been working part time on an ambulance ever since.  I absolutely love it.  Yes, the pay is horrible, the working conditions aren’t great, but I get to be outside, be part of an incredible team and make a real difference in my community.  

Being able to work with patients face to face (err… mask to mask) and show up to help someone when they need it most – possibly on the worst day of their life – is incredibly fulfilling.

Emergency medicine is now what makes me jump out of bed in the morning.  Even when I finally get home after a grueling 12-hour shift, all I can think about is getting back out on the ambulance.  The next step is paramedic school. It’s going to be an expensive and exhausting year-long journey, but this is what brings joy into my life.  

I’m sure that someday I’ll start another online project.  I don’t know what or when, but I know that I still love using my engineering skills and building things.  However I also know that I need to shift my focus for the next part of this journey we call life.

What’s next for RM?

I can’t make any promises about what happens after I leave, but I can promise you that I’ll do my best to find a successor that will keep the site truest to its roots.  

I’m going to spend some time trying to find a successor who will stay committed to helping inform consumers and bringing transparency to this industry.  And ideally it will be someone with more resources and motivation to take the site to the next level – maybe even do all the upgrades I keep telling myself I’ll do one day, such as expanding to other platforms (Walmart, eBay, Steam, Jet, Target, etc), upgrading the extension/app, building out other features, etc.

One of the reasons I’m being so transparent about this transition is to cast a wide net and help find an appropriate successor.  I’ll be spending the coming weeks (or months) vetting potential acquirers.  During this time, I will stay committed to running ReviewMeta just as I always have been.

Know someone who might be interested?

You can either send me an email or give them my email address: [email protected]

Again, I appreciate all the support and encouragement you all have shown me over the years of this journey – I couldn’t have built RM into what it is today without your love and support.


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