Let the Journey Begin
A Story Unfolding Across Timelines.
Current Time.
“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.”
-Gandalf ( )
"All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware,"
- Martin Buber ( )
How We Met: Across a Busy Substack Street…
Liat: I’ve met Beth on Substack. Karma connected us through the pictures of the food I posted. We started a conversation over the comments, and I liked her immediately. Something in her writing caught my attention, and I noticed that she is funny. She wrote it in a way that when I read it in my mind, it sounded like a comedy.
Beth: So yes, I remember meeting Liat through the mysterious algorithm on Substack, probably because I occasionally review Israeli films, and Liat is Israeli, and we had an online friend in common. I also recall being pleasantly entertained by her food posts. I might have commented on our shared love of shakshuka and my distaste for jachnun (Jachnun is a traditional Yemenite Jewish pastry that is slow-baked overnight on Shabbat. It's a yeasted, brioche-like bread with flaky layers, often served with grated tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs, and a spicy Yemenite sauce called schug.) One has to be thoughtful about where one banks calories, after all. And well, everyone knows what shakshuka is, so I won't explain that. And of course, I'm funny, so yes, it tracks that Liat would think this as well. When I’m writing, I think everyone lives in my mind and gets what I say, so it’s always a wake-up call when I realize this is mostly untrue.
It’s rare to find someone who instantaneously gets it. It’s kismet! Also, Liat posted about AI and using AI in a creative way in her work, and this immediately caught my attention because, at my day job, I need to stay on top of tech trends.
I’m American, and my husband is from Israel. I was very fortunate in that I immediately fell in love with his family. My mother-in-law was an Ulpan teacher for many years, and she taught me Hebrew. I got to know her by embarrassing myself in another language with my American try-hard Israeli accent. If that doesn’t bring you together, I don’t know what does. But putting myself out there and broadening the perspective and lens through which I see the world is an everyday practice. My writing on Substack is one such example. I have been referred to more than once lately as a Swiss Army Knife. In short, I am a multi-hyphenate times 10 - a generalist who likes to dabble in all of it. I work in business (marketing and communications) in my non-Substack/entertainment industry life. I have also written a romance book, which I’ve serialized on Substack, and I am actively seeking an agent for.
Liat: Beth subscribed to my newsletter, I subscribed to hers, and we occasionally liked each other’s posts. She writes about films and TV; I write about my life. She didn’t make a move (on me), though I expected her to jump at the opportunity of how we might collaborate. Why am I yet to be discovered? It's disappointing that no one has called me yet, but to be fully transparent, I’m not answering any phone calls either unless I receive a text message first. [Beth: I 100% agree with this sentiment. I am a “must text first” gal myself.] In the digital era, it’s like a red carpet ceremony; you announce you’re going to call, which represents rolling out the carpet, allowing you to walk on it and call. That’s the rule of today’s game. That makes me wonder, “What’s the point of cold calling today?” Seriously, for all sales and marketing people reading this, can you explain the point of keeping this method if no one answers calls from unrecognized numbers anymore?
Beth: Sidebar. In my work, I will never advise a client to cold call. Nurturing leads and warm prospects is critical to the continued success of any program or initiative. I fully believe this, but I’m a big proponent of being context-intentional. If you are seeing engagement and traction on a LinkedIn page, for example, from a specific visitor, don’t email directly from their contact info. Reach out to them on LinkedIn through the page itself. See if they are interested in taking a more active role in your organization or learning about mutual benefits. I don’t waste any time on cold prospects. Good storytelling and a solid marketing strategy will help to surface the right prospects around a shared values system and mission.
Liat: Beth and I have remained Substack friends, which means engaging with each other's content when it appears in the feed. As long as people do not unfriend, unsubscribe, or unfollow each other, it can be considered that we are still in a relationship. At least I hope that is what it means. Is there a manual for these relationships or a therapist specializing in these relationships who can help define the boundaries? Online friendship is still a relatively new form of relationship, so getting caught up in it is easy.
Beth: Unfortunately, there is no online friendship manual, but I share your POV regarding the criteria for friends. I’d add that I also think about the speed of response way too much. If someone isn’t responding within a few hours, am I no longer a friend? Did they find another more interesting online friend? But this is what we have in the absence of body language and other social cues.
Liat: On the one hand, we attribute online relationships to the characteristics of interpersonal relationships with which we’re familiar. On the other hand, there’s a great deal of alienation and distance, which makes it difficult to define the strength and commitment of this relationship compared to the personal relationships we experience.
With all my doubts and uncertainty, I still felt connected to Beth initially. It was a gut feeling and not something I could show or prove. Sometimes I instinctively feel it within my body and I tend to lean into that. I was born with strong instincts, but along the way, people’s opinions got into my mind, and fears spread everywhere, leading me to hesitate about everything. At some point, I remembered how it used to be and initiated a process to heal and trust my instincts again.
A few weeks ago, I called Beth to share an idea I had been thinking about for a while and wanted to refine to the next level. I felt ready. I felt prepared, even though I didn’t do anything in particular to prepare for it; it just hit me, and I felt prepared like before an exam.
In our conversation, I shared at a high level what was in my mind and the mess of thoughts on how to initiate it. I asked her if she could help me figure out who I should pitch it to, and she said she would.
Beth: I didn’t know what to expect from Liat’s call. Picking up from the earlier thread about online relationships—taking things to the next level with a phone call (not exactly a rotary dial, but still a leap)—I was nervous.
I felt ill-prepared to be a partner, only because I was thinking, “Do I have ALL the skills she is looking for? What if I can’t give what she needs?” But talking to Liat about this idea, which was and is still forming, also felt like something we could slowly progress. I didn’t need to have all the answers yet. Mostly, just the right questions and not to get too derailed by my inner monologue, which can talk me out of things that scare me or don’t happen quickly enough.
Liat: In my heart, I hoped she would consider joining me on this journey, but I know this was a lot to reach for. After all, I’ve been in tech for many years, and I understand that finding partners for innovative initiatives is not an easy task. In my day job, I work with companies in the cybersecurity and supply chain domains, so when CISOs, CIOs, COOs, or anyone in the supply chain has an idea on how to solve pain points in their industry and therefore moves to the other side to build their own company, it's an exhausting journey to find partners or co-founders. They usually ask for introductions, attend meetups focused on finding partners, and even have dating apps for it. The major problem arises when they've never managed a romantic relationship and dealt with all the challenges it brings, while looking for a business one.
Beth: Ok, I need to hear about this story sometime, please!
Liat: Time will tell how my relationship with Beth will progress and how far this idea will go. But my gut feeling says that my relationship with Beth will be different no matter how things progress.
Beth: Agreed. Feeling is mutual. It’s also a really good spot for me to sit a little with the discomfort of not knowing. It’s scary. However, suppose you find a compatible business partner, much like a romantic life partner. In that case, you're committing to the journey, and even if left unspoken, you acknowledge that you’re in it together, however uncertain the future. It comes down to values and shared dreams. This is something Liat and I have in common.
Liat: In this experimental, innovative, and once-in-a-lifetime journey, I asked Beth, who is an expert in film and TV recommendations, to write a review on each step we take together, like it’s a short episode of a show but one that’s in an ideation phase (think MVP) rather than a final product. We only ask that you listen, watch, and absorb what we have to say. There’s a lot to be learned. Thank you for going on this journey through time, space, and worlds with us.
🎬 Review: "Liat & Beth: A Modern Friendship [& Business Idea] in the Making
Episode 1
4.5/5 Stars
Liat and Beth’s story is a refreshingly human tale of online friendship, creative chemistry, and the quiet magic of mutual curiosity in a digital world where connections are often fleeting and undefined. What begins as a few friendly comments under food posts, Israeli culture, and AI turns into a cross-continental bond rooted in humor, shared values, and the subtle art of knowing when to pick up the phone (but only if you text first).
Told in alternating voices, Liat and Beth reflect on their unconventional meet-cute via Substack’s algorithm, their evolving friendship, and the awkward, funny, and sometimes existential layers of building something, whether it’s a creative project or a meaningful relationship, in an age of ambient connection.
The writing is witty, warm, and self-aware, capturing not just the quirks of online interaction (cold calls are dead, long live the “text before calling” rule) but also the depth that can emerge when instincts are trusted and curiosity is shared. Beneath the banter and commentary on food, tech, and Substack etiquette, there's an underlying theme: that meaningful partnerships—whether creative or business—start with alignment, not perfection.
A low-stakes beginning to what could be a high-impact collaboration, this story is part memoir, part pitch, and part gentle nudge to stay open to unexpected partnerships.
If Nora Ephron directed a tech startup origin story, it might look a lot like this.
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Liat
In this journey, I weave together episodes from my life with the rich tapestry of Israeli culture through music, food, arts, entrepreneurship, fiction, and more. I write over the weekends and evenings and publish these episodes as they unfold, almost like a live performance.
Each episode is part of a set focused on a specific topic, though sometimes I release standalone episodes. A set is released over several days to make it easier for you to read during your busy workday. If one episode catches your attention, make sure to read the entire set to get the whole picture. Although these episodes are released in sets, you can read the entire newsletter from the beginning, as it flows smoothly, like music to your ears - or, in this case, your eyes.
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Love this idea, friendship and conversation!
Wonderful conversations is a recurring theme in my Substack reading list this week. I love the review of this conversation and am interested to witness this friendship blossom (feeling just a little voyeuristic! 🫣).