hi it's been 6 months

hi,

this was me a few minutes ago:

it's the 1st time in 6 months i've sat down to write for blok (the longest i've gone without doing so since starting the brand 2.5 years ago).

it's weird cause there's about 2,000 of you that have joined this email list and have no idea who i am or why in the world u're receiving this.

so let's address that 1st.

then, we'll get into 8 things that are new in blok.

leggo.

⊙

so i'm daniel and i created this thing called blok that all of you have interacted with at least once in your lifetime.

• some ppl have interacted with it for 400+ days in a row like isa, savannah and julian • some for over 300 days like chris, rob, amanda and jamie • some for over 200 days like sarit, alexis, alexandra, marley, eric, heath, billy, jess, rabbi shui, david and adam

shoutout to you all:

or:

• you might have downloaded the app and never did anything w it • you could have put your email somewhere and completely forgot about that (until now) • you genuinely still have no clue what u're reading (don't worry there's an unsubscribe button near the bottom, also valid.)

whatever the case might be... welcome.

thank you for giving a few minutes of your precious time.

i'm just a guy trying to help ppl be less distracted in this modern world.

the human brain wasn't evolved to consume a constant stream of notifications and endless breaking news 24/7 - and we all know it!

it's just that as a society we haven't figured out a way to deal with these new technological capabilities.

to me it's obvious we need time to rest and reflect in order to bring out the best and most creative side in all of us.

blok hopes to be the brand that ppl go to when they want a layer of intentionality in their digital lives.

the idea started, and still is, a physical product and an app, but who knows what this can evolve into 10 years from today.

what if there was a blok hotel where ppl checked in a for a few nights to get a ton of creative work done?

imagine you wanted to write a few chapters of your book or paint a painting but hadn't found the time or space to fully bring it to life.

then you'd go to the blok hotel and check in your phone upon entry!

the hotel would be beautifully decorated and there would be other creatives roaming around the hotel spaces. people you could discuss ideas with, eat with, collaborate with, and draw inspiration from.

all the good stuff. none of the doomscrolling.

i think it'd be cool if that existed.

or, what if you got a blok magazine shipped over to your house every month with a set of well curated articles and illustrations on the topics of art, design, creativity, productivity, new innovations, poems and detailed profiles on ppl doing interesting stuff?

that would also be cool (and way simpler to execute ha).

...a man can dream :).

in any case, we're all distracted and that bothers me a lot.

i take it v personally.

when i'm feeling uninspired i go to the late argentinian singer-songwriter facundo cabral, who wrote a poem 20+ years ago titled "you are not depressed, you are distracted".

it starts like this (translated from spanish):

you are not depressed, you are distracted.

distracted from the life that surrounds you. you have heart, brain, soul and spirit... so how can you feel poor and wretched.

distracted from the life that surrounds you: dolphins, forests, seas, mountains, rivers.

⊙

it's a timeless reminder.

anywho. that's a bit about me and the stuff i care about.

what's new in blok though?

here are 8 things you should know about:

1) we're now on android

a lot of ppl asked for this so we delivered. the download link is at the bottom of the email.

2) combine modes

say u're in "work" mode and want to transition to an even stricter setting, like "sleep".

now, instead having to blok and then unblok to achieve that, you can combine work + sleep right from the blok'd screen.

3) invite your friends!

within blok world we now have "friends" tab. invite your friends and keep yourselves accountable :).

4) block adult sites

now every time u're blok'd you're unable to access adult sites (there's no way to toggle this setting off).

5) breaks bloks are now optional

sometimes you need to unblok and check something real quick - which is what break bloks are for.

but, we got a lot of "can i disable the break feature entirely"?

now you can.

go to the mode settings to configure ur break preferences.

6) our website got a cool redesign

go to blok.so to check it out. here's a lil preview:

7) if you don't wanna buy the product, you don't have to

say u're in france and don't want to wait 4 weeks for shipping and also don't want to pay the $20 international shipping fee.

the app now allows you to use any physical product (a shampoo, a book) as a blok. the product's barcode acts as the blok instead.

8) we got featured in abc's good morning america

p sick right?! here's the full segment.

⊙

if you're still with me after all this reading, thanks :).

you're the type of person i write this for.

also, do you have any questions or feedback regarding the product or rly anything else on ur mind? if so, i would love to hear from you - pls don't hesitate to hit that reply button.

in closing, i wanna tell u something that brings this all together:

i moved to miami from san francisco about 2 months ago, and because in blok world you can set your location, i knew that big dog julian castro also lived here:

because i'm a fan of his work (which i found out through his blok profile), i wanted to check out his art studio so i reached out. he ofc said yes.

not only that, but he also invited me to an exhibition he was hosting which was also epic.

this is us not too long ago:

to me, this is what blok is all about:

to connect with yourself and connect with others.

k that's all i got.

namaste, dani.

p.s. here's the app download link for apple and android.

p.p.s. here's the full facundo cabral poem. highly recommended.