Dear Sam (20s),

Firstly, let me tell you what I am glad you did. I am glad that you started the path of self-improvement, you haven’t yet reached your goal yet, but that was never the point anyway. I am glad you see the value in having as few possessions as possible, even if your wife is constantly buying things, things are no more meaningful now than they were then.

With regard to what I believe you should improve, the list is endless, but here are the big ones. Stop being scared! Scared of what might happen if you actually live your life, nothing was ever as bad as you feared. Don’t be afraid to die, because if you’re not afraid to die then you’re not afraid to live. Think more of others, you were always too wrapped up in your own thoughts to be concerned with others, but actually, you need other people more than you’ll ever know. Exercise more, you know then as I do now just how important it is, it is so much more than a way to lose weight. Lastly, believe in yourself, you can accomplish far more than you would ever dream, the sky truly is the limit.

I wish I could tell you what life is like now, but that would be unfair, part of life is about discovery and never knowing what is round the corner. If you knew what will happen then you would get complacent and not live every day like it is your last.

All the best for the future.

Sam (80s)

P.S. Please stop eating the fat on your bacon and all those fried foods, around the age of 30 it all catches up with you and you have to do more running. Which we both know you hate!

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What a fantastic idea this is, it really made me bring into the light things that I know I will regret when I’m older.

Hi Kelly,

I too would echo what other people have said before me, focus on creating great content and it will give people a reason to like your page. Users want to gain value from any page they like, so just think about what would give your target audience value, perhaps that’s links to cute pet pictures or links back to your blog posts. I have always had the mentality of ‘if you build it they will come’ and I think that is absolutely the case with Facebook pages, just focus on creating relevant content and you will find people naturally start to ‘like’ you.

Let’s not also forget that Facebook is a social network, people use the platform to engage with other people. If you’re just on there posting content then they might as well just sign up to your blog RSS feed, it is crucial to interact with your followers on a regular basis. This should be done in two ways. Firstly, respond to any comments, no matter whether they’re good or bad, just respond to everything and every one. Secondly, post questions, ask things that will provoke a response and get a conversation going. Show that you are a real person with a real personality who just wants to share stories with other pet owners.

You should not concentrate too hard on the number of ‘likes’ your page has, but instead ensure that you have the right type of people. It is far better to have less users ‘like’ your page, but interact with you lots, rather than many users who don’t even look at the page.

I hope this helps, best of luck to you!

Sam