Hi. I’m John Romaniello. Let’s try this again.

 

Hi. I’m John.

You may know me as Roman—and if you do, it means you know me from the fitness industry, and maybe you’ve read my stuff about diets or push-ups or fasting or supplements. Thanks for that, by the way. Reading my stuff, I mean.

But, I’m not going to be talking about any of that. Not here, at any rate.

Here, for the first time in a very long time, I leave Roman behind. Here, I am going to venture from the safe confines of that industry, and into territory that is unfamiliar to my pen. Here, I will slip out of the muscular carapace of Roman and, bereft of that armor, be perhaps more vulnerable but certainly more agile.

Here I will be, if you would be so kind, John.

And so we come to this site and this post. My First Post—an important one for any site. It sets the tone from the outset and establishes (at least in the mind of the author, if not the reader) what will be discussed, and the way we’ll discuss it. Very important. Very important, indeed.

Is it less so here, because this is not actually the first post I’ve written, but rather my First Post on a new site?

Ah! Now the tone is pontificating, instead of irreverent. Let us say, then, that we shall be irreverent, but make sure to throw in a dash of pontification every so often.

But enough of that. Back to my post—my First Post But Not Really.

Hmm…doesn’t quite have the same ring to it.

Okay. Okay. This is how we’ll do it: we will say that this is my not my First Post, but rather my second First Post. Just as important as my first First Post. Perhaps more so. The writing of it seems altogether more comfortable, but no less strange than when on June 12th, 2009, I hit publish for the first time and sent my thoughts spinning out into the void for anyone and everyone but probably no one to read.

That post was not really about fitness, despite being the inaugural post on a fitness site. To anyone who happened to stumble by, the post said, this guy is not like the others. This Roman fellow is different. At least, that’s what I hope it said. The intention was to set myself apart in the industry—to be funnier (or at least less serious) than others, to talk about things they felt they wouldn’t or couldn’t or shouldn’t.

A friend once pointed it out to me and remarked:

“Of your last eight blog posts, three were about super heroes, one was about Zoolander, two referenced Joseph Campbell, and one talked about Dungeons & Dragons. Maybe you should, I dunno, just write about fitness?”

Should I? Should I really shy away from who I am, and what makes me successful—talking about zombies and heroes and Zoolander and Campbell, instead of just carbs and protein and push-ups and CrossFit?

I think not. And so: a step away.

Moving Along, Not Moving On

The spirit of this blog is very much the same: to be me; a different me than you know, but the most me I can without taking my clothes off. (No promises either way, though.)

The logical question, I think, the one I’ve been asked the most is, are you done with fitness?

No, I’m not. I’ll never be done with it. This site is a step away from fitness, but not to abandon it; simply a forum to openly discuss other things.

FUNCTION & GOAL

And so, the function of this site is to talk about those things. That is the function, but not the goal.

The goal of this site, aside from sharing thoughts and opinions and opening myself up to you, is to become a better writer. And use this as a hub to help others do the same.

These things I will do while discussing things that weyou and I, that is, for what am I without you?—decide need discussing. Sex, drugs, rock’n’roll, certainly; but also movies, books, politics, business, angel investing and writing.

It’s going to be a good time. I think you’ll learn a lot here—perhaps even as much as I will.

I hope you’ll join me.

So, again:

Hi. I’m John.

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About The Author
John Romaniello is an author, consultant, and coach who helps people and brands find their voice through writing. He's published hundreds of articles, dozens of courses, and one New York Times bestselling book. Might wanna check out his Instagram, he's pretty easy on the eyes.