Update for the week ending Fri, 16 Jan, 2026
Unexpectedly shortened week due to family loss: traveled to Manila, delivered a eulogy, one client interview win via AI, and three blog posts published.
The week was unexpectedly cut very short. On Tuesday, I woke up to my mom's Viber message that my dearest uncle suddenly passed away. I immediately booked a flight to Manila, and was on a plane by evening.
I wrote and delivered a eulogy for him.
Here it is: He Just Took Care of Us: A Eulogy for My Uncle Harry Dy, Tua Yi Tiu
Brave New Path
- Selected welcome gift and shipped it to new client F
- Hosted Weekly Office Hours — Clients K and L met for the first time. L shared how the new AI Agent she built is working well. She used it to send 7 cold applications, landing 1 interview. It is helping her with 3 things — 1) reduce the overthinking in customizing applications, 2) speed up the process of customizing (1h → 5m), and 3) quality is very good, in part thanks to the foundational work we did articulating the details regarding her experience and achievements. It is very promising, and I think it’s time for me to finally incorporate AI Agents into the program.
I rescheduled all my calls for the next two weeks until I’m back to work in Berlin on the 28th. I’m very grateful to my clients for their patience and understanding.
chiaracokieng.com
I wrote 3 posts without meaning to!
- 2026-01-11 – Thinking Like a Player in a Job Market (Not Just a Job Seeker) [originally written as a LinkedIn comment]
- 2026-01-10 – Is building a business supposed to consume your life - even when you do everything right?
- 2026-01-09 – Letter to Josh Doody: On Building a Luxury Business and Learning the Business and the Craft