What would change if you could ask for what you want and genuinely be okay with hearing no? You would still have hopes — oh, a lot of hope! You’d just know that even a no wouldn’t destroy you.
The Stranger Experiment
Since July 2025, I have approached 500+ people on the street for my Instagram. It started as street photography, evolved into more meaningful questions, later into free-flowing conversations, and nowadays shared experiences.
I got to experience firsthand how powerful it is to live by the mantra “prepare for the worst, hope for the best”. With every person I approached, I was preparing for the worst: an aggressive rejection.
Guess how many times that happened? Zero! No one was aggressive toward me. Most of the rejections were because people were busy, not in the mood, or not comfortable for whatever reason.
Every time I got further in the process with someone, I felt more confident with the next person. I did not need them to say yes, and I believe people pick up on this. My goal was to make people comfortable enough to tell me their truth, whether it was a yes or a no.
Around 100+ people said yes, and that's where the magic started to happen. My goal was to go into each conversation with a blank state. I did not need anything to happen. I wanted to see how is the energy between us, and co-create something together.
All the conversations were unique in their own way, and I enjoyed every single one of them. With some, there was more synergy than with others, but that's okay. Most of the stories will stay with me forever.
A man told me things he had never shared with anyone in the past 10 years. I got a tattoo at Tiago's shop after meeting him. I met up with Elsa and Aya twice when I went back to Clermont-Ferrand. And there are more beautiful stories like these.
A Fully Furnished Life
Imagine a castle with lots of space. You have 6 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, a huge living room, a cinema room, and a spacious garden. You have a clear vision of how the space should be filled.
You want a specific sofa from Finland. A La Marzocco coffee machine because why not. An Eight Sleep mattress because you heard about it on a Tim Ferriss podcast. Let your imagination go wild! Every single inch of the castle can be designed exactly as you like. How beautiful.
The above description fits the life I was designing for myself. I had a long list of things I need to do. My ideal partner was someone who has all the same interests as me. I wanted to have the same conversations with all the people in my life. If it's the weekend, it had to include a long day in the mountains and a half marathon.
The castle was full of things I love, but there was no space for anyone to enter. I did not want to inconvenience myself by inviting people over. That would mean changing my routine, and maybe something unexpected will happen.
Decluttering My Home
Approaching strangers started to show me a different way of living. I slowly started to let life surprise me, and beautiful things started to happen.
Conversations I could not have imagined previously became second nature. I discovered a way of loving I did not know existed before. I posted a video inviting a stranger to Georgia, and now he is sitting next to me on the train to Mestia.
I started meeting people where they are instead of where I needed them to be.
I still have my home, and I would not get rid of certain things. Like the dishwasher. The lighting has to be warm; white lights should be forbidden from homes. The sofa is comfortable, and I need it to recover.
The things I will not get rid of are the values I would not compromise on. There will be some of me in my house. But I want to leave space for other people in case they want to enter. If they do, I want us to figure out together what our shared space looks like.
I am no longer attached to a specific outcome beyond my core values.
A Blank Canvas
Every new interaction is a blank canvas, but neither of us arrives empty-handed. I bring my colors, you bring yours. What we create depends on both of us.
I started to approach every situation with this mindset. I care about presence, curiosity, kindness and respect. I don't care what you read, what stage of life you are at or if you like long hikes.
I don't need your participation for my peace to exist. I would love you to say yes, of course. And depending on what the invitation means to me, a no might hurt. There might even be grief. But I know I will recover.
I can tell you what I want. I can ask you to join me. I can make space for something to happen between us. Then I have to leave enough room for your answer to be real.
Sometimes that answer creates a story I could never have planned. Sometimes it ends with a no. I will keep making the invitation anyway. Because some of the most beautiful things in my life started with me reaching out without knowing what would come back.
And I think I want to keep living like that: with a home that still feels like mine, and enough empty space for someone else to bring their own furniture.
What would you ask for if you knew you could handle a no?