Michael sender. Not a rebellion, but a compromise

Many successful businessmen and top managers have gone through setbacks and failures. And not only in business. Mikhail Sender is no exception. It is today that he leads the large classified site Kufar, and once, while still a schoolboy, he dreamed of a musical career. In 2007, he created the musical group Dreamgale, which managed to record an album and three singles, rotated on the radio. But music did not bring success to Mikhail: in 2011, the group ceased to exist. He did not give up - and was able to build a successful career in a different direction. Mikhail Sender shared his story with us.

— I have always been a very measured and diplomatic musician, and continue to be a creative and philosophical manager. And I don't think I've changed much since then. Unless he combed his hair a little and dressed neater.

And it all started a long time ago...

When I was seven years old, my mother suggested that I go to a music school. I categorically refused: arguing that I don’t like music and this is a girl’s occupation. However, I was a little hypocrite - music has always lived in my soul. I constantly listened to it, tried to write and record songs on a tape recorder. When I was twelve, I realized that it was impossible to write music without knowing how to play anything. Then I came to my mother and asked to send me to piano lessons.

Mom bought me a piano under the Belarus brand...

As soon as I sat down at it, completely unable to play and read notes, I immediately began to compose music. This is where my musical career started.

Later I met Dima Palagin, my future bandmate. He knew how to play only with spoons on pots and bowls, which significantly undermined his authority in the family. At some point, he also decided to learn to play the guitar, and we rushed to compose music together. Believe it or not, we created the first drafts of some songs as schoolchildren in 1997-98.

In 1997, my mother and I emigrated to Sweden, but this did not stop Dima and me. We wrote letters to each other - paper letters - to which we attached our new sketches in the form of notes and texts. And when I came to Minsk in the summer, we sat down at the computer and produced what we had previously sketched.

We tried to make strange music

It was atmospheric-instrumental, somewhat close to the New Age style. Our first project was called Pilgrim. After that we renamed it Sagapolis. Then they decided that they needed to do something more accessible to the masses, and they came up with Dreamgale.

We wanted to have female vocals. Placed an ad. Our first vocalist was Sanna Lövstedt, a very talented singer. But it didn't work out with her. And under unexpected circumstances, we met Sofia Mattsson, the younger sister of the famous Hollywood actress Helena Mattsson, with whom we worked very well. As a result, we have formed a new genre, which I call "gothic pop".

Our target audience was very undefined. We wanted to please everyone, but at the same time we tried not to adapt to anyone. Perhaps this was part of the guarantee of the insolvency of Dreamgale as a commercial project.

At first we had one Swedish manager, Kevin Kane. He had great faith in the project. He introduced us to the famous producer, Per Adebratt, who previously produced Ace of Base and Army of Lovers. But we had a very different vision of the format, and ended up working with other people. And in Russia, my friend helped us with the promotion. I remember that in 2011 alone, she arranged for us about 40 interviews with Russian and Ukrainian radio stations.

Our songs were first played on Swedish radio stations. Then rotations began at the Baltic, Russian, Belarusian and Ukrainian stations, mainly regional and niche ones. The mainstream channels didn't really want to play us.

Eight tracks from our album got into rotation on Belarusian stations, which for a modern artist should be considered an incredible success. Maybe the law on 75% of Belarusian music helped, or maybe the patriotism of DJs - I don’t know. Despite our little knownness, nowhere else did they turn us around like in Belarus

We have always considered Dreamgale a studio project, and therefore avoided live performances. It's very difficult to perform live with this kind of music. At that time, this required a lot of equipment, personnel and training. Dima and I did not like to do this. It was more interesting for us to sit in the studio and do production and recording. Besides, we didn't have enough hardcore fans to fill the concert hall. Somehow discussed the possibility of a joint tour with the Vacuum group, but did not agree. But they just tried to perform in clubs in front of a drunken crowd, which any music comes under 0.5, they tried it - they didn’t like it.

Our business plan was ridiculously naive

We expected to make money by selling music, as was done in the 20th century. For a long time, we refused to understand that in the 21st century, paid music has no future from the point of view of the performer and even the author.

It seemed to us that with the help of Internet technologies it would be possible to bypass the layer of music labels and keep a large share of each sale, even with an overall decrease in sales due to piracy.

We also hoped that Internet piracy would sooner or later be stopped. As a result, the pirates were supplanted by paid streaming services, on which only the same major labels manage to earn money due to their huge catalogs. For individual performers, only concerts, merchandising and side income from outrageousness remained from possible sources of income.

It remains only to state a commercial failure

We didn’t want to do concerts, we didn’t have enough outrageousness. It remained either to fold the wires, or to work further for the soul. At the same time, we never dared to devote ourselves to music 100%. We always had a “normal” life in parallel: school, university, career. There was hope that we would achieve our goal, but we always lived at the expense of something else.

We have released one album and three singles. In 2011, while working on the second album, we realized that we were tired of this project. There was no longer a desire to invest in it all your free time. And since it brought very little income, it would not have happened otherwise. Such projects can exist only on sincere enthusiasm. When enthusiasm fades, it's time to close the project.

The thought of returning to the stage never left me. There are too many unfinished songs left that deserve to be heard someday. But I can't say that I plan to do it. Rather, I hope. And it's unlikely to be in the Dreamgale format.

A rare top manager walks 10 kilometers, works at a table in a standing position, looks for extremely spicy dishes in a cafe, and on weekends finds the strength to fly to his bride in Stockholm. The hero of the My Working Day website project was the founder of the largest Kufar ad platform, Mikhail Sender, who destroyed the stereotypes about how the heads of companies live and work.

Help site. Mikhail Sender was born in Belarus, spent his early childhood in Nigeria, grew up in Sweden and studied in the Netherlands. In high school, together with friends, he created a rock band, but did not earn money with music. After studying at Stockholm University and the Stockholm School of Economics, he worked in different countries. It was under his leadership that Kufar was launched, which in a couple of years turned from a small site into the largest ad platform. Since 2018, he leaves the company and moves to Stockholm to devote more time to the bride and take on new projects.

“I walk for health, I compose music for the soul”

Mikhail meets us in the Stalinist living room near Victory Square. A modest but well-maintained apartment reveals its owner in small details. Musical instruments, Swedish books, and above the bed a huge painting of Venice with gondolas. “I proposed to my fiancee at this place. We sailed in a gondola along the Grand Canal, I knelt down, took out a ring - everything is like in a fairy tale, ”the interlocutor confesses.

In the bedroom, attention is drawn to the electric piano - not everyone is able to play this.

- Music has a meditative effect on me, sometimes I just want to play. I don’t seem to be a vain person, but I only perform my compositions, which I have been composing since I was 12 years old. Playing someone else's has always been uninteresting, - says Mikhail. - A couple of years ago I had the opportunity to try something of my own, but I decided that it was not the time and I had already become a slightly different person. Now I'm not going to make music professionally - rather, it's the need of the soul.

Next to the bed, on the floor, there is a retro TV and a radio receiver – stylish “guests” from the Soviet past:

The TV looks like it's from the 70s, but it's actually from the 90s. It is, of course, black and white. I took him from my grandfather's dacha, and he is still that hoarder, ”recalls Mikhail. The radio is also not as old as it seems. They were produced until the end of the 80s, although they remained in design in the 70s. Now this one looks like a rarity.

Pay attention to the 12-pound dumbbells that "hid" behind the sofa. “You have to be in good shape. Recently, I have been doing it several times a week, ”explains the interlocutor.

Mikhail says that he lives in constant motion and prefers to do without a car. For example, one gets to the office from home and back (which is about 2 km in each direction) on foot. In total, he walks about 10 km a day - the fitness tracker regularly shows 15-20 thousand steps.

“There are no problems with “earning” dinner for yourself,” the top manager jokes. - In general, you need to take care of yourself, make sure that you actively move. In Scandinavia, a healthy lifestyle has long been a trend. It is also cultivated in large companies. The same fashion comes to Belarus.

Walk to work and adapt to the global world

And now Michael invites us to go down the stairs and walk to the Upper Town. While we are walking along the avenue, we are talking about the “translation difficulties” between Belarusians and Swedes.

Almost everyone in Sweden speaks English. It is also taught at the university. Specialists are trained for the fact that we live in a global world. Fluency in English is a hygienic factor. Swedes have been watching original Hollywood movies and series since early childhood. And they cannot even imagine that it could be otherwise.

According to Mikhail, “if a society does not teach people English, then it “sews up” specialists within its economy and blocks their exchange.”

“Besides, at some point, very expensive expats with the necessary competencies will have to be brought into the country. And then the national economy will lose in global competition. And people's salaries will remain low.

Many classmates of Mikhail Sender have found work in the US and the UK - Scandinavians are generally willing to migrate. Sweden is also open to expats - it accepts people even more than it “gives away”. “Companies can recruit employees from any country, they don’t care about nationality - they look at resumes and competencies. In the offices of international companies, knowing Swedish is not so important. For example, in the Schibsted media concern, which owns the Kufar ad space, the main language is English,” the top manager notes.

Belarusians and Swedes also differ in their attitude to life, Mikhail believes. He wonders why Belarusians are waiting on the state, instead of opening their own business and earning much more.

— It is very profitable to do business in Belarus. You can register an individual entrepreneur in one day, and taxes with “simplification” are low - only 5% of the proceeds. You will not find this in other European countries. That’s where the country is lagging behind, it’s in technology and business models,” the source said. - First of all, you need to learn how to promote goods and services. In the internet age, many entrepreneurs are stuck offline. To make them closer to buyers, we once launched online storefronts with everything ready - so that the user registers on the site today and submits an ad, and tomorrow he already receives the first interested customers. Gradually the situation is changing for the better.

Mikhail believes that the lack of experience and knowledge also hinders the Belarusians. In his opinion, people are afraid to start something on their own and take risks, and good ideas are often lost due to doubt.

— Many in the country did not really learn how to run a business — everything was learned from personal mistakes. And then it worked. However, times are changing: new technologies are coming, competition is increasing. Those who worked the old fashioned way run the risk of being out of work, - the interlocutor throws up his hands. “Fortunately, they started to help. For example, we recently launched the Kufarization project, with which we went to the regions. Everyone could listen to lectures for free, get advice on taxes and play a quiz that we developed together with MozgoBoynia, and at the same time win a prize for business development. In my opinion, if large and medium-sized businesses care about the economy, they should help start-up entrepreneurs. Because without them Belarusians will never be rich.

The interlocutor suddenly stops near the bridge and shows us the decorative vases.

- Just look! Not so long ago painted, and the paint has peeled off. A year later, everything will repeat itself according to the same scenario. I'm surprised that fences, bridges, etc. have to be repainted every year for state or municipal money. And also the tiles on the sidewalks, which buzzed everyone's ears. Why is there so much? Michael is surprised. “After all, more than half of rural roads are unpaved. That is, money goes to tiles even where people do not go, although instead of this, you can create a normal infrastructure in the countryside.

“I am an extreme foodie. The sharper the better for me."

On the way, we stop by a cozy cafe for breakfast. The waitress, seeing Mikhail, immediately offers a buffet and receives an approving nod. A few minutes later, a couple of slices of ham, sausages, syrniki and a spoonful of Olivier are on the table. A minute later they bring a cappuccino.

- I can afford more in a cafe. But at home you have to save money for breakfast - there is catastrophically no time. I either make quick oatmeal with raisins, or some kind of cereal with milk and very rarely scrambled eggs, our interlocutor admits.

But when Mikhail finds himself in Stockholm, “breakfast turns into a festive ritual”:

There are people for whom breakfast is the main meal of the day. For example, for Emily, my fiancee. She devotes a lot of time to preparing everything, arranging 7-8 plates on the table, and laying out the products beautifully.

A top manager drinks a lot of coffee - explains this by the placebo effect:

“I tell myself that he cheers me up. In fact, this is an excuse to move around a little: walk around the office, see what's going on, talk, change the scenery.

Mikhail is a big fan of southeastern cuisine, and he also cannot live without spicy food.

- There is a lack of spicy food. I'm generally extreme in this regard. I sometimes take food according to the principle: the spicier, the better. If an Indian restaurant has a dish that says it's the spiciest in the country or city, that's a sure sign to me that I have to try it. Although there are practically no cafes and restaurants in Minsk where they know how to cook really spicy dishes, the interlocutor admits.

Once the passion for sharp almost played a cruel joke with Mikhail. It was in the center of Stockholm - at the kiosk with hot dogs.

This hot dog is famous all over the country and is called hara-kiri. The owners of the shop claim that this is the spiciest hot dog in the world, and I readily believe it. There is even a challenge: whoever eats this hot dog in less than a minute and does not drop anything is given a T-shirt and put on the list of favorites. True, before that they are forced to sign a contract, that they cannot vouch for the consequences, ”says Mikhail. So, when I tried it, it seemed to me that the end of the world had come. The chili, of which there is already so much, became even hotter after heating. A minute passed - and a terrible shiver went through my whole body, although I ate only a third. Then came apathy, I was shaking and feverish. I will not advise anyone.

But Mikhail, being in Minsk, does not miss Swedish dishes. The national cuisine of the region is specific, not for everyone. Many rare dishes are associated with tradition, but ordinary Swedes are hesitant to try them.

- There is a fish with the untranslatable name "surströmming". In fact, this is a small sprat, which is pickled by rotting. Historically, it was simply buried in the ground for storage, and it rotted there and created a sour taste. It is so smelly that when some joker at school poured liquid from a can of fish under the locker, everyone was evacuated - they thought that the sewer had burst, - Mikhail recalls.

Office "on its feet" with a view of Westeros

We quickly head to the office, which is located in the city center. As soon as he crossed the threshold, Mikhail greets the girls and “high-fives” - he claps his palm on his palm.

We don't shake hands, we clap them. Such gestures bring us together and distinguish us from others. Everyone feels like a single team and cherishes the traditions that they themselves once invented,” explains the head of the company.

A world map catches your eye, on which individual countries are marked with multi-colored carnation buttons.

- The map shows where we dominate (Schibsted media concern. - Ed.), And where are competitors. Among them is Facebook, which is popular in the world, but in Belarus, for various reasons, has not become a leader. Although in the same Mexico it is used by more than 90% of Internet users.

We go into the office and find ourselves in ... Westeros: the interior is designed in the style of the "Game of Thrones", and on one of the walls there is a view of the seven kingdoms. If you look closely, you can find elements of corporate history. For example, a campaign billboard under the slogan "Be happy", in which a man hugs a car with joy after buying it at Kufar. "Rejected" for the low level of aesthetics and ethics. But now this is already a story that we also value, ”the source notes.

Attention is also attracted by lifting tables, the height of which can be adjusted as desired - they are installed in all offices. It turns out that the top manager prefers to work standing up and even refused a chair.

- It's to stay in shape. A sedentary lifestyle is harmful, but a standing one is much more useful. Moreover, you do not just stand all the time, like an idol, but shift from one foot to another, - explains the interlocutor. - At first it is difficult, you constantly think about it, but after a couple of weeks the body gets used to it. Now I sit only at meetings, or when I am very tired.

We notice pebbles on the table - we ask about their origin:

- A couple of years ago, my fiancee and I traveled around the United States - from the east coast to the west. Somewhere in New Mexico we passed a small Indian settlement, where we looked after ourselves a souvenir. It turns out that in this state there are deposits of such a stone, and the natives carve everything they can out of it. These stones can be bought by weight. I decided to take it for myself to keep my fingers busy. True, when they fall out of their hands, they scare people. So I ended up switching to a spinner.

Our attention was drawn to a huge certificate for 20,000 kuf next to the table. We ask if Mikhail received an annual bonus.

- Well, I would not refuse. This is exactly what the winners of the Kufarization business game received. The prize can be spent on opening an online storefront and promoting goods on Kufar. The certificate has already managed to visit Brest, Gomel, Grodno, Mogilev and Minsk - it has traveled to almost all regional cities, - the top manager smiles.

“The smartphone taught me to fall asleep right after midnight”

Mikhail is always with his smartphone - mobile applications work even when he sleeps.

I have been using the Sleep Cycle sleep monitoring app for several years now. It shows when you go to bed, how much time you spend on it. The graph shows that if a couple of years ago I fell asleep at two in the morning, now it is around midnight. I'm a night owl by nature and I need something to get myself into bed. It’s a little motivating,” Mikhail admits.

And when Mikhail wakes up, he reads world news in bed for half an hour. “As a rule, I scroll through aggregators – international Squid and Swedish Omni, and to find out about events in Belarus, I launch TUT.BY News,” he adds.

Several applications are dedicated to travel. Mileways has been following all of Mikhail's movements over the years. A little more - and the map of Europe will turn into a "web" of routes due to endless flights.

The top manager also uses social networks, and is very active. And he is looking for rare goods at Kufar. “For many, this site has become a place where you can sell a thing that is no longer needed, but for me, to find it, replenish my collection, especially when it comes to musical rarity,” he explains.

“I read Bulgakov in Russian, the Viking sagas in Swedish”

Mikhail is fluent in four languages, so he is not limited in his choice of books. He recently read a historical opus in Swedish, which is not to be found in Russian or English translations. That's why our hero's bookshelf is unusual, "international".

When you know a language well, you think in it. If I read a book in Swedish, then I’ll start thinking in Swedish,” the interlocutor explains. — I read fiction mostly in English. Swedish and Belarusian - rarely. I don’t buy paper books for a long time - it’s more convenient on the iPad.

When Mikhail worked in Russia, he got into the habit of visiting a bookstore close to home. Since the store was not doing very well, sales were constantly going on there - Mikhail bought books in armfuls. Then I read for the first time the novels of Bulgakov, Tolstoy and Dostoevsky.

The interlocutor picks up the book The Reconstruction of Nations by the American historian Timothy Snyder. It describes the history of the development of the territories of Belarus, Poland, Lithuania and Ukraine - even from the origins of the Commonwealth.

— The information is presented here from an unusual angle — through the image of one large state, from which separate new nations were gradually formed. Although history is usually written differently: they take a country and show the origins of its formation,” the interlocutor explains.

The heaviest volume was Franz Benfil's classic Swedish literature, The Red Serpent. Its author tells about the heroic deeds of the legendary Viking.

- The book describes the life of the Vikings in a rather cynical way. That is, we are used to seeing the Vikings as villains who sail, rob, and kill. And here everything is shown from a domestic point of view: robbery and murder were commonplace things for them, that is, criminal culture was a natural element of everyday life for them,” Mikhail notes. - The period is described when the Vikings settled in Eastern European territories, how they dragged their galleys along the portages of the Belarusian rivers, met with the Polotsk prince, and then went to fight with the Pechenegs, the Byzantines. Although this is fiction, I would not look for clear historical parallels.

Among the books, a manual for leaders was almost lost. Mikhail read it when he first became the director of the company and faced the fact that all responsibility fell on his shoulders.

“I should have read something about how others carry this burden. I bought a book called Now You Decide. It is written for the directors of large corporations. And I read it and came to a startup with three employees,” says Mikhail. - To be honest, I did not like the book - it is full of terrible advice, following which you can ruin your life. But I still learned one useful thing from it - from time to time you need to be interested not only in what inspires employees and what problems they have, but also what they fear. I ask this question to each of my subordinates every six months. We now have about 75 people on the team, along with moderators and accounting, and 1.2 million unique users per month, and we continue to grow. I am sure that the development of the project will continue at the same active pace in the future, however, already under the leadership of Artem Rabtsevich. He will replace me at the post very soon - at the beginning of 2018.

“My Working Day” is a project about time management and office and personal life habits. What does a typical work day look like? What does the hero do to successfully manage the staff? What books does he read? What mobile apps do you use and how do they help you manage your personal time? Does he go in for sports, what does he eat and in what general relations with a healthy lifestyle.

“My Working Day” is a project about time management and office and personal life habits. What does a typical work day look like? What does the hero do to successfully manage the staff? What books does he read? What mobile apps do you use and how do they help you manage your personal time? Does he go in for sports, what does he eat and in what general relationship with a healthy lifestyle. It should be reminded that Bernd Rosenberg, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Priorbank, became the hero of the previous issue of the project..html

Beautiful and mysterious - this is how the music of the Belarusian-Swedish project is most often characterized. According to the famous Swedish producer Peer Adebratt(Per Adebratt), thanks to which the world became known Army of Lovers and Ace of Base, the Dreamgale project has every chance of becoming a giant of the world show business.

Dreamgale released two singles "Wonders" and "Life In A Mirror", and later the album “Memories in Dark Crystal”, which brought great popularity in Belarus. Dreamgale's music is known in Sweden and other Scandinavian countries, and is currently successfully finding its listeners in Russia.

The project is based on a mystical story, which has long become a legend in the Swedish media and in the Scandinavian segment of the Internet. Project participants, Belarusians Dmitry Palagin(Dmitry Palagin), Mikhail Sender(Michael Sender) and Swedish Sofia Mattson(Sofia Mattsson) claim to have met each other for the first time... in a dream. Much later, having met "live", they were imbued with an interest in inexplicable phenomena of this kind - and decided to build the image of Dreamgale on this. Translated from English, “Dreamgale” means “storm of dreams”, “a gust of wind that brings dreams”. By the name itself, the guys declare: they are ready to pick up the listener, swirl, quickly take him with them into the world of dreams. Each song illustrates an episode from some dream.

The musicians note that the sound of Dreamgale was formed under the influence of Enigma, Roxette, Nightwish, t.A.T.u., Evanescence, Queen, Pink Floyd and Pet Shop Boys.

The creative concept of Dreamgale determines not only the creation of music, but also the interaction with the listener. Dreamgale is currently running a unique experiment on its website to include listeners in the process of creating music.

Members of Dreamgale:

Sofia Mattsson - vocals/keyboards

Sofia was born on June 24, 1990 in Stockholm. Her older sister is a Hollywood actress Helena Mattson, which is known for the films "Surrogates" (2009), "You and Me" (working title "In Search of t.A.T.u.", 2008), "Special: Awakening" (2007).

Sophia is the youngest member of Dreamgale and combines her music lessons with university studies and a successful modeling career. She spends a lot of time in Los Angeles and Hollywood, working on orders from modeling agencies and just talking with her sister, and when she returns to Stockholm, she splashes out her longing for sunny California in the melancholy tones of music.

Sophia's three main passions in life are singing, dancing and theater. She is the inspiration and driving force behind Dreamgale. Sofia believes that the Dreamgale project has a bright future with its unique, beautiful and powerful sound.

Michael Sender - vocals/keyboards/programming

Mikhail Sender was born on August 3, 1983 in the Western Belarusian city of Grodno, and at the age of 13 he moved to Stockholm.

In high school, he played keyboards in the school band and performed his own song for the first time on the school stage. In 1999, Mikhail and his classmates created the rock band Moonlight, which was then transformed into the band No Sense. At the same time, he was more interested in creating his own music, so he soon left the band and focused entirely on the studio project Sagapolis, which he created with his best friend Dmitry Palagin. In 2005, the idea of ​​​​creating Dreamgale appeared. In May 2006, Mikhail and Dmitry met Sophia Mattson, which was the beginning of Dreamgale.

For Mikhail, good music is a beautiful melody and an impressive arrangement. He is demanding of creativity and believes that simplifications in music or blind obedience to its canons of any one style is a vice that needs to be fought. According to Mikhail, a true artist should never stop surprising his listeners.

Dmitry Palagin - guitar/keyboards/programming

Dmitry was born on March 22, 1984 in Minsk. In 2003 he moved to Stockholm, where he still lives.

Dmitry Palagin taught to play the guitar Sergey Trukhanovich, guitarist of the legendary Belarusian rock band "Krama". Sergei Trukhanovich: “From the very beginning, Dima attracted attention with his eccentricity of musical thinking, which was clearly manifested in the work of Dreamgale. This project is noticeably strong with the energy of performance and powerful arrangements.” Mikhail Sender: “In the studio, Dmitry is a very demanding partner. In the fight for sonic perfection, he will never stop working before the very best is done, and most likely not even after that."

Influenced by the musical ingenuity of Queen, Dmitry strives to mix elements of different styles. The musical scale, the richness of the musical content and the fullness of the Dreamgale sound creates a space for such experiments, which can only be limited by the imagination.

So much has already been said about the protests of spring 2017 that the brain is leaking through the ears. A logical point in the question will be put on KYKY by Mikhail Sender, the director of Kufar and the author of the Antimyth blog (yes, these are his articles “why do we read so much cynicism in our people”). “The worst thing that could happen today, even from the point of view of the Belarusian patriots, is the overthrow of the Lukashenka regime,” Mikhail explains.

Question number 1. Why on the 25th was the excessive aggression of the state against the demonstrators?

It is strange to me that someone expected a different development of events, if not those that happened. Everything was leading up to it. The authorities made it clear that it was not worth going out, that there would be serious consequences. What else could be expected?

Our government has been trying to carry out certain liberal reforms for the last couple of years, mainly in the economy. Particularly does not touch the opposition-minded population. All this is due simply to the critical necessity for the survival of the power itself. There is no longer financial support from Russia. A self-sufficient economy has not been built in 25 years of independence. There are no other financial sources - bridges have been burned with all other civilized countries. In such a situation, there is no other way out than to carry out reforms.

Mikhail Sender, photo from FB

Probably, some people, great enthusiasts and romantics, took this for some kind of transformation and an opportunity to finally move on to a democratic society. Which, it seems to me, was a naive illusion. I myself am an idealist by nature, but it seemed to me that it was quite obvious that there would be no transformation.
It is necessary to differentiate, of course, between the opposition leaders and the people who came out to be indignant at the adopted decree on parasitism. There are those who came out because they were upset and angry. And there were those who tried to lead this protest, to take advantage of some opportunity. Offended people can be understood - emotions played in them. And what did the opposition leaders hope for in this situation? What result did they want? Here you can argue.

Question number 2. What further actions of the state will follow after these events, and should the attempt at liberalization be buried?

I will say not the most popular thing among the Democrats. I really hope that these events will not frighten off the authorities and will not redirect their thinking into an even more authoritarian and forceful direction. From all points of view, this would be the most unpleasant scenario for society, and for the authorities, and for the opposition, and for the democrats.

What situation are we in today? The opposition is very weak. Democratic ideals do not enjoy very broad popular support. Trying to “shake the boat” in a situation where the country is not ruled by a democratic leader, but by a person who is trying to somehow sit and hold on in this “boat” at any cost, can be fraught with much more dangerous consequences than sitting in it with him .

Question number 3. Are there any external forces to “shake the boat” in Belarus?

I've thought about this myself many times. I don’t know the correct answer, but my guess is that it most likely happened spontaneously. As I said, the opposition leaders tried to take advantage of the moment of popular indignation, which was, so to speak, not very massive. Although it was probably the most massive indignation that our opposition movement has seen in the last ten years. Naturally, the opposition leaders were greatly encouraged by this.
I don't think there was any outside influence here, but I am convinced that it would have been if these events had begun to develop in a different direction. If these protests had not been suppressed, if they had begun to develop into something more serious, then here, I am sure, external influence would have made itself felt.

And I am glad that there was no external influence, because there could have been another scenario. Such as in 2010. That's when I'm inclined to think that there was an influence after all. I really would not want the country to be thrown back for 7 years in development. To shut us off from the world again. I would like to keep all those attempts to develop towards a healthy market economy. Let them be carried out slowly, gradually, accurately and contrary to the completely conservative-Soviet policy of the head of state, his ideology and, in principle, his mindset. But at least the movement is finally moving in the right direction.

What has the government, or at least the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, achieved? Belarusian officials - maybe they are opportunists? At least some success. They were more useful than what could be achieved and what the opposition movement achieved during that period. This is probably a very unpopular and politically incorrect thing for a democrat, which I am, and I am not saying this at all as a reproach to the opposition, because the opposition simply had no real influence on the system until recently.

But even if you are an ardent nationalist, a holy patriot. Let's reason. What geopolitical situation is Belarus in today? Nearby there is a dangerous neighbor with absolutely manic imperial moods and ambitions. Nearby there is that regime and that informational propaganda that takes place on Russian TV channels, which, by the way, are watched by the majority of the population of Belarus. In such a situation, the worst thing that could happen today, even from the point of view of the Belarusian patriots, is the overthrow of the Lukashenka regime.

Question number 4. How to find a common language for society and the state now

Society is a broad concept. Depending on who to keep in mind. If we talk about the townsfolk, then I believe that relatively good channels of communication and influence of the “little man” on the authorities have already been set up in Belarus. Considering the possibilities of an ordinary person to influence, sue, complain about some official or state institution, speaking about consumer protection, we see that in Belarus, in principle, everything is not so bad. Of course, with the proviso that corruption is very highly developed, that there is a clan system in power, and certain bastions that will crush any citizen. But in comparison with neighboring countries, everything is not so scary.

As for fundamental changes: I believe that now there is an excellent window of opportunity for those who want to significantly influence the development of the country. Working in business, I see that there is a very active search for solutions and proposals from various ministries. Letters come in a very funny form, typical of our officials, but, nevertheless, there are requests: “Please, bring offers! We are accepting proposals from the business community to improve the investment climate.” That is, there is an active search for solutions. And, obviously, now there is not enough competence and competence in power circles to solve economic problems. That's why I say that the doors are open, the authorities have their ears open. And, despite the fact that the most important holder of power is critically conservative and constantly mentions in his rhetoric that there will be no reforms, we see that the reforms have really been going on for the last two years. And, quite significant.

This is probably the ideal scenario from Lukashenka's point of view. Ideal in a very difficult situation in which he is now: when you need to look for money, but no one brings them in a bag. The essence of the scenario: to carry out market reforms that will gradually activate the economy, while in the short term worsening the standard of living of the population, which will certainly follow. And at the same time constantly talk about the fact that there will be no reforms. This has been happening for a while, and then these protests begin.

Playing a double game: saying that there will be no reforms, and at the same time carrying them out, is insanely difficult. But it's much more difficult to keep doing it when you have popular protests raging on the streets.

Therefore, as a business person, as a person who wants the best for the country, and as a liberal democrat, I want to hope that this country will someday become civilized, developed and democratic. I really hope that this experiment will still succeed. I would very much like civil society to compromise (I won't say with their conscience, but at least with their emotions) and try to think not one step, but two or three steps forward.

Question number 5. What can you do (and think) in this situation?

If you take a crowbar now and destroy everything, nothing good will come of it. It is important to understand one very important thing that many Belarusian opposition leaders do not understand or do not want to talk about it: living in a police state, power can only be maintained by controlling the power bloc.

Even if the authorities had not gone to suppress the action. Even if the protests started to escalate (although I don't think that would happen: too much paranoia - rather, the protests would gradually die out on their own). Even if the protests continued to grow, despite the fact that it was said: “We are for peaceful reforms” (here one can argue: why then collect demonstrations, if for peaceful ones? What do you want to achieve? What, the government itself will go away? Most likely not leave. Not this one, at least). Even if there was some kind of "Maidan", and the government still changed. What would happen the next day? It seems to me that this analysis is very much lacking for those who are trying to lead all these movements and protests.

Suppose you take power, even for a day. How will you keep it in a country where society is permeated with Russian propaganda? In a country where there are security forces, of which there are a lot. Who have been trained and taught for 25 years that it is necessary to kill the Belarusian Popular Front. Who conduct exercises together with Russian troops. Which are imprisoned for Soviet thinking. Nationalist democrats come to power, and what will the security forces do? These one hundred thousand people in uniform? What will they say on all these Russian channels that all of them and their relatives watch? Most likely, they will say that the junta has come to power, that it is necessary to save the fraternal people. And who will these security forces in uniform protect? "Rescuers" or intellectuals, speaking in Belarusian language, talking about the legacy of the GDL? It seems to me that this strategic thinking is lacking. Analyze what will happen in two steps.

I would very much like to have some kind of romantic scenario, a romantic denouement. So that the whole society simply blossomed with tenderness that, finally, we were saved, we were freed.

But I'm afraid that such a scenario would only be possible if there was a leadership in Russia now that could take a completely passive look at the events in the neighboring country. Which, obviously, will not happen under the current Kremlin regime. They (I'm talking about the Kremlin, I have a very good attitude towards the peoples of Russia) consider Belarus as their territory of interests. The Kremlin authorities today are quite obviously set on confrontation and on the spread of their influence in the world, and they will not allow a calm change of power in a neighboring country, except for a government even more pro-Kremlin than the current one.

More thoughts from Mikhail Sender can be read in his blog Antimyth.

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