đ Introduction: The Name I Wanted to Forget
“For eight years, I hated my own name.”
When I introduced myself, I felt the weight of it.
When I typed it into Google, I felt the shame of it.
When I saw it in headlines, I felt the judgment of it.
Slaven Vujic.
For years, I wished I could erase those two words.
So I tried.
I built fake online identities just to be part of something. I hid behind usernames, pseudonyms, and digital masks because I felt that who I really was no longer had a place in the world.
And for a long time, I convinced myself that this was the only way forward.
But then I asked myself:
đ¨ If I hide for the rest of my life, whatâs left behind me?
The answer was painful: just a narrative I didnât write.
Thatâs when I made a decision. If the world was going to talk about me, they were damn well going to hear my version of the story.
This is how I stopped running.
This is how I started liking my name again.
đ The Shame of Seeing Your Own Name Turn Against You
When your name is tied to scandal, judgment, or public shame, it doesnât feel like yours anymore. It becomes a weapon used against you.
Every Google search.
Every whisper behind your back.
Every time someone says your name with that look in their eyes.
You donât hear your name anymoreâyou hear the story attached to it.
And when the story is not yours to tell, your name feels like an anchor pulling you under.
So you start to detach.
Some people change their names legally.
Some people disappear into silence.
I chose something else: I became someone else, online.
I thought, If Slaven Vujic is ruined, Iâll just create new versions of myself.
đ The Fake Identities I Created to Feel Like I Belonged
For years, I built digital personas just to feel like I could exist without baggage.
I used different usernames, different branding, different online profilesâanything to disconnect from the name I hated.
And for a while, it worked.
When I was behind a different name, I felt free.
Nobody judged me. Nobody whispered. Nobody looked at me as a walking mistake.
But the truth is, I wasnât freeâI was running.
And the more I ran, the heavier it became.
Because no matter how many usernames I created, no matter how much I pretended my name didnât matter⌠it was still mine.
And I was still letting other people define what it meant.
đ The Moment I Decided to Stop Running
One day, I asked myself:
đ¨ What if I do this forever?
đ¨ What if I spend my entire life hiding?
đ¨ What if, when I die, all thatâs left is a version of me that I never even got to define?
That thought terrified me.
Because I donât want to just survive.
I donât want to be a footnote in someone elseâs story.
I donât want my entire legacy to be built on fear.
I want more. I deserve more. Not because Iâm perfect. Not because I deserve forgiveness.
But because I refuse to let the worst version of me be the only one that exists.
Thatâs when I made a choice.
đ Writing My Story & Reclaiming My Name
Instead of hiding behind fake names, I started writing under my real one.
Instead of letting Google define me, I built Genius Fool to redefine myself.
Instead of avoiding my past, I took control of it.
I wrote about my failures.
I wrote about my regrets.
I wrote about the lessons I learned the hard way.
And little by little, something changed.
đ Slaven Vujic stopped feeling like a curse.
đ It started feeling like a name worth reclaiming.
đ A name that carried weightânot just shame, but resilience.
I used to hear my name and cringe.
Now, I hear my name and feel ownership.
Because I took it back.
đ Why I Like the Sound of My Name Again
I donât expect the world to forget my past.
I donât expect every person to see me differently overnight.
But I donât care anymore.
Because I see myself differently.
And thatâs more powerful than any headline, any whisper, or any judgment.
So let me introduce myself again:
đ˘ My name is Slaven Vujic. And I like the sound of thatâagain.
đ If Youâve Ever Hated Your Own Name, Read This
If youâve ever felt like your name was a burden instead of an identity, I want you to know:
â You are more than the worst thing youâve ever done.
â You donât have to erase yourself to rebuild yourself.
â Your name is yours. Take it back. Own it. Redefine it.
It wonât happen overnight. But it will happen.
And when it does, youâll hear your name the way it was always meant to soundâlike something worth saying.
