New Year’s resolutions usually aren’t my thing. I enjoy setting goals, but I typically do so on a weekly or monthly basis; short-term targets feel more attainable and grounded for me. This year, however, is different from so many others.
I moved to a new home and made bold decisions to carve out more independence across finances, wellness, and relationships. I parted ways with my corporate job and have been observing a more creative calling in the crypto space — meeting Bitcoiners and NFT enthusiasts, publishing newsletters and articles, and even filming just to “see what happens” (what happened: a few people watched, I had fun making thumbnails).
My lifestyle has shifted, so my goals and timelines have too. I came up with five resolutions this year based on my crypto journey thus far and the milestones I’m excited to achieve in the coming months. My hope is that these might serve as a lightbulb moment for your own thoughts and aspirations in crypto — or maybe you’ve already checked these off your list and can feel a sense of pride knowing how much you have accomplished in 2021.
For the past few months, I’ve been toying around with NFT ideas to create, convert, and upload — maybe even sell. As part of a collective launched by @alchemistpoetry on IG, I’ve been dabbling in world-building and NFT creation with talented poets and artists.
It’s so inspiring, and I’m realizing that the ingredients it takes to make a non-fungible token are right at my fingertips.
I have some sketches and concepts that I’d love to put forth into the world early in 2022. If this is something you feel called to, I’ll let you in on a little secret: there are lots of great creative tools (from editing tech to AI-generated art to Twitter accounts for inspiration) that can help you get started.
My first steps into the world of decentralized currency took place within the halls of Pomp’s Crypto Academy, a digital Bitcoin learning space that provided a lively foundation for growth. This initial investment prompted me to join more accessible classes through MIT Open Courseware along with Copenhagen Business School and Stanford on Coursera.
While I enjoyed all of those, and may even revisit a couple, the is infinite (and even affordable). I may never want to stop learning in this space.
My top choices for 2022 are blockchain tech classes on Coursera, fintech Bootcamp offerings, and basic coding classes (via Coding Dojo, Udemy, or OCW). The beauty of continued education in tech is convenience; insight doesn’t always have to carry a crazy price tag or restrictive schedule.
One of the things I love most about the crypto community is how kind-spirited, celebratory, and hopeful it is. The spirit of WAGMI is not to be underestimated! The people I’ve met in seminars, creative collectives, and across social channels through mutual connections have all encouraged me to pursue my dreams and taught me so much about various topics in fintech. That said, there are some gaps in this community that should be addressed.
One of these is the underrepresentation of women in the space. Most of us are aware that “it’s a thing,” but the numbers still don’t yet reflect the change we hope to see. My third resolution for 2022 is to join more women-run collectives and support more efforts in the crypto space pioneered by women — as well as to help facilitate the onboarding of females showing interest in cryptocurrency.
In 2021, I teamed up with my colleague Maria to create a newsletter called Womxn in Crypto. Our work aims to bridge that gap and educate individuals on Bitcoin and fintech across the gender divide. I hope to continue these efforts next year, but also to amplify this work by joining more collectives and monetarily backing art and tech created by and for diverse, global groups of women. LFG.
DAOs (decentralized autonomous organizations) are groups or collectives that run peer to peer, in order to achieve common goals without the traditional hierarchy native to many companies and corporations. They do this by using blockchain technology to run smart contracts, templated rules, and voting systems through governance tokens.
I once heard the structure of a DAO likened to a “town hall” as opposed to a board room. Since corporate settings aren’t always my perfect match — and I honestly hate climbing ladders and kissing up — this analogy piqued my interest.
While there are certainly some argued downsides to these initiatives (legalities, accountability, resistance to adoption), their pervasiveness and innovation in the space are unparalleled and growing fast. As we see web 3.0 unfold — and spark hot debate across Twitter (isn’t that always a sign that something is increasing in global awareness?) — the role of digital native currency across inventive crypto developments like DAOs is a movement to watch.
Since all this sounds pretty cool, one of my resolutions for next year is to find a DAO that is in need of creative skills like writing or content strategy…and to learn the ins and outs of decentralized autonomous organizations by joining one myself.
I feel certain that this next year will bring forth a lot of change. Instead of fighting it, I want to embrace the weird. 2022 is calling and it may just be telling me to follow the white rabbit and, more or less, decentralize my life. A big part of this is exploring the metaverse.
In this spirit, I hope to expand my world-building efforts on discord and in-game to purchase land, build spaces, and bring NFTs into a hyper-realistic arena. I also want to connect with creative minds through educational talks, crypto conferences, Twitter Spaces, and beyond — to better understand where artistry and tech collide in this vast digital, cultural underbelly.
It’s important to consider metaverse realities that deviate from centralized models, as surely not all of them do (and like all of crypto, these traits exist on a spectrum). Since this theatre is growing rapidly, my first order of business will be to research the spaces I’m already familiar with — as well as lands I’ve never heard of — in order to better understand the fabric of what’s being created and how these spaces might look in the future.
Next, I want to explore decentralized platforms for my writing and social endeavors. I love sharing thoughts and ideas on more traditional spaces and will certainly continue to do so. But I’d also love to be more adventuresome with where and how I’m publishing or communicating…by exploring more decentralized outlets where I can contribute and connect.
What do you think of these resolutions in the world of crypto and burgeoning tech? Does anything excite you — or is there something on this list you have zero interest in for 2022? I hope this post could give a flicker of consideration or even a sense of hope for all the unknown that’s to come. Because as wild as last year was, it’s the newness on the horizon (and rebels and renegades I see there) that has me fired up for another one.
Note: None of the information in this article is financial advice. It is intended for educational or entertainment purposes only. As always, if you’re looking to make any investment decisions, do your own research and do not rely on any of the material here.