On The Other Side ep 52 - Values & Taking Care Of Each Other with Maxwell Kanter
Primer: Values drive our behaviour. In this episode of On The Other Side, Maxwell Kanter shares how the Ethereum Foundation’s values permeate the entire ecosystem and help us to seriously consider how to care for one another.
Background
Started paying attention to crypto in 2020
His cousin, who has been trading crypto since 2016, explained his interest in crypto to him
In 2021, his friends launched a generative art NFT project called KIKI BOUBA
At that time, he was in graduate school taking a course in emerging technologies
Decided to dive deep into DAOs
Lifelong Learning - Mindset Of A Student
There are legitimate experts in the crypto space who have never gone to school for anything related to crypto
It does not matter who you are or what your past is. If you put in the effort and are motivated enough to learn about crypto, you can succeed
In contrast, legacy institutions and industries have many gates and barriers to entry
Importance Of Values
💡 This is with reference to FTX imploding.
Mistakes are always going to happen
If everyone has strong enough values, it could mitigate the severity of those mistakes
“The best way to learn, hands down, is by failing, reflecting on why you failed, and then trying again, iterating.”
- Maxwell Kanter
Doesn’t work in SBF’s case. There are certain lines that cannot be crossed
It’s not so much an educational program, but the need to have an alignment of values
Need to have organizations, such as the Ethereum Foundation, leading with their values
Values That Ethereum Foundation Has Stewarded
Ethereum Foundation has 3 principles:
Long-term thinking
Subtraction
Stewardship of values
Subtraction was mind-bending when he first encountered it — the organization is happy when other people have opportunities, they give things away, they celebrate the success of others, etc.
The Ethereum Foundation has done a wildly successful job of growing the ecosystem
Thoughts On Subtraction
Need more subtraction in the space
Ethereum, as a whole, has these values
Examples are the Ethereum Support Program and ethereum.org
It enables more opportunities for other people
At the face level, there seems to be less work going on
In reality, it’s more work as it requires people to vet things and accept the suggested edits
“Subtraction is like you're doing more to enable other people to do more.”
- Maxwell Kanter
Nurturing A Community Vs Top-Down Ruling
Building a product is like being in a relationship. You have to love yourself first before you can love and take care of other people
Web3 needs to have a better culture of self-reflection and knowing oneself and their needs
A lot of people encounter challenges while contributing to DAOs:
Nothing for them to do
No one cares about them
Bear markets are not just time to build, but to take care of one another
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