Hello friends!
Today I’m debriefing some of my insights from the conversations I’ve had over the last month in Tokyo. In our podcast, Colin and I are juxtaposing them with a macro perspective and reflecting on how we got here, and what might mean for the future of businesses.
Below you will find our monthly update of the balance sheet and a succinct summary of my observations over the last two weeks.
Time stamps of our conversation:
[00:00:00] Bifurcation of interest and intensity in my conversations with people.
[00:09:19] Sources of honest information - online and IRL.
[00:16:00] Defining a pro-social work environment.
[00:30:11] Skepticism and open-mindedness as essential traits for successful people.
[00:37:54] Aligning values with others, even if they manifest differently.
[00:51:45] Difficulties of running a business for ten years, especially when starting from nothing.
[00:58:44] Proving ideas through action and the value of those who help achieve success.
[01:04:57] Need for mapping novel concepts onto other organizations.
Active projects
Most client projects have been completed, so currently I’m only working on business development and started a few 1:1 sessions with founder friends. Sarah wrote an Article about Zuzalu for EVM and I have done two presentations, one panel, and a workshop at various events in Tokyo.
Total Treasury Balance: $7,560.63 (0.13 BTC)
You will find a more detailed breakdown of our finances at the bottom of the newsletter and more about our treasury allocation in our Treasury Policy.
Starting the research on how web3 tech can scale pro-social organizations
I received a lot of positive feedback on my presentations in Tokyo, mostly that the content is clear and seems like a “wake-up call“. The presentation covers the basics of business management and how to increase internal cohesion, find product-market fit, and efficiently manage resources. It’s based on this article we wrote earlier this year.
However, Deep Work is still mostly a small-scale experiment that doesn’t fully utilize the benefits of web3, except for the use of crypto-native payments. One interesting suggestion I received was to elaborate on how web3 technology can support the pro-social work environments we can create.
Discussing these topics publicly could also help us connect deeper with the tech-focused crowd and create more awareness.
How to develop a unique activity into a paid service
As we’re becoming more autonomous in our efforts, I’ve expanded my workflow as a business manager to support everyone in our community in the development of valuable skills and decide how they can fit into our business.
To illustrate the general process, I designed a concept for an app that aims to guide the development of a unique activity, improve it through iteration and feedback, and ultimately present it as a paid skill-based service product.
Please consider that this app is only a concept and does not have a well-researched business model.
Infrastructure protocols may be a potential customer segment for Deep Work
Over the last month, I’ve been talking to several VCs, founders, developers, and grant managers. I’m still trying to identify the biggest pain points and needs for Deep Work’s services. Based on my 1:1 conversations, most VCs seem uncertain about the current market environment, but not alarmed to act despite an obvious increase in start-up collapses.
Although I don’t have the impression that they are following the macro trends, ecosystem development leads (or protocol founders who sponsored the EthTokyo hackathon) also are increasingly mindful about allocating funds to useful and sustainable projects.
To them, the main goal is driving the adoption of their protocol, which they are trying to increase by encouraging smaller teams and developers to build apps. The biggest challenge is the impact and ROI measurement since building an app takes time and needs good UX. In addition, many teams start building and then drop the project quickly, unless supported.
There may be an opportunity to reintroduce guided remote hackathons involving designers, which we tried a few years ago.
Working through business challenges with other founders
Several founders in my network experience the more urgent challenges - their primary goal is to make their project and mission succeed in an environment of uncertainty. However scaling, business, and people management is difficult. I started working 1:1 with a few, which is very enjoyable and keeps me motivated to think about business-related challenges in our emerging economy.
Recommended reading
The Age of the Crisis of Work by Erik Baker
The author describes his observations of a slow but steady shift in the definition of work.
In this Economy? by Kyla Scanlon
If you also don’t understand how the economy works, you’re not alone. Kyla has a explains news and mechanisms of the economy in very simple terms on social media. Her book clearly, mindfully, yet critically summarises the most important aspects of the global economy. She provides a great set of tools to interpret monetary and fiscal policy decisions and explains how the economy is all just a reflection of human psychology/vibes.
Talking About Interest: Exploring the Role of Social Interaction for Regulating Motivation and the Interest Experience by Dustin B. Thoman, Carol Sansone, and Monisha Pasupath
This paper offers some insights into why we find more motivation in an activity after discussing it. Especially when considering the continuation of a difficult activity, motivation, and interest can be driven by discourse about the activity (agreeable and disagreeable) and constructing a shared reality.
Detailed financial breakdown for August
Revenue: $30,580
Balint completed two design projects for clients he worked on individually.
Profits: $180
Profits are still low, but we started generating income through the Awareness team, by writing articles for the EVM Fund.
Internal payments: $221
Rory and Vesta organized a dinner in Berlin during the Web3 Summit and invited several founders.
Operational costs: $717
Slightly lower this month because I canceled unused Figma seats.
Have a great start to the week!
Andrej
Share this post