Something stinks in Web3.

Maybe you’re surprised by that statement but you shouldn’t be. While Web3 is full of innovation, amazing people, brilliant startups, and new opportunities, it’s also full of overworked and underpaid individuals trying to survive.

There are a few coveted positions with unicorn startups that offer equity and other jobs that offer great pay, flexible hours, and the freedom to get your work done without your boss breathing down your neck.

It’s not all bad. On the whole, it’s pretty good.

But you must be careful when walking through the new digital forest, if you aren't, you might find yourself running from wolves.

Here’s what you need to avoid if you want to thrive in Web3:

Doing The Work Without The Pay

This happens in a few sketchy ways.

Let’s say you apply for a job and the company gets back to you. They want to conduct a series of interviews and ask you to complete a task. This task is a “test” to make sure you can do the work.

“That’s fine. No problem,” you think. It’s reasonable for the company to want to know you can handle the job.

The task is to complete a full marketing strategy for the launch of their project. You must include:

What social profiles you will use and why
A full breakdown of each social profile (hashtags, posts, posting schedule, etc.)
Other marketing strategies
Target audience(s)
Outline of a roadmap
… and possible more

Doing all of that before getting paid? I don’t think so. There are too many examples of people going through the hiring process, spending hours putting together their “task”, only to hand over a complete strategy to the company and not get the job.

This scenario can also happen right at the beginning. Let’s say a startup says they want to hire you but before they do, they need proof that you can do the work.

So again, they ask you to complete an in-depth task: create a roadmap for their startup.

I urge you to create a portfolio of your work. Have some examples. Let them know you’re happy to complete a full marketing strategy when they’re willing to pay you for your time.

Web3 isn’t a free for all where startups and projects can get hours' worth of work for zero dollars.

Getting A Job That’s Actually Three Jobs In One

A year ago I was eager to go full-time in crypto. I started a blockchain podcast and completed an internship. I now wanted to jump all in.

I was a bit desperate, at the time I was making $600 a month as a marketing intern and I was having a hard time staying afloat.

So, of course, when I was offered a position working in crypto, I jumped at the opportunity. I didn’t read the job description carefully, instead, I focus too much on the job title.

I was in over my head.

I was technically a “marketing manager” with no one to manage.

My tasks included:

Copywriting on social media
Putting together copy briefs for long-form articles
Reaching out to connect with other communities
Business development
Creating all of the content for social media on multiple platforms. (long-form video, short-form video, photo posts, podcast, etc.)
Managing a community of people on Telegram
Pitching the founder to be on podcasts
Growing the youtube and Twitter accounts
… and more, and more, and more.

In a matter of 6 months, I was burnt out and I hated my job.

That experience taught me a valuable lesson.

Read the job description with a discerning eye. Here are some questions to ask yourself the next time you’re reading one:

Does this position have more tasks than I could reasonably handle?
Does this feel role feel like it should be for more than one person?
Is this to be done solo or is there a team to help?
Is the pay equal to my tasks?

Letting FOMO Guide Your Decision Making

Humans are emotional.

We often make decisions based on emotion or logic and sometimes both.

FOMO means the “fear of missing out.”

When money, status, power, and a sense of belonging are at stake people tend to gravitate toward the emotional side of the spectrum.

Web3 is made up of the internet of things, blockchain technology, and artificial intelligence. Which means it’s also full of NFTs and Cryptocurrencies.

I’ve watched people jump on different crypto bandwagons, and buy NFTs priced way too high, and many, many people lose a shit ton of money.

Before you act on your emotions, take a step back. Do some research. Only spend what you can afford to lose.

Becoming Overwhelmed And Having No System For Learning

There is a gold mine of information and free education in the Web3 space right now.

You couldn’t throw a stick without hitting a free coding boot camp or a free crypto cohort.

It’s absolutely amazing.

But it can get overwhelming quickly.

If you get too caught up in wanting to sign up for every free offer, you’ll end up doing the opposite of what you set out to do.

You’ll be so overwhelmed and unorganized that you won’t learn anything.

Instead, I suggest sticking to one goal. Do you want to learn how to code a smart contract? Good. Stick to that and don’t deviate until you know how to do it.

If you try to do several things at once, you’ll burn out, lose interest and energy, and will be further behind.

Create an organized system of learning - block off time in your google calendar - stick to one goal.

Putting Crypto and NFT Influencers On A Pedestal

Stop doing this immediately. Like, right now.

For any and all influencers. If you have them up high on some horse, take them down.

They’re human, you’re human… we’re all equal here.

Most of these influencers over the past few years have not acted in your best interest. They’ve shilled you shit projects so that they could make money.

Now, making money isn’t bad but having a little integrity in how you do it goes a long way.

If you’re looking up to influencers - well, you’re being influenced positively or negatively.

Especially in the crypto space, you need need to be a critical thinker.

You need to become hyper-aware of the fact that people will always try to sway your opinion and that most of the world is wanting you to buy something.

There’s no shame in making an honest living through sales, copywriting, coaching, etc.

There is shame in shilling products you know will fail or have a high risk of failure.

Take the influencers off of their horses and start doing the research necessary to thrive in the space on your own terms.

There you have it! The toxic underbelly of Web3 and how to avoid it. If you learned anything from this and you’d like to read something else of mine, you can join my newsletter here.

The Toxic Underbelly of Web3 and How To Avoid It

Something stinks in Web3. Maybe you’re surprised by that statement but you shouldn’t be.

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