I've spent the last week immersed in web3, learning as much as I can specifically about DAOs — what they really are, the deal with governance models, compliant legal entity strategies, optimal tooling stacks, IRL working examples, etc.

And I've consistently circled back to this working thesis that the future of independent work needs exactly this.

In my time working on building marketplaces for local creatives or cannabis workers, or even working as a freelancer myself, you realize that the power was never really in your hands to begin with as a contractor.

Had a chat with one of my bffs recently whose an artist and wanted context on all the chatter around NFTs, web3, DAOs, etc...

I entertained him with my limited but growing knowledge.

Here are a few takeaway notes from our convo — apologies if it feels disjoined or doesn't make any sense. I was inspired and wanted to dump out my stream of consciousness. I’ll likely add to this list in the near future.

FYI: This is just a quick note, but honestly deserves a longer dialogue.

There's a lot of contention around the hype, purpose, and future potential of NFTs.

Whether it be around bubble speculation or meme economy shilling, I think the unmistakable thing is the rally of normies getting involved in financial markets at a rate unprecedented.

It's funny to think about a time when the concept was nascent.

I remember creating UI style guides paired with a brand guide and then throwing it over the fence to let the developers figure it out.

We've come a long way.

There’s a common thread between the works of all great designers.

It’s that designing with a cultural lens is integral to everything — to have the level of deep understanding of the space you operate and the community your work serves to create the things that have the type of outsized impact they do.

It's not all that novel of a realization, but it's something that I think because of its seemingly obvious nature, many have trouble articulating, understanding, and defending, including myself.

So, I decided it's worthwhile to write about, both as a resource and reminder for those out there to leverage on their journey as they build for the future, and an exercise for me to make sure I’m not full of shit.