Welcome to a new week. What’s the coolest thing you’re working on right now?
Knowledge
Scarcity in Demand
Let’s talk about NFTs — one of the hottest trends on tech Twitter right now.
An NFT, or Non-Fungible Token, is a non-replicable, completely unique digital identity assigned to a virtual artifact.
They are the closest thing to a “deed” for online collectibles. An NFT serves as proof of authenticity, enabling ownership across digital boundaries.
For example, NBA Topshot is minting digital highlights that can be owned by the highest bidder. It’s trading cards for a new generation.
If you’re thinking, “who cares?” — the real question is: “who cares about scarcity?”.
Most people don’t.
They’re perfectly happy hanging a generic reprint of the Nike poster showing Michael Jordan dunking from the free throw line.
Why?
Because they value the print for the art alone, not the intrinsic value of the object itself.
For the people who value scarcity, it goes beyond the art. It’s about ownership; “mine”. It’s about seeing return on investment.
Ultimately, it’s about identity.
The owner of the reprint may enjoy the art, but the owner of the original poster draws energy from the art; from knowing that it’s rare and a piece of history.
Scarcity matters to those with an identity stake in a particular niche. In this case, basketball. But it applies to art and collectibles more broadly.
Any deep set of interests can be commoditized into an NFT, because the most devout 1% will pay for scarcity. It’s who they are.
Wisdom
Success is Circular
There’s an incredible parable on success. It’s called the Fisherman and the Investment Banker, and Sahil Bloom wrote a thread on it this past week.
Here’s the short version:
A fisherman in a small village lives a modest life of leisure. Wakes up, has a nice morning, fishes for a bit, spends time with family, and enjoys an evening in town with friends.
An investment banker visits and proposes a business plan that will enable the fisherman to scale his efforts into a multi-million dollar venture.
The fisherman politely declines, explaining that any gains from the business would be spent trying to create the life he’s already living.
Success is circular.
Past a certain point, money stops becoming wealth. Gains end up being spent on buying time, and on creating the space necessary to achieve a life of leisure.
It’s important to know how you define success before blindly pursuing it, because more isn’t always better.
The fisherman’s life was everything he desired. He was already more successful than the investment banker. Dollars aren’t always the measure.
I think many of us ultimately chase wistful visions of what our lives will be like when we’re successful. And they look a lot like what our lives were like right before we started working all the time.
Money is useful to the extent that it can reverse the need to work all the time, but it doesn’t change how we wish we could spend our time.
Inspiration
Interstellar achievement
This clip speaks for itself.