Unmasking the Rorschach

CT: Your VIP Pass to the Greatest Show in Crypto (Clown Makeup Optional)

Good to see you all again! You can reach me personally on Twitter and reach out to the P1 crew over at contact@pageone.gg for potential guest writer posts, project collaborations and sponsorships alike.

Alright, anons, gather 'round. We're about to dive deep into the rabbit hole that is Crypto Twitter (CT). You might've come across an article recently that painted CT as a "schizophrenic cesspool" that contains as much value as a $SAFEMOON NFT.

Let’s break it down, shall we? First, though, I‘d urge you to read his article titled “The Rorschach of Crypto Twitter” in its entirety.

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Introducing the VC who couldn't

There is a very popular quote that floats around in the CT space

"Those who can’t do, become VCs" - Sun Tzu

Now, let's talk about the elephant in the room – or should I say, the bear in the market. Our original author (Matt) seems to have joined a crypto firm right before the market decided to take a swan dive off the high board, execute a triple axel, and belly-flop into the pool of pain. Talk about bad timing, right?

Why work to get a CFA certificate when you can just put that in your Twitter username like yours truly

Imagine walking into a casino, putting your life savings on red, and then watching the ball land on green. That's basically what happened to our author, but instead of a roulette wheel, it was the entire crypto market. No wonder they're seeing Crypto Twitter as a schizophrenic cesspool – they're probably still dizzy from the market rollercoaster.

Now in all fairness, this can quite literally happen to anyone and we‘ve all bought the top of a coin that we all thought was going to go up higher. Public professional sites with LinkedIn also have a different set of norms to adhere to and more often than not, your professionalism is also noted. For all we know, Matt could have a secret CT account that is more receptive to CT as a whole having been ingrained in this culture. However, I do have to question the gloom and doom take that offers no solutions and calls everything “a skem”. There is only so much that we can go off of and we also have to question the intention of the article in the first place, which is probably my biggest gripe with this.

But here's the thing: CT, like the crypto market itself, goes through more cycles than your local laundromat. What looks like a dumpster fire during a bear market can transform into a hub of innovation and excitement when the bulls start running (again, see SOL). It's all about perspective and sifting through the “barrage of noise that makes signal virtually an impossibility” at the end of the day. Sounds like a skill issue.

Remember: The projects everyone's calling a scam might be the next blue-chip (or not, DYOR)

The key is to stick around, curate your experience, and remember that in crypto, today's FUD is tomorrow's FOMO.

So, while our friend might be seeing CT through the fog of a brutal bear market, the rest of us know better (surely). We've been through winter before, and we know that spring always comes – usually right after you've panic-sold everything.

1. "No One Knows Anything" - Isn’t that the Point?

Our original author seems to think CT is a wasteland of ignorance. Newsflash: that's the whole point. CT isn't about knowing everything; it's about knowing just enough. What flavour of information you seek out is what you receive in droves. That can be shitposts, Astrology for Men technical analysis, narrative discussions or the flavour of the week (L1’s and L2’s ad infinitum).

Think about it:

• Where else can you find a blockchain dev from Tokyo shitposting with a DeFi researcher from New York at 3 AM about what e-girl is better?

• CT is akin to a 24/7 global conference but most people are shitposting and their messages are trying to be decoded by underpaid analysts at JP Morgan after Dimon flipped the switch and says he loves crypto now.

• Remember when everyone and their grandma became an expert on rollups overnight? That's the beauty of CT.

"CT isn't about being right; it's about being part of the conversation. And sometimes, that conversation leads to actual innovation. Wild, I know."

2. Alpha Exists, But It's Not What You Think

No alpha on CT? Please. Alpha isn't just about getting the next 100x gem before everyone else (well, it’s mostly that but not all the time). It's about understanding the pulse of the market, the memes that drive it, and the narratives that shape it.

Real alpha on CT is about:

• Spotting trends before they become trends (SimpliFi, anyone?)

• Decoding the cryptic tweets of project leads (looking at you, Vitalik)

• Deciphering which narratives are about to pop off (AI & RWA coins, I see you)

Remember $PEPE? That wasn't just a meme coin; it was a masterclass in memetic engineering (I just made this up). If you were on CT, you probably saw it coming. If you weren't, well... enjoy your stablecoin yields on protocols that definitely won’t rug you for a profit, I guess. If CT is a “schizophrenic cesspool” with no alpha, maybe just leave? Maybe adjust the user controls of what you’re seeing?

Moreover, as you choose your niche to follow in CT and all you see are bad trades and no one winning, you also have to question the types of people you’re following and question that maybe you’re not following people who can add value to you. If this is the same approach (following the herd) you take for VC investing, you need to question what value you’re adding to the company you’re backing except capital (which is the notion that is all too common for VCs and what most hate too).

3. The Lemming Effect: Your Secret Weapon

Our critic sees the mood swings on CT as a weakness. I purport it as a superpower. Being able to ride the waves of sentiment is what separates the greats from the, well, our critic in question.

CT as Your Personal Sentiment Indicator:

• Timeline full of rocket emojis? Might be time to take some profits.

• Doom and gloom everywhere? You're looking at a juicy buying opportunity.

• The key? Emotional distance. Use these swings as data points, not diving boards.

"It's not about avoiding the lemming runs; it's about knowing when to join them and when to jump ship. That's the real alpha, and you won't find it in any whitepaper."

4. “Builder's Paradise” - "Weird" Al Yankovic (or Lil Bubble)

One glaring omission in the original article? The builders. You know, those crazy folks creating the future while the rest of us argue about the coloured candles.

For builders, CT is about:

• Getting real-time feedback on your latest smart contract (as long as it’s not Certik)

• Finding that one dev who can fix your spaghetti code at 2 AM

• Staying updated on the latest tech without having to wade through 50-page whitepapers

• Having the ability to ping a globally distributed, chronically online audience for feedback

The builder community on CT are the real MVP. It's where ideas go from "wouldn't it be cool if..." to "holy shit, we actually did it." And sometimes, those ideas change the whole game. We’ve seen it time and time again and I doubt this changes.

5. Learning, Unlearning, and Memeing

In the fast-paced world of crypto, if you're not learning, you're extinct. CT is like a university on steroids, minus the student debt (though more PTSD).

CT Education 101:

• From "What's a wallet?" to explaining complex DeFi strategies in weeks

• Tuition paid in attention, lessons available 24/7 (sleep be damned)

• A firehose of information, misinformation, and the occasional god-tier shitpost to tie them together.

6. The Human Element: Finding Your Crypto Fam

While our original author dismisses the desire for community as somehow inferior to the pursuit of returns, I believe that they're missing the forest for the trees. CT isn't just about making bank (although that's nice); it's ultimately about finding your tribe.

CT Connections Can Lead To:

• Job opportunities that make your friends jealous (when you’re not laid off in the bear that is)

• Collaborations that birth the next big protocol

• A support network for when the market decides to take a nosedive

Take a look at the Monad cult community. They've turned a purple Pepe into a rallying cry for EVM acceleration as an example of what a community can start as and turn into. Berachain took the same formula and now they have “Vape 2 Earn” protocols being built on their infrastructure. These ideas don’t have an outlet to exist outside of CT and that’s why their existence here makes this space all the more unique.

7. The Meme Economy Is the Real Economy

Do you want to know the true value of a project? Don't look at the TVL, the TPS, or whatever other acronyms the DeFi purists use to invest in (imagine missing the SOL trade because you replied “ghostchain” or “no TVL” to anyone who said the memes, community & devs were still committed in the first half of 2023 (s/o tolks)): Look at the memes & community.

Memetic Backed Value (MBV) 101:

• Quality of memes ∝ Strength of community

• It's like technical analysis (It’s nothing like technical analysis, this works)

This isn't just shitposting; this is MBV in action. And if you're not paying attention to it, you're missing out on the most important & purest distilled-down metric in crypto (and arguably the internet in the 21st century).

Conclusion: Embrace the Chaos

Crypto Twitter isn't perfect. It's messy, it's chaotic, and sometimes it feels like screaming into a void littered with countless contract address shills on cryptic accounts. But you know what? That's exactly why it works.

So the next time someone tells you CT is useless, just smile and nod. They're probably the same people who thought Bitcoin was a scam in 2013. Meanwhile, you'll be riding the waves of the next big narrative, armed with nothing but memes and the unshakeable conviction that comes from being part of the world's most entertaining echo chamber.

"Remember, in the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king. And in the world of crypto, the memelord is god. Choose your inkblot wisely, anon. The future is what you meme it to be."

Thanks to @_tolks for feedback and editing

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