This wasn't the article I'd planned on writing next. But the idea for this post came to me while watching Bitconned, the Netflix documentary about the Centra scam I recently reviewed. There's this scene when the guy they hired to be their CFO--the former male stripper--is tasked with answering questions from the thousands of Centra investors who had joined their slack channel...

Basically, his job was to keep the community happy. And despite what you may think, that's exactly what it was, a community.

A community is defined as "a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common", and these people definitely had something in common: their investment in CTR. Like fans of any sports franchise who spend their time on some online forum discussing their favorite team, the Centra investors were no different.

What I'm getting at is that it made me think about the word community and what it really means. I'll tell you right now I've never seen myself as a community guy. The word itself always had a bit of a negative connotation for me. I'm not the type to do community service, or make decisions based on what's best for the community, but rather based on what's best for me and my family. But I also realize that doesn't mean I hate other people, or that I want to live on some remote island away from the rest of humanity. That would be downright depressing, not to mention unhealthy for my children, but would also seriously limit my own personal opportunities for growth.

So I've decided I've changed my mind about how I feel about communities. I've come to the conclusion that I actually do want to be part of one, so long as it's the right community for me and mostly shares the same fundamental values that I hold dear.

I want to be part of a community that is opt in, where no one is forced to join and can leave at any time. One that is full of like minded people who share the same goals and incentives, and a similar vision for the future.

This doesn't mean we will always agree on everything, but my hope is that the core values we do share will allow us to achieve enough consensus to continue collectively moving forward. Core values like freedom of the individual, freedom of speech, freedom of association, economic freedom, of respecting the property of others, and last but not least, the belief that a purely peer-to-peer electronic cash system can bring more prosperity and abundance to the world.

But how do we create such a community? I don't know, but I'm guessing good communication will play a role. This includes keeping eCash supporters up to date on the latest news, listening to stakeholders to get their input, and ultimately attracting new people by raising awareness about the project and its values.

However, while shared values and good communication may be part of building a strong community, I'm not sure those things alone are sufficient. Let's look at the communities that form around sports franchises. I'm guessing New York Yankees fans don't need to know anything about each other besides the fact that they're all Yankees fans. They care about things like the team's performance, the latest trade rumors, how the manager's treating the lineup, and the organization's future overall. And while I'm sure there are plenty of people who love to spend hours upon hours discussing all of those things on Yankees Twitter, or r/NYYankees, what I see as being perhaps the most important tool in bringing their community together is the fact that they can collectively cheer the team on, whether it's in a stadium full of fellow fans, or while watching on TV at home knowing there are millions of other Yankees fans all over the world doing exactly the same thing, all united in their passion to forge a unique connection between them.

With the eCash community, I don't see it any differently. We're all rooting for eCash to win, but instead of rooting for a final score, you might say we're rooting for number go up.

Please don't get me wrong. I don't want to be part of a community that does nothing but root for a number, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't be allowed to cheer when our team is winning. I also don't want the value of XEC to go up for no reason, or because the project is manipulating people's emotions with hype and fomo. I want the price to go up because the project is creating real value through hard work and innovation, value that can make us all wealthier together, and in the process make the entire world wealthier.

So that's the goal. Let's create the best community in all of crypto. One that is well informed and educated, and also bound by our mutual desire to see the eCash project succeed.

Like I said, I've never been much of a community guy, but maybe I just never found the right kind of community before. I'm hopeful that the eCash community could finally be the one I've been looking for. A community that I'm happy to volunteer my time and contribute to, because I believe that if the community does well, I will do well. A community that encourages people to act in their own self-interest. A community that no one is forced to join and also doesn't exclude anyone else from joining. A community that acts as a Schelling point for anyone out there that has specific questions about the eCash project as well as those who are looking to contribute in whatever way they can.

In the coming months and years, I hope to see this community grow and reach new heights, and I plan on being here through it all. If you're interested in being part of this community, or just staying up to date on the latest news about the eCash project, join the official telegram or discord channels, sign up for the eCash subreddit, or follow the eCashOfficial account on X.

I also plan on hosting a weekly space every Monday, alternating between the morning (8am PST) and evening (10pm PST) each week so that anyone who wants to join the conversation will have the chance to do so. I will expand on the ideas I cover in my blog posts, answer any questions that are specifically related to the articles I published that week, as well as invite other members of the community to come on and talk about anything eCash related.

As always, thank you for reading, and let's work together to make the eCash community the best community the world has ever seen 🙂

Building the eCash Community