Eliot's Crypto Newsletter - Don’t Giving A Fuck Is The New Flex
Hey there! If you want to join 1,493+ other readers learning about internet-native communities, make sure to subscribe to this newsletter. Popular status signals have lost all their magic. The once renowned list of entrepreneurs Forbes 30 under 30 is now depicted as a hub of criminals; shilling your prestigious job titles on Linkedin will only turn you into a meme, and Justin Bieber removed his Bored Apes NFT from his profile picture a while ago (a lost, truly). In an age of abundance, the power law of status signal has been reversed. And the new cool is to simply don’t give a fuck. Bragging Has Become An Implicit Sign Of Low StatusJust a couple of weeks ago, a dude named Dustin Varano decided to flex his latest achievement on Twitter, hoping to receive a stream of messages from people telling him how so amazing he was. But Dustin received the opposite reaction. The post quickly generated over 20M impressions, and thousands of people started making fun of him—tough crowd. In reality, it's not what Dustin posted that turned him into a meme (even though bragging about being on a yacht with 15 dudes is a weird kind of flex). It's simply that everyone spotted the flex. And nothing is as unimpressive as someone trying too hard to impress. It's like wearing a neon sign that blinks "Desperate for Approval, Please Like Me." It's just cringe. Don't try this at home. No, do you know what Dustin should have done to flex successfully? Counter-signaling. Do the absolute opposite of what he did. That's what the REAL cool kids are doing. They show they are so well off that they can afford to engage in activities and behaviors that people typically associate with low status. Don't believe me? Let me make my case. Jack Raines, one of my favorite internet writers, publishes weekly blog posts about Finance and Career advice. In a couple of years, he grew his following to ~45,000 readers and has now managed to live from his writing. Now, with his large audience and such promising opportunities ahead of him, you'd assume Jack would polish his Linkedin profile and showcase his impressive Newsletter’s stats to please potential future advertisers, right? Well, he is doing the exact opposite. He publishes satirical posts on Linkedin like this one, pretending he has landed a new job at Goldman Sachs by beating other candidates at a beer mile. With such kind of shitposting, Jack makes the buzz, sure. But he also attracts the wrath of those who think he is being serious, and prevents himself from being hired anywhere. That’s stupid, you might say. But that's the whole point. Jack is so good at writing that he can afford to counter-signal… … which makes him even cooler and well-employable for those in the know. *What a life* Cobie, a thinker, writer, and crypto OG with 730K subscribers on Twitter, is another great example. He publishes fascinating blog posts on his Substack, and trust me, he's smarter than you and I combined. But guess the tagline of his newsletter? "Web3 Idiot, I publish without proofreading and then wish I did." His Twitter bio? "Trying to kick a multi-decade internet addiction." See, there's no mention of "Forbes 30 under 30", "ex-Google," or "founder of a very cool startup." He simply shows the world he doesn't give a fuck - and it works. Alright, allow me a final example here. Jason Levin is an online writer who I like to read from time to time. For some reason, I recently decided to go check his Linkedin profile (don't ask me why). Here's how Jason describes his past professional experience working as a writer for a crypto publication on Linkedin: "I partied at crypto conferences, interviewed a bunch of nerds, and wrote articles 3-5x/week for newsletter to 90,000 in crypto." When he describes his other experiences, you can read: "I drank a lot of coffee and made dank memes." Now that's a flex that's so nonchalant it's practically a mic drop. Yet, Jason seems to be doing a comfortable salary writing for startups. Why? Because don't giving a fuck is the new cool. There's a reason why Elon Musk, one of the most powerful CEOs on the planet, doesn't show off with a Ferrari on socials but posts memes every day, smokes on a podcast, and fights in a cage. Because showing you’re so well off you can afford counter-signaling is the new ultimate flex. See, we humans are a simple species. We're wired for validation. And oh boy, do we chase it. Most of us are actually NOT desperate for more money and we’re not THAT impressed by people showing off how rich they are. We’ve seen so many pseudo-influencers flexing their net worth on Instagram that we’re much harder to impress. But every single one of us is desperate for more attention, status, and respect. And this will still be true in a 100 years. In an era where flexing how so rich you are has become too obvious to convince anyone, counter-signaling is your new best chance to get attention. Because while money can still buy you an island and pretty much whatever you want, money doesn’t buy you the intangible delight of knowing that people secretly admire you anymore. Closing ThoughtsAfter being bombarded with the “Here’s how I became a millionaire in 10 steps” threads, most of us learned to discount information where there are obvious motivations to exaggerate. And don’t giving a fuck has quickly become the new move to subtly say: "I succeed so easily I don't need to flaunt my achievements - quite the opposite" Because do you know what’s cooler than winning in 2023? Showing others you’re winning so easily you can even afford counter-signaling. Speak soon, - Eliot PS: What did you think of this article? If you enjoyed today's edition, let me know here - It'll help me understand what you want me to write about (and it only takes you 10sec). PPS: Substack just launched their Referral program. If you want to help me spread the world, I want to reward you:
Invite your friends and earn rewardsIf you enjoy The Modern World Builder ✧Tips For Collective Lorecraft, share it with your friends and earn rewards when they subscribe. |
Older messages
That Whole Applications vs. Infrastructure Bullshit
Sunday, July 30, 2023
It's not all-or-nothing, you know.
4 simple ways to win every crypto argument
Sunday, July 23, 2023
What? Crypto Twitter is an echo chamber?
The Paradox Of Crypto Success
Sunday, July 16, 2023
You're supposed to pour in endless effort, but it's also supposed to seem effortless.
For The Love Of God, Can We Write Better Web3 Stories?
Sunday, July 9, 2023
Crypto doesn't have to be that complicated, really.
How To Start Writing Online?
Sunday, July 2, 2023
Explaining the tactical side of the writing game.
You Might Also Like
Bitcoin market poised for potential bull trend resumption amid ongoing redistribution phases
Monday, April 29, 2024
Santiment CEO predicts Bitcoin bull trend resurgence post-halving, advises vigilance ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
Crypto Market Pulse Weekly – ₿ Bitcoin Hits Record Daily Number of Transactions
Monday, April 29, 2024
$BTC hits record daily number of transactions. Spot $BTC and $ETH ETFs to start trading in Hong Kong on 30 April. Franklin Templeton listed its Spot Ether ETF on US DTCC. ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
Analysis: What changes have occurred in the L1 Infra track in recent months?
Monday, April 29, 2024
Author: Laobai From ABCDE Edited:Wublockchain Recently in the primary market, the hottest track is undoubtedly AI, followed by BTC. About 80% of the projects discussed daily are focused on these two
Bitcoin Makes History By Becoming The Scarcest Asset In The World
Monday, April 29, 2024
We bring you the top stories in crypto every week! Stories like... Monday April 29, 2024 Sign Up Your Weekly Update On All Things Crypto TL;DR Bitcoin Makes History By Becoming The Scarcest Asset In
Polygon leads in EVM efficiency as DeFi users favor low transaction costs
Sunday, April 28, 2024
DeFi activity analysis finds side chain solutions like Polygon more cost-effective, although Ethereum secures most transaction fees. ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
Asia's weekly TOP10 crypto news (Apr 22 to Apr 28)
Sunday, April 28, 2024
1. Hong Kong Bitcoin and Ethereum Spot ETF to Launch on April 30 link On April 27, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange announced the inclusion of several ETF shares into the Central Clearing and Settlement
A Path Forward: Retro Funding and Revitalization | BanklessDAO Weekly Rollup
Sunday, April 28, 2024
Catch Up With What Happened This Week in BanklessDAO ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
Polkadot community backs SnowBridge for seamless Ethereum integration
Saturday, April 27, 2024
The SnowBridge proposal has enjoyed unanimous community support and could go live in 28 days. ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
Weekly Project Updates: Binance Launches Renzo on Launchpool, EOS Introduces New Tokenomics, $SAFE Begins Circulat…
Saturday, April 27, 2024
1. Starknet Foundation Announces Airdrop Redistribution of STRK to Three User Categories link The Starknet Foundation has announced that it will distribute STRK tokens through a retroactive airdrop to
OP's Superchain Vision | Layer 2 Review
Friday, April 26, 2024
Quick Reads and Hot Links Covering the People and Projects Who Are Scaling Ethereum ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏