"The Most Important Scarce Resource is Legitimacy: Building a Second Subconscious"

"The Most Important Scarce Resource is Legitimacy: Building a Second Subconscious"

Legitimacy is a powerful social force that governs various aspects of our lives, including the blockchain space. It determines what is deemed acceptable and legitimate within a social context, and individuals conform to these accepted norms because they expect others to do the same. Legitimacy arises naturally in coordination games, where there is a benefit to having the same answer as everyone else.

In the world of NFTs, legitimacy plays a crucial role. For an NFT to hold value and be recognized as legitimate, it must be accepted by the community as a whole. This acceptance is essential for the ongoing survival and success of the capital flowing within the ecosystem. However, there are limitations to this system, as public goods necessary for the ecosystem's growth receive significantly less funding compared to the capital flowing through it.

To address this issue, we need to focus on building better social technologies that can fund public goods on a larger scale. Philanthropic initiatives are not enough; we need systemic changes that integrate funding for public goods as a regular part of our economic ecology. One potential solution is to adapt the concept of legitimacy to create a more socially valuable system.

Currently, the rules within the ecosystem can be unfair to organizations that support it. These organizations are held to high standards, which can hinder their ability to thrive. Additionally, community support has its limits. If a competing project offers users a better alternative, they will switch, regardless of the community's pro-social recommendations.

NFTs present an opportunity to address the chronic funding deficiencies of public goods, particularly in the creative realm. By establishing a solid channel of funding through NFTs, artists, charities, and other beneficiaries can receive financial support. One idea is to have an institution or DAO "bless" NFTs, ensuring that a portion of the revenues goes toward a charitable cause. This way, multiple groups benefit simultaneously.

Another idea is to work with social media platforms to increase the visibility of NFTs on user profiles. This would allow buyers to showcase their commitment to social causes by displaying the NFTs they have purchased. Combining this with the concept of "blessed" NFTs could encourage users to support NFTs that contribute to valuable social causes.

In parallel to the concept of legitimacy in the blockchain space, there is another exciting development - the building of a second subconscious. This creative oracle provokes ideas and captures them, creating a feedback loop that fuels divergent creative thinking. Unlike traditional SaaS or aggregator models, this tool is personal, multiplayer, distributed, and evolvable.

Personal does not mean solitary. Thinking together can be one of the most interesting ways of generating ideas. Knowledge production is a group activity, and by engaging in collaborative thinking, we can unlock new levels of creativity. The tool also evolves over time, adapting to the changing needs and preferences of its users.

Distributed nature of the tool ensures that it is not owned or controlled by a single entity. Instead, it is a shared resource that allows for a more democratic and inclusive creative process. This approach breaks away from the traditional model of centralized control and encourages a more decentralized and participatory approach to creativity.

In conclusion, legitimacy and the building of a second subconscious are two interconnected concepts that have the potential to shape our future. By harnessing the power of legitimacy, we can create a system that supports public goods and channels funding to where it is most needed. Simultaneously, the development of a second subconscious tool opens up new possibilities for collaborative and creative thinking. Through these innovations, we can build a more equitable and innovative future for all.

Actionable Advice:

1. Advocate for systemic changes to fund public goods at a larger scale, integrating funding as a regular part of our economic ecology.
2. Support NFTs that contribute to valuable social causes, encouraging platforms to increase their visibility on user profiles.
3. Embrace collaborative thinking and explore tools that foster a shared creative process, provoking and capturing ideas in a distributed and evolvable manner.