"Curating the Future: Empowering Creators and Monetizing Taste in Web3"

"Curating the Future: Empowering Creators and Monetizing Taste in Web3"

In the rapidly evolving landscape of the internet, the concept of curation has become more important than ever. Curators play a vital role in qualifying, filtering, and refining relevant content, ultimately helping creators grow their awareness and community. However, despite their significant contribution, curators often find themselves left empty-handed in the creator economy.

Web3 protocols offer a new opportunity to monetize taste and empower creators through curated content. By leveraging social tokens, curators can be incentivized, and both creators and curators can be rewarded for their efforts. This creates a symbiotic relationship, where curators help creators grow their communities while also benefiting from the value they bring.

The concept of curation goes beyond simply connecting people through shared interests. It is a form of intertextuality, where curators shape the meaning of a text by adding their own perspective and insights. While social graphs define connections in online networks, curators create focused interest graphs that bind individuals together based on their recurring public interests.

Earning social capital as a curator is not an easy task. It requires the constant effort of qualifying, filtering, and refining relevant content. Scaling this process can only be achieved by decentralizing curation and finding new ways to incentivize user-generated curation and content moderation. Platforms should rethink their approach and explore innovative ways to empower curators in the web3 era.

Similarly, the role of product managers in the tech industry has also been a subject of discussion. The traditional career path for product managers is often straightforward, with the expectation of continuous advancement up the ladder. However, this assumption fails to consider the possibility that some product managers may find fulfillment in their current roles and have no desire to climb further.

The pressure to keep climbing the ladder can be exhausting and lead to the loss of talented individuals. This results in organizations stacking their leadership ranks with reluctant and incompetent people managers. It's important to recognize that becoming a product manager should be seen as an achievement in itself, and individuals should be allowed to choose their own career paths.

Some tech companies have partially addressed this issue by introducing dual career ladders, such as the principal product manager role. However, there is still a discrepancy between this role and management positions. Product managers often find themselves caught between managing a team and focusing on the product aspects they enjoy the most.

To establish dual product management career paths, it is essential to establish core principles upfront. Product management should be recognized as a legitimate career rather than just a stepping stone. Individuals should be encouraged to design their careers based on their values and personal fulfillment.

Additionally, the split between product leadership and people management should be acknowledged and balanced. This allows for the development of strong people management skills while still allowing individuals to focus on the product aspects they excel at. Lateral movement between different positions should also be promoted, allowing individuals to switch between management and individual contributor roles based on their preferences.

Furthermore, product management as a profession is long overdue for the same treatment that technical roles have received for decades. Base compensation, bonuses, and equity should be comparable, regardless of the chosen career path. No one should feel compelled to give up what they love in order to advance in their career.

In conclusion, the rise of web3 protocols and the need for a dual product management career path highlight the importance of empowering individuals and recognizing their contributions. Platforms should embrace the potential of curators to help creators grow their communities and find new ways to incentivize their efforts. Likewise, organizations should provide product managers with the flexibility to choose their career paths and create a balanced environment that values both product leadership and people management. By doing so, we can create a future where individuals can thrive and make meaningful contributions in their chosen fields.

Actionable advice:

1. Platforms should explore the integration of social tokens to incentivize and reward curators for their efforts in qualifying, filtering, and refining relevant content.
2. Organizations should establish dual career ladders for product managers, allowing them to choose between management and individual contributor roles based on their preferences.
3. Product managers should proactively communicate their career aspirations and seek opportunities for lateral movement within their organizations to ensure personal fulfillment and growth.