Read More
Whether you’re trying to build a project in web3 or seeking out investment opportunities, there is one key activity that will increase your chances of crushing it…READING MORE.
If you think you already read a good amount, think again. Warren Buffett spending upwards of 80% of his waking hours pouring over hundreds of pages of content. Yep, the best financial mind famously reads in his office all day.
And we’re not talking about the Twilight saga.
Want to get smarter? Read more.
Want to beat out the competition? Read more.
Want to generate more income? Read more.
As Buffett once put it:
“Read 500 pages . . . every day . . . [T]hat’s how knowledge works. It builds up, like compound interest. All of you can do it, but I guarantee not many of you will do it.”
To help you on this journey, we’ve created the Block3 Book Club. It consists of an evolving repository of our favorite books to expand your knowledge in web3, investing and business strategy.
Today’s segment: Building the Foundation of How Blockchain, Cryptocurrencies and the Metaverse will change the world.
Block3 Book Club Pick #1: The Internet of Money by Andreas Antonopoulos
Favorite Quote
“How many of you have money in the bank? None of you has money in the bank. You have all extended a mostly unsecured loan for a pathetic level of interest to a bank that is holding that money as their own and using it to earn very high interest from other people.”
TL:DR Summary
If you want to better understand Bitcoin, read anything you can get your hands on by a true legend: Andreas M. Antonopoulos. Andreas is a major contributor to this revolution. His collection of talks, The Internet of Money (Volumes 1-3), are a must-read for anyone looking to understand Bitcoin’s significance.
It’s no secret that the revolution of Bitcoin and blockchain technology has taken the world by storm. From making online payments to creating digital assets, the possibilities are endless.
These volumes provide an in-depth look at the potential for blockchains to revolutionize the way in which we do business. Additionally, it also shows how blockchains will create a more secure financial system. In addition, Andreas explains the implications of blockchain technology for various industries, such as healthcare and manufacturing.
Why It Made My List
If anyone approaches me as “Bitcoin curious”, I hand them a copy of The Internet of Money. Andreas has a way of making the topic so relatable that even your elderly relatives will want to talk about blockchain tech at your next Thanksgiving dinner.
Best Takeaway
“Bitcoin is not the money of the current generation. It is the money of the generations to come.”
Block3 Book Club Pick #2: The Business Blockchain by William Mougayar
Favorite Quote
“The blockchain will meet resistance, be misunderstood and rejected, until it is widely accepted.”
TL:DR Summary
Authored by William Mougayar, The Business Blockchain offers a comprehensive and detailed view of blockchains, advancing our understanding of their underlying technology, decentralized infrastructure, and ability to facilitate the secure exchange of value.
Mougayar sees a future where blockchains hold the potential to revolutionize the business world. Furthermore, he provides insightful analysis of blockchains for business while examining both the opportunities and challenges posed by this revolutionary technology.
Why It Made My List
One of the most common client inquiries we get is “how can I monetize my business with blockchain?” Entrepreneurs and seasoned businesses alike can add channels of revenue to their bottom line by applying the right use cases with various web3 technologies. This book gives you the foundation and framework for identifying those use cases.
Best Takeaway
Blockchain applications in building businesses will only continue to grow as wide-spread adoption continues. Innovative businesses are already using this technology to track supply chains, share records, and receive payments. More and more consumers worldwide will interact with blockchains. This book does a great job of helping demystify how business owners can leverage these new technologies.
Block3 Book Club Pick #3: Bitcoin Billionaires by Ben Mezrich
Favorite Quote
“We have elected to put our money and faith in a mathematical framework that is free of politics and human error.”
TL:DR Summary
Since its inception in 2009, Bitcoin has been a source of fascination and has revolutionized the way people view money and business. It’s also been helpful in minting a new group of millionaires and billionaires. Perhaps most famously, the Winklevoss twins were among the first to recognize the potential of the Bitcoin blockchain and are credited with being the first Bitcoin billionaires.
In Bitcoin Billionaires, Ben Mezrich takes readers on a wild and surprising ride while illuminating a tantalizing economic future featuring the dynamic twins. From the Silk Road to the halls of the Securities and Exchange Commission, we follow the Winklevoss brothers on their Bitcoin investment adventure and watch it pay off in more ways than one. As a result, they achieved a level of success that only a small percentage of people ever experience. Timing and luck are always helpful too!
Why It Made My List
What I love about this book is that Mezrich provides not only a well written and compelling narrative, but also gives the reader a strong context of how Bitcoin became such a magnet of popularity and wealth.
Best Takeaway
“Libertarians or individualists believed people should be free to do whatever they wanted with their money. But in reality, people had never been free to do whatever they wanted with their money. There were laws, regulations, and criminal statutes.”
Block3 Book Club Pick #4: The Metaverse & How It Will Revolutionize Everything by Matthew Ball
Favorite Quote
“The metaverse is best understood as the shift of computing and interaction from a device in your pocket into a virtual simulation.”
TL:DR Summary
The concept of the metaverse originated in the 90s but was largely confined to the realm of science fiction and video games. It envisions a persistent 3D online network of virtual worlds that will become the gateway to most online experiences. Matthew Ball, the former head of Amazon Studios, believes that this is all about to change and the metaverse is poised to significantly impact almost every industry and function in the world.
In The Metaverse And How It Will Revolutionize Everything, Ball explains why he expects video games and cryptocurrencies to play a major role, and how some of the world’s largest technology companies are shaping the metaverse. From finance and healthcare to education, consumer products and beyond, Ball expects the impact of the metaverse is expected to be far reaching.
Why It Made My List
In a time where many are struggling to define what the metaverse is and how it might play a role in business, marketing and technology, this book pushes through the basics and brings readers concrete examples of how our existence will evolve from solely physical, to both physical and digital.
Best Takeaway
In the not too distant future, virtual and augmented reality will allow a single teacher to instruct millions of students worldwide using tools unavailable in a physical classroom.
Block3 Book Club Pick #5: The Infinite Machine by Camila Russo
Favorite Quote:
“The framing in that letter, that ether was a product with a specific functionality, opened the door for a whole new way of raising money. Now startups would be able to get funding from anyone who wanted to contribute, all over the world, under what seemed like a safe haven.”
TL:DR Summary
The Infinite Machine introduces Vitalik Buterin as the ingenious creator of Ethereum and its associated virtual machine. From chaotic beginnings to run-ins with the SEC, the story explores the brilliant innovation and reckless greed the platform unleashed and the consequences that resulted as the frenzy surrounding it grew.
Financial journalist and cryptocurrency expert Camila Russo details the wild and often hapless adventures of a team of hippy-anarchists, reluctantly led by an ambivalent visionary, and lays out how this new foundation for the internet will spur both transformation and fraud—turning some into millionaires and others into felons—and revolutionize our ideas about money.
Why It Made My List
The mystery surrounding who created Bitcoin is something that might never be solved. In contrast, Camila Russo is able to share with us the story behind how Ethereum was created and has proliferated into the web3 ecosystem. Simply put, it’s a fantastic history lesson about how innovators are building the future before our eyes. This book is an easy read with exciting twists and turns. By the end, you come away with a deeper understanding of the importance Ethereum plays in our world today.
Best Takeaway
“Corporations rule the world for a reason. They’re the most efficient way of turning an idea into a reality because the people who make up that company, from the owners to the managers to the employees, have direct incentives to see it thrive and have clear roles to fill.”
BONUS: Warren Buffet in a Web3 World
Favorite Quote:
“A hyperactive stock market is the pickpocket of enterprise.” (1983)
TL:DR Summary
Warren Buffett in a Web3 World applies 60 tears of sage advice to cryptocurrency, NFTs, blockchains and more. Each chapter contains quotes taken directly from the shareholder letters. We then accompanied our reflections/observations as they pertain to the web3 space. The result is an accessible and easy-to-read guide inside the mind of the Oracle of Omaha, but with a crypto twist. Each chapter also includes a “Web3 in the News” section, featuring headlines from leading newspapers, magazines, and online sources to highlight how web3 is becoming ingrained in the fabric of society.
Why It Made My List
I’m the author 😀
Best Takeaway
The wisdom of Warren Buffett speaks true to the investing world of web3 despite his animosity towards crypto.
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