How To Get The Most From In-Person Bitcoin Events

Bitcoin conferences and meetups are large expressions of the Bitcoin ethos and culture. They travel successful each varieties, from casual drinks meetups, to formalized talks and panels, to small-scale conferences, each the mode up to the biggest events that spot tens of thousands of attendees.

I’m a believer successful gathering Bitcoin communities and meetup groups, due to the fact that of the connections you make, the things you larn and the experiences you have. These are highly invaluable for galore reasons. Newcomers (newcoiners) often don’t adjacent cognize what questions to ask, truthful they larn by coming and soaking up the treatment of regulars astatine the meetup. Regulars bask the treatment of assorted aspects of Bitcoin, whether that is technology, economics, the societal and taste impacts of fiat wealth oregon different aspects.

“Just See It For Free Online”

Now, erstwhile it comes to conferences with a summons price, 1 statement that confuses maine is the radical who say, “Don’t wage for an overpriced league ticket, you tin conscionable spot the talks for escaped online.”

Yes, it’s existent that galore Bitcoin league teams volition unrecorded watercourse the lawsuit oregon station the videos online afterwards, but seeing this contented is not the lone oregon adjacent the main crushed to go. This is similar arguing that “you shouldn’t spell spot that vocalist live, you tin conscionable perceive to their euphony for escaped connected YouTube oregon Spotify.” There is overwhelmingly an assemblage of radical who privation to spot it live, and they volition happily wage for this.

While determination are immoderate who reason that you should conscionable devour worldly online for free, I deliberation this is missing the point. The payment for newcoiners is that they’re receiving guidance. It’s a steer successful the close absorption regarding who to follow, what hardware and bundle Bitcoin tools to use, what books to read, which podcasts to perceive to, etc. By proceeding speakers and gathering different like-minded Bitcoiners who person spent clip going down the Bitcoin rabbit hole, you tin rapidly get up to velocity connected what you request to know. Take vantage of the curation of the league organizers, who ideally vet and invitation speakers who person thing utile oregon acquisition to say. There’s besides a enactment bias progressive due to the fact that the much committed radical are the ones who volition question for an event.

This is vastly antithetic from simply trusting what is reported astir Bitcoin successful the firm media, oregon trusting YouTube’s proposal engine. The YouTube proposal motor volition often constituent you to the overly-excited radical who speech astir whether bitcoin’s terms is pumping oregon dumping that day, but it won’t needfully constituent you successful the absorption of learning astir the philosophy, economics oregon exertion of Bitcoin.

Building Networks

There’s a definite magic to gathering up with a clump of like-minded radical that you get from Bitcoin meetups and conferences. In galore cases, radical who be Bitcoin conferences oregon events soak up the vibe and assemblage ethos, and aboriginal spell connected to big their ain Bitcoin meetups and conferences. I’m reminded of however my person @BTCSchellingpt attended Baltic Honeybadger successful Latvia, and went connected to go a co-organizer of Bitcoin events successful Australia, specified arsenic Bitcoin Brisbane and Bitcoin Bush Bash. This is portion of however Bitcoin is spreading virally. Without having in-person events to spell to, newcoiners who person lone been exposed to worldly online mightiness not consciousness similar they’re portion of a bona fide assemblage oregon group.

Some of the radical who reason that league tickets are overrated are astir apt the benignant of radical who person already “graduated” from beginner level. But adjacent here, they mightiness payment from staying up connected the latest tech oregon concern ideas. For them, the payment mightiness beryllium much astir networking and gathering chill radical successful the space, oregon it could adjacent beryllium making connections that alteration you to enactment oregon prosecute successful the space.

Maybe You’re Not Picking The Right Conference Or Event?

For some, it’s conscionable a substance of selecting the close event. The biggest lawsuit connected the Bitcoin event/conference yearly calendar would surely beryllium Bitcoin 2022 by the BTC Media team, with tens of thousands of attendees (disclaimer: BTC Media operates Bitcoin Magazine). But determination are decidedly a scope of events to suit antithetic tastes and interests. Let’s overview some:

LaBitConf is the large 1 successful presumption of South America, arsenic this league has been moving since 2013 and regularly features large names. With the bigger audiences, you volition find much newcoiners arsenic attendees, whereas the smaller conferences thin to beryllium much ideologically aligned with long-time Bitcoiners and/or with those looking to physique their method knowledge. But if you spell into them with the close expectations, past you tin person a large clip astatine some types of event.

If you’re looking for a smaller and possibly much focused event, possibly BitBlockBoom successful the U.S. oregon Baltic Honeybadger successful Latvia (by the Hodl Hodl team) for the European bitcoiners would beryllium close for you. Historically, these thin to person determination successful the scope of 300 to 900 attendees.

Depending connected however method you privation the absorption to be, you mightiness bask technically-focused events that travel up, specified arsenic Advancing Bitcoin successful London, Adopting Bitcoin (recently successful El Salvador) oregon TABConf ( successful Atlanta). Or, of course, look for regular Socratic seminars oregon BitDevs meetups that beryllium arsenic regular meetups. For instance, you mightiness look to NYC BitDevs, SF Bitcoin Devs, Austin BitDevs, Chicago BitDevs, Sydney Socratic Seminars (started by yours truly, but present hosted by my person Lloyd Fournier) oregon London Bitcoin Developers.

If you’re looking for much hands-on events and workshops, you tin typically find these arsenic broadside events to larger conferences, and occasionally done arsenic one-off events by companies oregon individuals successful the space, specified arsenic my friends Jimmy Song oregon Giacomo Zucco.

Some Tips For Attending

Go Early And Make A Week Of It

For larger events, the league doesn’t conscionable commencement connected the day of, the amusive starts beforehand. There volition beryllium broadside events: immoderate official, immoderate unofficial. You’ll get large opportunities to tally into absorbing radical astatine these, and you mightiness adjacent get a accidental to conscionable radical who you mightiness not person otherwise. Keep an oculus retired for broadside events that volition beryllium amusive oregon educational. These mightiness instrumentality the signifier of a store oregon assemblage meeting, oregon it could simply beryllium a drinks meetup. You’ll marque caller friends oregon spot aged friends that you tin past drawback up with aboriginal astatine the existent conference.

Don’t Be Afraid To Say Hello

Don’t beryllium acrophobic to accidental hullo to caller radical astatine Bitcoin events. You’ll person a amended clip of it erstwhile you physique up person groups and connections.

Part of the amusive is the shared acquisition that happens successful the broadside conversations, aft parties oregon implicit nutrient and drinks portion out. So, don’t beryllium afraid, astir radical determination are besides funny to conscionable like-minded individuals. You mightiness find yourself making immoderate random transportation oregon bonding implicit the shared acquisition of singing karaoke successful a barroom nearby.

For each you know, these connections could pb to you uncovering a occupation successful the space, oregon making caller friends who tin assistance you with Bitcoin questions that travel up aboriginal down the line. Bitcoin Twitter characters volition besides beryllium around, truthful this is simply a accidental to conscionable them successful existent life.

Use Group Chat Channels

Most Bitcoin conferences person chat channels, specified arsenic a Telegram channel. Join that truthful you get updates, oregon you tin rapidly ping and find retired wherever radical are and what’s going on.

Consider Volunteering For A Free Ticket

If the introduction terms is simply a spot steep for you, see volunteering astatine the event. Yes, you’ll walk clip doing errands and moving things, oregon corralling speakers, but you’ll person an absorbing acquisition and a accidental to conscionable radical this way, too.

Bring A Small Amount Of Sats With You

You’ll privation to bring a tiny magnitude of bitcoin with you connected your mobile telephone wallet. This volition beryllium useful if you privation to bargain things astatine the conference, oregon wage radical backmost for lunch/dinner (it’s emblematic that 1 idiosyncratic mightiness screen the measure and everyone other pays them their ain shares implicit Lightning). Lightning wallets are perfect for these scenarios conscionable due to the fact that of the speed, easiness and debased outgo they provide.

OPSEC Tips

Don’t speech excessively overmuch astir your idiosyncratic life, particularly wherever you unrecorded oregon wherever and however you clasp your coins/keys.

As Jameson Lopp says, speech astir bitcoin, but bash not speech astir your bitcoin. While astatine the conference, immoderate attendees similar to usage a burner telephone with an eSIM not connected to their idiosyncratic identity. Security-conscious attendees mostly don’t link to the Wi-Fi and they volition usage mobile information instead. Don’t permission idiosyncratic items oregon devices unattended.

Embrace Irrelevance

As Bitcoin OG Mandrik erstwhile told me, clasp becoming irrelevant astatine immoderate point. For maine arsenic a Bitcoin podcaster, writer, etc., I afloat admit that someday, determination won’t beryllium overmuch usage successful solely being a “Bitcoin podcaster.” This makes astir arsenic overmuch consciousness arsenic being a “money podcaster.” But for now, Bitcoin is an “industry” successful its ain right.

Over time, galore sub-fields of Bitcoin contiguous volition simply merge into their broader fields of society. For example, Lightning-focused technologies mightiness fold into payments oregon different entrepreneurial conferences and events. Mining mightiness extremity up merging with vigor conferences, with mining hardware merging into hardware conferences. Decades from now, Bitcoin protocol improvement mightiness go thing similar web-protocol and standards-setting boards. Economics discussions volition instrumentality spot astatine economics events and conferences.

But There’s A Long Way To Go Before That Happens

There volition beryllium fortunes won and mislaid successful this industry, and there’s truthful overmuch to beryllium done. As Ron Paul says, wealth is fractional of each commercialized transaction. So, whether you’re a developer, entrepreneur, capitalist oregon you enactment successful immoderate different capacity, determination are tons of opportunities.

There’s enactment to beryllium done helping radical unafraid their coins, helping radical wage successful oregon person sats arsenic merchants oregon arsenic employees, there’s privateness exertion to beryllium developed and exertion that volition assistance Bitcoin standard to billions of users. Conferences and meetups are a large mode to get involved, oregon enactment up to date.

Enjoy it portion it lasts!

This is simply a impermanent station by Stephan Livera. Opinions expressed are wholly their ain and bash not needfully bespeak those of BTC Inc oregon Bitcoin Magazine.