In this round of the Crypto cycle, an interesting phenomenon is occurring.

More and more people are starting to discuss personal IP, super individuals, AI, growth methodologies, and how to acquire incremental users from Web2. Compared to the past few years when the industry was keen on discussing public chains, DeFi, NFTs, or memes, everyone now seems more concerned with a real issue: as traffic becomes more expensive and competition intensifies, what should an ordinary person or a startup rely on to continue growing?

From starting a business at 21 with annual revenues in the tens of millions to experiencing investor withdrawals and team dissolutions; from quantitative trading to wallet products, and now deeply engaging in the TON ecosystem and user growth. Over the past eight years, George has experienced several important cycles in the Crypto industry.

Compared to the competition, financing, and valuation, George is more concerned with: how to continuously create value and magnify that value.

Guest: George, Co-founder & COO of Conso
Host: yuanyuan, BitMart Marketing VP

The biggest crisis in entrepreneurship is not lack of money, but losing direction

Many people find George's entrepreneurial journey quite legendary. At 21, the project he founded was already able to achieve tens of millions in revenue; later, he entered the Crypto space and has successively engaged in quant trading, wallets, games, and more. From the results, this seems to be a very smooth entrepreneurial path.

But what impressed him the most wasn't those highlights, but the sudden crisis in 2022. Due to external events affecting investors, they were forced to withdraw their funds, and the financial chain of the company quickly collapsed. Faced with the choice between holding on or dissolving the team, he ultimately chose the latter, leading to team dismissal, compensation expenses, and business suspension, putting everything back to zero.

Looking back, he believes the hardest part wasn't the financial pressure, but the ensuing confusion. Web2 products cannot simply be copied and pasted into Web3 for the long term, but there were no answers to new directions for a long time. Throughout 2023, he repeatedly pondered one question: if the market environment changes, what capabilities can he truly rely on for the long term? In the end, he returned the answer to growth.

Compared to investment, trading, or chasing trendy paths, he believes more in his accumulation in user growth and market operation. It was also during that phase that he reaffirmed his future direction—helping more Web2 users transition to Web3.

Anxiety is not a weakness, but a competitive advantage

Another word that George repeatedly mentions in the program is anxiety. Many people wish to get rid of anxiety, but in George's view, it is almost impossible for humans to be free of anxiety. There will always be someone better than you, new opportunities will always arise, and changes will always happen. The issue is never how to eliminate anxiety, but how to coexist with it.

He said he has long been accustomed to that "walking on thin ice" state. Because this state continuously reminds him to cherish opportunities, treat each partner seriously, and not to stop moving forward. To some extent, this persistent sense of crisis has instead become a motivating force.

Many entrepreneurs, after reaching a certain stage, will start to rely on resources, contacts, or past accumulated advantages. But George prefers to rely on himself. This is also why he insists on long-term planning. At 18, inspired by a teacher, he set a personal goal of achieving tenfold growth in five years: 1 million in annual revenue by age 20; 10 million by 25; and 100 million by 30… It sounds a bit idealistic, but the goal is not to flaunt numbers, but to help himself continuously expand his capability boundaries. After achieving the first 1 million, he found that 10 million was no longer an abstract concept; after reaching 10 million, 100 million would gradually become concrete.

For entrepreneurs, the greatest growth often isn't how much money they make, but continuously enhancing their ability to solve problems.

The essence of growth is not pouring traffic, but finding leverage

In the past few years, the industry has seen countless growth myths. Some rely on airdrops, some on subsidies, and some on traffic dividends.

George believes that the essence of growth is finding leverage. He also shared a case where his current startup Conso used a budget of about 20,000 USD to acquire over 1 million users. Many people's first reaction might be to think of channel dividends or just plain luck, but in his view, what truly works is a series of leveraged accumulations. From TikTok's algorithm recommendations, to the viral spread by micro-influencers; from performance-based payment models to multi-platform synchronized distribution; from localized operations to user invitation mechanisms, every link is a fulcrum.

He firmly believes in one saying: "Give me a fulcrum, and I can move the Earth." And growth is about continuously seeking new fulcrums.

The opportunity in TON may not just be the public chain

Over the past year, TON has undoubtedly been one of the most watched ecosystems in the industry. But in George's view, many people's understanding of TON still remains at the public chain level. What is truly important is the user network behind Telegram.

Compared to most Crypto products, Telegram naturally has a user base of hundreds of millions and has developed a mature Mini App ecosystem. For many users in developing countries, Telegram has even become a part of daily life. This means that the problems TON faces are not entirely the same as those of traditional public chains. Most public chains first consider on-chain users, while TON focuses more on how to better serve users off-chain.

George mentioned that he is optimistic about the development direction of Web3 financial infrastructure for a long time, one important reason being this.

In the past few years, the industry's narrative has continually changed, from DeFi to NFTs, from GameFi to AI, but the truly long-lasting main thread has never changed: to make Web3 a new financial infrastructure. Especially in many developing countries, local currencies face long-term depreciation pressures, and cross-border payment efficiencies are low; these real demands will not disappear just because the market cycle ends. Platforms that can connect hundreds of millions of ordinary users naturally have a greater opportunity.

In the IP era, everyone should become their own media

Apart from growth and entrepreneurship, George has also done another thing in the past year—helping creators grow.

In this process, he discovered that many excellent individuals actually do not lack ability; what they lack is the ability to express themselves. Many developers, entrepreneurs, and even project leaders have decent resumes and real achievements, but they have almost no presence on social media. It's not because they are not good enough, but because they don't know how to convey their value to more people.

Therefore, George increasingly believes that in the future, everyone should manage their personal IP. This is not to become an internet celebrity, but to build trust. When talking about this, he mentioned the young KOL who has risen rapidly in this cycle, en-hum. In his view, many people see the results but overlook the accumulation behind them. As early as 2024, en-hum was already actively learning and observing in various communities, and what truly sets people apart is often not luck, but the ability for long-term learning and continuous output.

As industry information becomes more fragmented, a person who continuously produces content is often more likely to gain opportunities, collaborations, and resources. Many times, people are not willing to believe you because they recognize you, but because they have seen your content over a long time and are willing to get to know you.

In the past, a person's credibility came more from their education, experience, and company background; today, an increasing amount of credibility comes from the content itself. What you have written, what you have thought, and what you have shared are becoming important bases for others to judge you.

For entrepreneurs, IP is not just a dissemination tool; it's also a long-term accumulated trust asset. The greatest feature of this asset is that it will continuously generate compounding returns over time.

AI will not replace you, but those who use AI will

In the AI era, tasks that used to require three people can now be achieved by one person. Design, editing, data analysis, operational management, and a large number of repetitive tasks are being redefined. George believes the greatest value of AI is not to replace jobs, but to amplify individual capabilities. The capacities that truly cannot be replaced will become increasingly important, such as product capability and creative ability. Because AI can generate answers, but cannot replace the person who creates the answers.

The competition of the future may no longer be about who masters more tools, but who can utilize the tools to create more value. He also stated that AI cannot replace him, so he wouldn’t entrust the management of his social media account to AI.

Real opportunities come from continuously magnifying value

Resources may disappear, personal connections may change. But when a person can continuously create value, opportunities tend to come knocking. This may be the most important gain from George’s eight years of entrepreneurial experience.

“Entrepreneurs need to free themselves from dependence on resources and connections and prioritize enhancing themselves,” he stated, because investors will leave, markets will change, trends will rotate, and methods that are effective today may not be tomorrow. The only thing that can accompany one for the long term is capability itself.

Whether in the TON ecosystem, growth, managing IP, or utilizing AI, what he truly cares about is always one thing: how to create value and how to magnify value. Because a person's ability to create and amplify value will accompany him through cycles, this is true for entrepreneurs, for companies, and perhaps for the entire Crypto industry as well.

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The complete content of this episode can be found by searching and following "Crypto Market Observation Bureau" on Xiaoyuzhou, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.

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Risk Warning

The opinions or viewpoints expressed in this column only represent the guest's personal stance and do not represent the views of BitMart or its affiliates, nor should they be considered as professional financial investment advice.
Cryptocurrency investment is highly speculative and involves significant risks of loss. Past performance, hypothetical scenarios, or simulated results do not represent future returns. The value of digital currencies may fluctuate, and buying, holding, or trading digital currencies may involve significant risks. Before participating in transactions or holding digital currencies, please carefully assess their suitability based on your investment goals, financial situation, and risk tolerance. BitMart does not provide any investment, legal, or tax advice.

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