Sir John Hargrave - Blockchain Success Stories

by Sir John Hargrave and Evan Karnoupakis

Copyright 2021 Sir John Hargrave and Evan Karnoupakis. All rights reserved.

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• November 2020: First Edition

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The opportunity of a technology like blockchain isnt to free us from trust in our institutions; it should be described as an experiment in building new kinds of collective institutions that we can trust. Trust is the currency of civilization.

Tim OReilly, founder and CEO, OReilly Media

Stories matter.

The human brain is hardwired for stories. Our earliest lessons come from childrens storiesfairy tales and fablesalways with a great lesson, a moral to the story. From the story of Cinderella, we learn Beauty is skin deep. From the myth of Icarus, we learn Dont fly too close to the sun. From practically every movie ever made, we learn Good will triumph over evil.

Stories are how we make meaning out of this funhouse ride called life. Stories are how we package up great human truths, then share them with future generations. Stories are how we get important concepts to latch on to the brain. Stories are sticky.

When your two authors were in business school, one of the most helpful methods of learning was the case study, which is a type of business story. In a case study, youre dropped into a real-world scenariomaybe youre the New York Times trying to go digital, or the CEO of Disney deciding whether to acquire Pixar. The case study ends at a point in timelike the end of a chapterand you have to figure out what to do next. You have to continue the story.

Case studies are fun to read because theyre real-world stories. Theyre interesting to analyze because, like business itself, theres no right or wrong answer. Theyre easier to remember because, instead of memorizing facts, you have a real-world example that will stick on to your brain like Velcro.

This is a book of stories.

Theyre not just any stories; theyre stories of people who built successful blockchain projects. By reading these stories, youll learn how to build successful blockchain projects yourself. This is not a blockchain programming bookthere are plenty of thosebut a book on how to actually build billion-dollar blockchains.

If youre new to blockchain, dont worry. Well teach you the basics of this fascinating technology, using stories of the mysterious misfits who built the earliest blockchain projects. (Truth, you will see, is stranger than fiction.)

Youll also hear firsthand from the entrepreneurs and dreamers who successfully built billion-dollar blockchains, from their first shaky steps to their glorious victory laps. Well bring their stories to life, from the roller-coaster highs to the death-valley lows. Youll breathe the stories through their lungs: the opportunities and the mistakes, the heart-wrenching challenges and the adrenaline-fueled triumphs.