Charlie Brown and the Blockchain

Don’t burn out the developers and get your product strategies in order.

Peanuts was easily one of the longest running and favorite stories told by a human being. At a time when America was craving wholesome entertainment, Charlie Brown and his buddies hit all the marks. A comic strip, seemingly targeted at kids, that adults couldn’t get enough of.

Schulz de-complicated taboo topics, prompting involuntary reflection and global giggles. Replacing a lemonade stand with a psychiatric booth could have raised brows. But Charlie Brown’s sincerity, Lucy’s sharp doses of reality and Snoopy’s hilarity put mental health comfortably in our laps.

Schulz created an experience, a brand people could identify with. The comic strip format was the vehicle, the engine, the guts, the code, not the experience itself.

If you ask an average Joe “Hey, What is Linux?”
He’ll probably say “Is that the guy from Peanuts?”
If you ask about Apple, he’ll know the answer.

Peanuts and Apple are brands that speak to people in terms they understand. They make life easier or more fun. They are trusted.

Like the comic strip format was to Peanuts, and Linux was to the web, the blockchain is one of many components shaping web 3.0

Web 3.0 technology is earth shattering but how it changes the world is TBD. Which entrepreneurs or product managers are the Shultz among us? Who can bridge the gap between technology and what will make our lives easier, more fun and less manipulated. Who can figure out what consumers are craving, as information increases disproportionally to their attention?

The Digital revoltion is not coming. It arrived a while ago. We’re certainly in uncharted territory, but consider this. If there are 18.5 million developers in the world, compared to 7.4 billion people, that leaves an addressable market of billions who will never really understand ‘The blockchain’.

Just like Linux, blockchain products of the future should enhance our experiences and make our lives easier and more fun without having to understand the technology supporting them.

PS: steemit please make it easy to add an image and do simple styling. Markdown is not easy to the Average Joe.