My first 10 or so NFT or Crypto events included non stop parties, food, booze, and other things I won't mention. I've blacked out in multiple cities across the country, and luckily I came to, unmolested, phone and wallet still on me.
Why would I tell you that?
Because I'm an idiot, and nobody prepped me for all of this. It was overwhelming, and I wanted to "go hard". I put myself into dangerous positions, and by sheer grace, nothing bad happened. That was dumb luck.
Don't do that.
On a recent trip to Vegas, I made sure to keep a clear head (mostly), see my friends and stay healthy. I slept in a huge suite at the Cosmo, met new people, and snuck into a VIP lounge thanks to Nick and Ashley.
I had just as much fun as the trips where I was smashed and reckless.
On the money side, the multiple thousand dollars I would have had to pay for all of this access at this conference, would serve me much better if invested into relationships and people instead. Even if I didn't get inside at NFTLA, NFTNYC, Consensus, W3BX, etc. all of the awesome people of Web3 that I love where in those cities, and at those parties. The speakers and vendors were there too.
I could have had a blast, not spent 1000s on badges and registration, and still made priceless memories.
My advice:
Do what works for you. Spend the money, or don't spend the money, but just make sure you show up. Meet new people, but respect their time and space.
Don't cling to people for 20 minutes, and act like a weirdo and make them spill their coffee all over their shirt (thanks nameless clingy weirdo from W3BX 😘). Spend a very brief moment with LOTS of people, and if they express interest in knowing more about you, make sure to follow each other on Twitter and then move on.
Lastly, if I hadn't made this clear already, make sure you take care of yourself, and be authentically YOU. Don't front and do things you don't feel good about. If strip clubs aren't your thing, don't go. If you can help someone in need, or keep your people safe, be there for them. You never know where the magic is gonna happen.
All I can say, is I love this space, and the conferences are cool, but I've seen just as many amazing moments happen and friendships begin outside the events, if not more, as I have inside the VIP lounge (that I probably snuck into 👀).
