From 0 to 1 | A Timestamped Journey into the NFT Space

6 min readOct 10, 2022

The path that led me here is a series of pivotal moments, underscoring how market manipulation, crises, and pandemic times can pivot one’s life full circle, especially when lacking essential information.

The Catalyst: The 2008 Financial Crisis

Living in the US during the 2008 crisis, I found myself jobless and without my newly purchased apartment. This wasn’t just about losing tangible assets; it was about the crumbling of hopes to be an independent designer in my renovated space and dreams of refurbishing units. As the real estate bubble burst, I witnessed families homeless, youths in despair, and banks profiting amidst the chaos, turning a blind eye to pleas for help. This prompted me to delve into Real Estate, earning my license, yet feeling a profound sense of powerlessness despite being well-informed.

“The Big Short“

The sunshine state turned dark and stormy for many of us, and I needed to find a way out.

A banker is a fellow who lends you his umbrella when the sun is shining, but wants it back the minute it begins to rain. — Mark Twain

A New Chapter: Embracing the Unexpected

In search of light during these dark times, I embarked on a dream journey across Europe. With a modest budget, I opted for B&Bs, Airbnbs, and visits to friends, which turned out to be the most enriching experience of my life. Unplugged from digital distractions, I navigated each city with local maps, engaging deeply with the places and people I encountered. This journey was a profound healing process, reminding me that:

Every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home. — Matsuo Basho

Returning to Reality: A Creative Awakening

After a year of travel, dwindling funds signaled it was time to return and rebuild my career. However, the daily grind, routing, endless traffic jam, and a fading passion for architecture and interiors led to a realization: my heart was elsewhere. Memories of my European travels, particularly Berlin, lingered vividly.

Berlin: A One-Way Ticket to New Beginnings

Saving enough for a few months’ stay in Berlin, I encountered the stark reality of bureaucracy and language barriers. The little German I learned with my grandma as a kid was nearly nothing for a master’s in Architecture, -required in Germany regardless of years of professional experience. Reverting to real estate, I found myself disenchanted with the scripted interactions, annoying the hell out of people over the phone. Not to mention the competitive environment among colleagues, opposite to collaboration. Yearned for creative engagement, this led me to take charge of marketing materials, striving to infuse creativity into every task.

Photography: A Solace for the Soul

The mundane routine reignited my creative spark through architecture photography. Investing in professional equipment, I enhanced our listings, exploring the digital realm of photography, drones, NFTs, blockchain, and more, delving deep into the fast-growing tech world. Slowly, I found myself following the white rabbit. Fascinated as I was, I couldn’t wait to get home from work and finish the articles that kept me awake almost the entire night before.

The Pandemic: A Pivot Point

Covid-19 introduced unprecedented challenges and opportunities. Without events and exhibitions, friends in the design, art, and photography field were struggling at their best. On the other hand, the digital market exploded in 2021 when $17.6bn worth of NFT was sold, 21000% times higher than the $82m in the previous year, 2020. So, immersed in digital exploration, I became a member of the Untitled-INC [It’s Not Centralized] Token Economy network and extended my knowledge in the field.

Art Basel #HackARThon: A Triumph

In 2021, two members of Untitled-INC and I ventured in web3 solutions and won the #hackARThon in Art Basel. Merging token economics with art and fashion through a winning platform, ARTIST-Made, highlighted the potential for community-driven and creative marketplaces fostering a new revenue stream for artists with:
- NFT creation for digital and physical art
- An extra income stream by combining art and limited fashion editions
- A fan engagement community app

Exploration and Discovery: The X-iO NFT Collection

Inspired by my photography journey, I wrote an article on NFT | The Core Concept explained in easy words while creating an NFT collection. This collection aimed at encouraging conventional creative minds to engage in the digital space. The complexity and rapid evolution of blockchain technology is daunting, yet the potential for innovation and empowerment is undeniable. Web3 is not a simple new form of technology being adopted; it is a new way of doing things that opens a broader mindset, like a DAO.

Reflecting on the Journey: Lifelong Learnings

The journey through technology has been a continuous source of fascination and growth. While the NFT market has seen its ups and downs, the underlying technology and its applications offer vast opportunities for creativity, investment, and innovation, despite the risks of scams and volatility. From the standpoint of today, we are not going back. However, just like investing in real estate while ignoring the bubble, it can have lifelong consequences. On one side we have the NFT hype: Record US$ 5 billion worth of NFTs sold on OpenSea in January 2022 reaching about 17bn in January, and a total of 70bn as of today. However, observing the graphs, it looks like the bubble has popped, and now all the Bored Apes are back in the wild.

In addition, we have scams, which have always been a significant threat to any sort of investment, and NFTs are no exception. Scammers managed to find creative ways to steal private wallet keys, duplicate original NFTs with very slight changes, also entire websites, platforms, and influencers' social media accounts, or create fake customer support frauds. But the beauty of this technology itself, with all its use cases, utilities, its hype, and hope, has a lot to offer, starting with artists, traders, investors, renters, owners, gamers, and more to be discussed in later articles. Learn more: Scams Explained to Protect Yourself as Scammers See New Frontiers.

The Future: Technology’s Enduring Presence

As I conclude the NFT-Talents program at the Frankfurt School Blockchain Center, I'm grateful for the insights and community it has provided. My goal is to keep diving into web3, demystify technology, and encouraging exploration and innovation in a digital path that is here to stay. As Prof. Galloway said,