Turning Down a Blockchain Job Offer
The danger in a space like this is throwing the baby out with the bath water.<p>- Yes, there are an insane amount of scams, and lots of dumb money flowing in<p>- Yes, many use cases of blockchains should really be databases<p>- Yes, many blockchain job posts are just PR initiatives for companies who want to differentiate themselves<p>That said, it&#x27;s an early time to have a tremendous amount of impact.<p>Don&#x27;t like &quot;proof of work&quot;? Go hack on various other implementations. Get angry at banks? Go figure out ways to remove custodial risk, so that we may not need as onerous financial regulations that stifle innovation. Angry about security in this space? Go find security holes and disclose them.<p>Even for fun side hacks, there&#x27;s a huge app layer that could be built on your smart contract blockchain of choice.<p>I say this having worked at the World Bank, Gates Foundation, and a mobile payments startup in India: financial services could truly use innovation, and providing safe, secure, broad access can have huge impact, especially in countries with weak legal systems. Blockchains are a &quot;shot on goal&quot; of trying this, though they may also never live up to the hype.<p>I&#x27;m all for calling bullshit on hyped trends ( <a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.nemil.com&#x2F;musings&#x2F;shinyandnew.html" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.nemil.com&#x2F;musings&#x2F;shinyandnew.html</a> ), but just because a space attracts snake oil salesmen, &quot;get rich quick&quot; schemers, and cargo culting programmers doesn&#x27;t mean that there might not still be great opportunities to do good engineering and have huge impact.