Name: Gabriele
Position I am applying for: Advisor
TG: @GabGagg
Twitter: @GabGag13, @apeversity
Affiliations (Currently I am working with, invested in, etc.):
- Founder of MindTips, a company that develops AI software for HR;
- Founder of Apeversity, the first Learn2Earn platform on Solana. We are opening a dialogue with the Solana Foundation to create an experiment in decentralized education and strategic support for new projects on the Solana network.
Why You
Why would You be the best candidate for this position?
Thanks to my studies in economics, strategy and business management and my first work experiences related to the digital marketing area, I have developed transversal skills that give me the opportunity to evaluate a project from 360 degrees.
“Easier said than done”. Evaluating something from the outside makes sense if you have the skills to understand what is happening from the inside.
The fact that I undertook entrepreneurial projects starting from an idea, a small team and a few metrics gave me the opportunity to understand dynamics that theory did not foresee. Theory tends to simplify and rationalize something that is often complex and often doesn’t follow rational paths.
In the last 5 years I have had to dialogue with investors, clients, professionals, accelerators, advisors. I learned complex dynamics that were once typical only of web2 and which with web3 have undergone radical transformations.
Technology rapidly changes internal and external processes that often travel faster than the world we live in. Understanding how to use new technology to move the old world towards the vision we are building is fundamental. I’ve seen many more companies and projects fail due to a premature “go to market” rather than a late one.
My great experience in both worlds can be precious.
What do you think a good incentive application looks like?
To answer this question it’s important to look at the application from both sides. From my experience (on both sides), I believe compromise is the key.
First of all I would like to focus on those who will judge. Often people tend to appreciate what is more easily understandable and for this reason the projects selected are those that best reflect the judges. In a highly innovative environment it’s essential to give space to innovation, keeping an open mind and reducing barriers. Parameters that are too narrow tend to discourage or consider wrong what has potential.
On the other hand (the project that apply), it’s important to be aware that presenting your idea in a program means making compromises. When you enter a program you must know that there are times to respect, parameters to meet, objectives to achieve. You must know that the world is complex and that your idea will be contaminated.
A dangerous aspect is in fact the perception of unconditional love for one’s project. People who are not willing to mediate are not suitable for a similar path.
With this premise, here are some elements that both parties must consider when creating the parameters and filling out the application:
- Market need: there are beautiful ideas that no one is willing to pay for.
- Timing and goals: it’s true that "life is what happens while we’re busy making other plans”, but good planning is the key, also and above all to face what we have not considered.
- Broad vision: in two years in Solana environment I had the impression that many projects felt like an island. Products and processes were intended to remain within the Solana environment, without interactions with the outside. The projects that have survived the test of time are those that looked beyond. I believe that giving a service to people and then bringing them into the ecosystem is much more functional and convenient than carrying out the opposite process.
What are your goals for this program?
For the same reason that ecosystems should attract new people, skills and investments, in the same way, I believe that people should move out of their comfort zone to face different challenges.
My way of operating in life has always been to look beyond. After two years spent understanding the complexities of the Solana ecosystem, I aim to broaden my horizons to take my experience elsewhere and improve my knowledge.
This step was the same one that led me to abandon my job as an employee to do an entrepreneurial project and which made me broaden my interest from web2 to web3.