Over the weekend‭, ‬I went to a women-led crypto workshop in Dubai‭. ‬It was a small‭, ‬supportive group‭. ‬The energy was calm and collected‭ ‬-‭ ‬so different from what I've experienced before‭. ‬But the moment I knew I was in a whole new world was when I put my purse on the floor‭. ‬The instructor came over and said‭: ‬“Don't do that‭. ‬It's bad energy‭.‬”

I thought‭, ‬Ohhhh‭. ‬Now this is different‭.‬

That purse comment might sound small‭, ‬but to me‭, ‬it symbolised a much bigger shift‭.‬

For most of my crypto journey‭, ‬the people I've leaned on‭, ‬followed‭, ‬learned from have all been men‭. ‬There was the helicopter engineer I met at a brunch in 2018‭ ‬who was a big investor‭; ‬I am pretty sure I irritated him with all my questions‭. ‬Then a few years later‭, ‬I interviewed someone launching NFTs‭ ‬-‭ ‬I was rapid-fire with him too‭. ‬Then there were all influencers I followed on TikTok‭, ‬trying to figure out who was genuine and who was just hyping‭. ‬In early 2023‭ ‬I took two intro-to-crypto courses and joined two communities‭: ‬both dudes‭. ‬The Telegram group‭ ‬I'm in now is run by a US crypto influencer and filled with mostly dudes‭. ‬The videos I like to watch and learn from‭: ‬Michael Saylor‭, ‬Mark Moss‭, ‬Raoul Pal‭ ‬–‭ ‬you get my drift‭. ‬It's very testosterone heavy‭. ‬And a lot of the time‭, ‬I do feel they are talking to men too‭. ‬

In my real life‭, ‬until very recently‭, ‬there were zero women to talk about this stuff with‭.‬

That started to change in September‭, ‬when I came across a US-based engineer and founder of a crypto community that includes several hundred women around the world‭. ‬I really liked her energy‭, ‬and after some research‭, ‬decided to join her community for a year‭. ‬It was just something I needed to continue in the space‭. ‬

I'm taking her crypto 101‭ ‬courses now because I don't know what I don't know‭ ‬–‭ ‬something men in the crypto space tend to have a hard time admitting‭. ‬She talks about money‭, ‬investing and the future of tokenisation and the blockchain in a way that includes feelings‭ ‬-‭ ‬not just charts and hype‭. ‬She filled in so many of the knowledge gaps I still had‭, ‬and the way she delivered the information was calm‭, ‬non-threatening and clear‭. ‬It's not about hype or pumping a coin‭. ‬It's about understanding the mechanics‭, ‬trusting your gut‭, ‬and being honest with ourselves‭.‬

During our one-on-one call‭ (‬which was supposed to be 15‭ ‬minutes and ended up lasting an hour‭), ‬we talked about the tech‭, ‬sure‭ ‬–‭ ‬but also fear‭, ‬intuition‭, ‬and how to stay grounded in a volatile market‭.‬

When I confessed how hard it has been for me to move funds off exchanges into cold wallets‭ ‬–‭ ‬something I have never heard a man admit‭ ‬–‭ ‬she said‭: ‬'you are not alone‭ ‬–‭ ‬this is so common among the women in our group'‭. ‬She got it‭. ‬

This week‭, ‬when everything was tanking in crypto again after yet another trade-related uncertainty‭, ‬one of the few women in my Telegram group‭ ‬-‭ ‬around my age‭ ‬-‭ ‬just quietly said‭, ‬“I don't know what to do anymore‭.‬”‭ ‬Just honesty‭. ‬It was so refreshing‭.‬

Crypto can feel like a minefield‭, ‬especially when you're new‭. ‬And it's easy to feel stupid or intimidated‭ ‬-‭ ‬especially if you don't already speak the language‭. ‬It's not been easy for women in this bro space‭ ‬–‭ ‬it's never been easy for women breaking ground in new playing fields like that‭. ‬But they are doing important work‭: ‬making this space more accessible and emotionally intelligent‭. ‬

Connecting with women after all this time has left me with more conviction than I've ever felt‭. ‬I came home knowing‭, ‬I'm really onto something here‭.‬

Because here's the thing‭ ‬–‭ ‬women are incredible investors‭. ‬Strategists‭. ‬Business people‭. ‬We are smart and intuitive and capable of deep‭, ‬strategic thinking‭. ‬And yet‭, ‬as a part of Generation X‭, ‬I grew up in a soup of messages that said otherwise‭.‬

I remember headlines genuinely asking‭, ‬“Are women funny‭?‬”‭ ‬Male entertainment reporters asking actresses in their 30s how they felt about the lack of roles they were facing in Hollywood‭ ‬once they turned 40‭. ‬A genuine belief that a woman would never be president of the United States because of‭ ‬'hormones'‭. ‬And I remember reading‭, ‬over and over again‭, ‬that women aren't good with money‭. ‬It was as I shook off all this conditioning later in life that I came across bitcoin and crypto‭.‬

I think that's why I can't really separate coming into my own from this space‭. ‬And why I am drawn to be around other women who are coming into theirs‭. ‬

I've learned so much from men in crypto‭ ‬–‭ ‬and I plan to continue‭. ‬It feels like I've gone up a level though‭, ‬since I've added women to my life‭..‬

We need more women launching projects‭, ‬joining conversations‭, ‬asking questions‭, ‬talking about feelings and saying things like‭ ‬“I don't know‭ ‬–‭ ‬yet”‭. ‬We need people who understand both the power of blockchain and the human beings behind it‭. ‬In just a few years‭, ‬we'll be able to invest in nearly anything through a token on the blockchain‭. ‬

We need all sorts of people to help guide the world through that-‭ ‬including those who care about where you put your purse‭.‬

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