Photo and text | Xingchen&Carson 2024.7.25
Carson is a very professional guy with excellent communication and logical skills . He is serious about his work and friendly in communication. He is currently working as an analyst in a securities firm .
He is one of my consulting clients and he deserves the above beautiful adjectives.
I got to know him because of Xiaohongshu.
Two months ago, I gradually synchronized the articles from the official account to Xiaohongshu. Perhaps Xiaohongshu was not tolerant enough towards new accounts and blockchain, so the articles were gradually removed...
I only left a note about "How a newbie with zero experience can enter the Web3 workplace" , and it remained alone in my account.
A few days ago, I received a message :
He sent me his resume and I sent him a list of my services based on his situation .
Soon, we reached an agreement.
He wrote me a very detailed self-introduction document of more than 2,000 words , including his personal resume, intended direction, personal strengths, views on Web3, and some questions .
Generally speaking, in order to better provide my clients with services that are more suitable for their situations, I will ask them a long list of questions to judge their industry level and real needs .
But this document of more than 2,000 words answers everything .
Based on his documents, I sorted and summarized the relevant information and scheduled a meeting .
The consultation was originally scheduled for 1 hour, but by the time we were done talking, 2 and a half hours had already passed.
Thanks to Carson and his trust.
I have included Carson’s autobiography in the following article, which I highly recommend. His doubts may also be yours and mine.
Here is Carson’s own statement:
1. Personal Statement
1. Personal resume:
As written on my resume, I have been deeply engaged in the traditional financial field . Both my internship before graduation and my two years of work after graduation were in securities research institutes , where I conducted research on the A-share market , and have in-depth experience in macroeconomic analysis and secondary market analysis .
Because it is a sell-side job, mainly serving various domestic public funds, private funds and insurance investment departments, the core of the work is mainly research services , similar to a comprehensive position of investment research + BD/sales + operations .
First, investment research is the core of my job. I need to write analysis reports based on market conditions on a regular basis, and report my views to clients at offline/online roadshows based on these reports. There are also dinner parties, which I conduct at least 20-30 times a month.
Second, analysts are also salespeople . Although they have fixed contracted client organizations, they often need to find ways to contact the client's corresponding researchers/investment managers, find ways to increase the volume of services or even deepen the relationship . This is a core step in generating revenue for the department. Pure research cannot directly generate value, and the volume of services will affect the commission.
Third, in terms of operations, each research team actually has an IP centered around the chief analyst (it will feel a bit like a KOL). Accordingly, they will have their own public account operations, as well as regularly produce promotional materials in the form of brochures/one-page opinions. For example, they can also find an external team to build a website for regular data tracking, in order to increase the team's influence and diversify the ways of serving customers .
So in summary, although it is a career change from traditional finance, the business model and the skills developed in the past two years are still quite suitable for some current non-technical positions in Web3, and the general direction is similar.
2. Direction of intention:
I am most interested in investment research or BD , but I also know that many positions have comprehensive functions, so if there are positions that include related functions, I will actually consider them.
As for investment research, on the one hand, it fits my previous job better, and on the other hand, I am very interested in work related to analyzing projects and investments . I am also trying to study the token economic model , the logic of several major narrative directions (Defi, RWA, etc.) , and some leading projects. However, the disadvantage is that I do not have mature project experience.
As for BD, from what I understand, it will be more in line with my previous circle of competence. The job functions may be more diverse, more like a composite position of marketing + PR.
For positions like BD, I also hope to get in touch with more outstanding industry insiders through this method, improve my market sensitivity, and quickly accumulate knowledge of the industry and cutting-edge market information.
My understanding of other positions is relatively limited, but I will consider them if they are a good match.
3. Personal advantages:
What traditional financial analysts bring: the ability to quickly get in touch with new things and analyze and output opinions, the ability to report opinions and expand client base, the ability to maintain customer relationships and integrate industry resources, and data analysis capabilities (less used in programming work, mainly Excel and financial data platforms, and previous experience with data presentation tools such as PowerBI or Tableau).
Academic background: I obtained my undergraduate and master's degrees in the United States, so my overall English level is relatively high . I have no problem with listening and reading. As for speaking and writing, I haven't been in an English environment for a long time and need to catch up. But I can adapt to the English working environment relatively quickly. My major is a combination of science and engineering and business , so I am sensitive to data and have a solid foundation in analytical research.
4. Why join Web3 and some personal opinions on Web3:
The development of the traditional financial industry in China has indeed slowed down, and investment opportunities are relatively scarce. We hope to enter a market with systematic growth while we are still young and take root and develop .
In the past, people’s understanding of Web3 was probably mainly in the area of cryptocurrency, and they participated in secondary investments in 2021.
In my communication with foreign clients this year, I gradually realized that the major trends of asset tokenization (RWA) and token securitization (BTC spot ETF) have been accelerating globally, and the combination of traditional finance and Web3 in the future is unstoppable.
With the influx of strong capital represented by Wall Street, governments of various countries represented by the US government are also accepting and recognizing the value of the industry, especially the US hopes to use the crypto market to de-debt.
All these make me feel that the industry has a bright future in the next 10 years. It has the right time, right place and right people. It is an incremental market with global resonance . (To avoid the problem of weak domestic demand, haha)
After my recent in-depth understanding, I have become more convinced of the overall cultural environment of Web3. It is an incremental direction where everyone is actively looking for opportunities, has an independent economic system, and rapidly iterates technology . I hope to continue to explore new things and iterate cognition with everyone.
2. Questions (the most pressing issues to be addressed)
1. The initial question is the same as most people’s: how to enter the industry without project experience and not being native web3 ?
I understand that the financial attributes of the web3 ecosystem are very strong. It is very similar to traditional finance, but there are also many differences. How can we better utilize our own advantages and quickly catch up to enter the industry?
2. I would like to have a deeper understanding of the current job search environment of web3, the current business model, the talents needed in each link, and the development path ?
3. Resume preparation, interview preparation, headhunter recommendation and other old-fashioned issues.
4. It is true that the industry is in its early stages of development. How to avoid pitfalls ? Haha.
5. (Combined with Q1 and Q2) In the preparation process, is it best to start with 1-2 tracks, study them thoroughly first, and then consider whether to expand the research scope (look at other tracks) according to the needs? Because it seems that the logic between each track is very different.
6. From my current understanding, the three most valuable attributes of Web3 logic are recognized, namely financial attributes (the value of mainstream currencies as assets, Defi), technological attributes (such as the AI track), and cultural attributes (Meme, including the Ton ecosystem, etc.). These have indeed been reflected in the market performance in the past two years, and these are also the most obvious advantages of the industry.
However, it seems that there are still many projects that are replicating some of the mature and efficient applications of Web2. It seems that these aspects do not have much advantage over the Web2 system. For example, GameFi. Since Web2 already exists, it seems that the related implementation in Web3 is unlikely to generate much demand and bring about large growth.
I wonder what Miss Xingchen thinks about this question? (In fact, this question is similar to asking, what is the problem that everyone wants to solve most in the Web3 industry at this stage?)
We will discuss other questions about web3 later. Now, from an outsider's perspective, it is still often confusing. You will gradually understand it after entering the industry. You still have to get involved.
Choosing web3 is actually about hoping to choose a way of life/work that allows you to constantly come into contact with new things/continue to learn .
Xingchen Consulting Service List:
1) Share with you how I entered the industry with no experience and my experience of 3 years in the industry, as well as the experiences of other my consulting clients who entered the circle with no experience. Combined with your situation, I will offer my ideas for your reference, analyze your advantages and how to break through the circle, find the right position to start employment and industry career planning.
2) Share with you the Web3 distributed office model and frequently used tools, such as Notion\Google\Calendly\Telegram\Metamask, etc.
3) Share my resume with you and help you optimize your resume, and share the key points to pay attention to when joining Web3 jobs and avoiding pitfalls in the office, such as contract issues and salary issues.
4) Share with you more Web3 recruitment portals. I have compiled and sorted out Web3 recruitment portals.
5) Share my headhunting resources with you. I can find the target team you want to join from the market resources I have accumulated and provide a connection channel.
6) Share with you the high-quality resources in the circle that I have screened.
7) Provide voice/video service, which lasts about 1 hour.
8) If you have any questions or need help within one month after the sale, you can ask me and I will help you to the best of my ability.
However, my former clients have always maintained friendly contact with me, sharing work status with each other from time to time and becoming friends.
1) After the consultation, I am very sure that Carson will be able to take root and excel in the industry in the future because he is serious, organized, goal-oriented, fluent in communication, and professional.
I wish him the best and will help him to the best of my ability until the day when he no longer needs my help.
2) The development of the Web3 industry is becoming more and more evident. More Web2 elites are discovering this systematic incremental market and are optimistic about the future of the industry, so they are willing to work on it.
above.
Thanks for reading.
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