There I was, just like that, I was finally the cool kid in the crowd. At least this is how it felt to me and isn’t that was really matters?
Let me bring you back a few days before this experience. On Christmas, I had received a message that I could get a free ticket to the North American Bitcoin Conference in Miami. I just needed to use a code at check out and bam, a $1500 ticket for free! Too good to be true. It was a sign that I needed to go to this event. I had never been to something like this in the past, but it was a topic I was just starting to learn about.
Over the past few months, I have learned that I can create my art and turn them into NFTs that people can buy. Because the information is on the Blockchain, the art will live on forever. I know it sounds like a completely different language, and I am still learning about it myself so attending this event seems like a no-brainer.
As the trip came closer, I started to second guess myself. I started telling myself I don’t know enough about this topic to attend a conference like this. I’m going to look like an idiot. Learning new things, especially something that is pretty new to most of the world is scary and who am I to think I have any room in this new frontier?
I started to look for signs to help me decide that I shouldn’t go. The friend that I was traveling with lost her purse the week before we left, my cat was sick with a UTI and needed medication 2x a day, a dear friend that I hadn’t seen in some time was flying into town the day I was leaving and we would miss each other. Then there was an issue with that free ticket I got. It ended up being a glitch on the conference’s end and they canceled my ticket and said I would have to pay for one to attend. My friend also go the free ticket and hers was not canceled.
In spite of all these signs I listened to my gut and decided to take the chance and went to the conference. I’m glad that I did. I had a friend that was speaking at the conference who was able to get me another ticket, I made several new connections, met other visual artists, and learned more about how cryptocurrency and NFTs are going to make an impact on our future.
At one of the after-parties all my doubts about myself, the reasons I was there, and what people thought of me just disappeared (I was completely sober btw). The Social anxious introvert stepped aside as the confident artist stood up and took over. The DJ has started to play my favorite song. I grab a gentleman I had seen dancing in the conga line earlier and brought him to the front of the stage and started to dance. I let the music move my body. I was full of joy that I didn’t care that hundreds of other people were watching my partner and me dancing. I’ve been them in the past and I know the feeling of wishing I had the guts to be the first one on the dance floor.
After a few moments, more people began to join me. We all smiled and circled each other as we shared our moves. It was only us, the rest of the world didn’t matter. I finally felt like the cool kids. This experience reminded me of several things.
- Get up and do your dance, other people with be grateful that you did and will be happy to join you.
- You can find the positives if you look for the positives, and you will always find the negatives if you look for them. It’s how you want to see things, but it’s important to check in with your gut or intuition to see the truth you are really looking for
- It’s ok to be scared to try something new. Everyone starts someplace and most of the time people are willing to help you out along the way.
- I was told most of my life that you can’t make a living with art. The future of NFTs is making this possible for artists everywhere. I want to be one of the 1st to do this and help others learn how to do it for themselves. I also want it to be a vehicle to give back to the causes that I hold dear to my heart, LGBTQ+ individuals, creatives, and Puerto Rico.
If you are interested in learning more about my art, the projects I am working on, please check out my page www.melissadasilva.com/art