Governance In A Web3 World — 4 Principles For Creator Incentivized Network Effects

In today's age, nothing is of greater consequence than how we govern. 

• Web2 governance parallels tyranny: centralized systems where power and profit are extracted via a claimed ownership on the value production of others. 
• Web 3 governance parallels a free and fair society where many stakeholders share fractional ownership in the systems they contribute to. Never before achieved in human history — yet within our grasp this decade. 

Lying beneath a purple flowered tree in the heart of Mexico City with the glistening rays of sunshine blurring my vision I pondered the questions of Universal Justice, A Metaverse Future, and Web3 Network Effects. 

It occurred to me that ranting-and-raving about the state of the world and politics is a big distraction for those of us working hard to build business and solve practical problems through innovation and tech.

And yet…

The world seems upside-down from what it ought to. Governance can right it. And we need to accelerate progress. 

At the heart of the emerging web3 world of distributed data, data ownership, and data-driven profitability, lay the inherent ideas of inclusivity and equitability.

How do we make the abundance of opportunity accessible to as many as possible?

From our catbird seats of decentralized finance... 

...we have a chance to reshape the world’s operations from the inside out. From inside the digitized processes of data infrastructure, through to the external world of who gets to decide what happens in the mechanics of society.

And so I got to thinking about that tipping point of change and the principles of governance. What would it take, from a pragmatic perspective. Rather than ‘educating the masses’ about the importance of rejecting state ownership of our person and property… and instead, implementing structures that would lead us into a future of free and fair abundance.

Under the invigorating rays of that Mexican sunshine I arrived at... 

4 Principles of Governance

Principle 1: Ostracism

First things first... people are too tolerant. We have come to admire the ‘toleration principle’; accepting our diversity, way too much... especially when it comes to sociopathy and suppression. 

At a deeper level, we not only tolerate other people’s views and ways of life (which is great) but we also extend that honor to parts of society which we should not. The liars, cheaters, and violent suppressors that seep into the Governance systems of regulatory agencies, police, military, education, big business, law, and so on.

In essence, it's hard for good people to fathom the ruthlessly bad intentions of a sinister minority. Yet it exists and it causes profound damage to our way of life. 

If smart-contract systems are meant to enable an efficiency of data and value transfer, to protect data security and help automate processes, then surely those systems should help keep bad actors out. Not just ‘hackers’ but other bad actors — those who wield force and fraud against us.

Imagine, Oracles that deliver verified data into our web3 applications, helping ensure that violent repeat offenders (such as Politicians who vote to regulate our way of life antithetical to individual rights) are kept the fuck out of our parallel universe of abundance.

A quick case in point: It’s like US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi who helped crush the US economy, turn California into a cesspool of crime and homeless victims, while she is now looking to relocate to Florida! She should be homeless, or locked up. A victim of her own destructive policies. Not getting off scot-free to enjoy the benefits of a city that is opposite to her suppressions. And don’t even get me started on Hillary.

In Finance, the old world of political agency (via the SEC) has waged war against web3 tokenomics, laying false claim to 'protecting investors', rather than getting out of the way of genius innovators who are bringing a paradigm shift in economic opportunity and abundance globally. 

We pander to tyrants and their minions way too much. It’s not until the good actors stop rewarding the bad actors that the bad actors will stop acting bad. Tyranny is intolerable. 

How do we build good governance if it does not help properly exclude the bad? We can’t. We must limit their access and make it public where possible for all to see and understand. Ostracism is essential to governance.

We can debate the nuances in the coming weeks and months as web3 systems take shape.

For now, let’s more on to Principle 2 of Governance.

Principle 2: Juxtaposition

Often times governance happens via a blind majority vote which lacks awareness or context of the full system in question.

Juxtaposition boils down to comparison. Side-by-side representation of different states, with context, that help us see the wood for the trees.

Without it, Governance is superficial at best. We need accurate data, filtered and displayed to see options within the broadest possible context.

Note that memes are usually built on juxtaposition. Here's a good one from the 2017 ICO (initial coin offering) days which still applies to today's IDO's (initial decentralized exchanged offering) in many cases: 

Projects and politicians get away with piss-poor-performance (or worse) due to poorly managed governance systems. 

Juxtaposing ideas, facts, results, options, evidence, and so on is pivotal to good governance. Our governance mechanisms must do a good job of juxtaposing vast amounts of data to help arrive at clear choices.

How can we govern well without juxtaposing accurate options? We can’t. Juxtaposition is essential to governance.

Which brings us to the 3rd principle of Governance:

Principle 3: Accessibility 

The next wave of DApp’s (decentralized applications) will bring better user experience, not just at the basic level of user journeys and interfaces, but also with customization to the point that users govern feature sets (helping make a product manager’s job easier). I'm picturing a kind of no-code DApp environment where non-coders can help govern the function of the services they use.

Start with simple systems of voting, such as upvoting on feature roadmaps, extend to user interfaces that reveal the inner workings and metrics of engagement, data management, and more.

The principle of accessibility also extends to cross-chain interoperability, maximizing the network effects of micro-economies flourishing in every possible nook and cranny of value creation and exchange. A true global village. 

How can we govern as best as possible without making opportunities to contribute accessible to a broad variety of stakeholders? We can’t. Accessibility is essential for governance. 

Next up:

Principle 4: Candor 

If we are going to build benevolent governance faster than the death-trap of tyranny builds inescapable systems of suppression, we need to be candid with our stakeholders to get the right things done fast.

Learning how to communicate and collaborate (despite the divergent, deviant, decentrist ethos of web3 advocates) is crucial. The flock needs to fly in formation that we may pierce through the veil of centralized control. Replacing our leaders in meritocratic rotation to bring the strength of the group to bear on the overwhelming task of traversing a great distance to new shores — like a flock of geese as bird after bird rotates to be front of the line.

How might we discuss, deliberate, and debate the ins-and-outs of governance, both short-term and long-range, through agile adaptive processes that build effective governance systems?

How can we govern well without efficiently deliberating on points of contention or confusion? To talk it out? To be open and authentic? We can’t. Candor is essential for governance.

The 4 Governance Principles for Incentivized Benevolence

1. Remove bad actors so they gain no entry into our new world of abundance until they make reparations: Ostracism.

2. Compare and contrast accurate options so we make informed choices at every possible level of governance: Juxtaposition.

3. Ensure stakeholder experience is inclusive of different levels and types of input from many sources: Accessibility.

4. Enable and encourage collaborative open dialog to efficiently arrive at consensus through authenticity and integrity: Candor.

May it be so. 

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See my previous article: 3 Ways to Invest in Web3.

Follow me on Twitter @GavrielShaw and express your interest as a founder or investor for venture capital at www.heliosrising.com