Women Leading The Blockchain Revolution: “If you’re looking to enter the space, you don’t have to be technical” With Ayelen Osorio of Netcoins

An Interview With Fotis Georgiadis

I’d say if you’re looking to enter the space, you don’t have to be technical. In fact, you will learn a lot of the technicalities on the job. Know that you still offer a lot of value to the space even if you don’t have a technical background. Remember that.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Ayelen Osorio, Content and Community Manager at Netcoins, a cryptocurrency exchange company based in Canada. She believes bitcoin is a great way for women to build wealth for themselves. Her mission is to help women understand the world of crypto; what it is, how the blockchain works, how to invest in cryptocurrencies and stay safe.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you share with us the story of how you decided to pursue this career path? What lessons can others learn from your story?

It’s an honour to be here. Thank you for having me!

I personally have strong feelings about making the world a more fair and just place so topics like economic empowerment, technology, and human rights have always been on my mind; specially considering my own background. I grew up in Venezuela where these topics hit close to home.

My career path into the crypto space started late 2019. I had just gotten back up on my feet from dealing with some financial setbacks due to health reasons and an ex-coworker came knocking about an opportunity to help grow and educate a community from the ground up.

I was intrigued by the idea of learning a very complex topic that merged together technology, economics, psychology and human rights. It was also reinventing the financial world. I thought it was an awesome opportunity I could not pass so I accepted the offer at Netcoins. Now, my goal is to help women understand and benefit from crypto investments.

One of the most memorable moments was when the hiring manager (my Director of Marketing now) said “You don’t need to be an expert from the get-go. I want people to grow and learn alongside you. It’s extra endearing and rewarding when you’re able to put yourself in the average person’s shoes and start from square 1 too.”

The moral of my story (so far) — it’s ok to find things daunting and new. Know that you don’t have the answers to everything so take it easy on yourself! Fight to work on what you’re passionate about. Opportunities will follow you when you do that.

Can you tell me about the most interesting projects you are working on now?

For me, it’s the work I’m doing around crypto education — podcasts, interviews, blog posts, emails, workshops or our very own Crypto Academy for Beginners.

I’m a big believer in talking about these super complicated topics and explaining them in everyday language through as many channels as possible. That’s because I want women to feel like they are included in the conversation, and more than that — that they understand these important topics.

So any time that I see women understanding the concepts of money, wealth generation and crypto investments unlocking in their minds, I feel like we’ve won. It’s always a great day for me. I guess you can think of me as being women’s biggest financial cheerleader! That’s what gets me excited to wake up every morning and do my work.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

I agree with you — we neve achieve success on our own!

The person I’m grateful to have is our Director of Marketing, Hannah. I actually worked with her at a previous company and now I work with her at Netcoins. By now, she knows how I think, how I work, communicate and deliver. She knows when to step in to support me and when to let me fly. I can also count on her to tell me the truth, even if I don’t want to hear it haha

On top of that, we have an amazing friendship outside of work. She is kind, funny, brilliant and all-around awesome! All these things together make for a great working-relationship so I feel very fortunate to have it — specially because I know most people don’t enjoy their work or who they work with. I’m very lucky!

What are the 5 things that most excite you about blockchain and crypto? Why?

Wow, there’s too many to count! What gets me really excited is:

1. Seeing the progression of bitcoin adoption from “computer nerds” to retail investors, companies, institutions, to now small countries like El Salvador…. all in the span of 12 years. That’s fast!

2. The industry is growing like crazy. It will be exciting to see the new projects evolve and more brilliant minds join the space. Soon enough, working in the blockchain and crypto space will be normal.

3. Watching the financial world become decentralized (ie: seeing lending, borrowing etc. be done 24/7 without third party involvement and high fees). That’s a big deal for democratizing wealth opportunities!

4. Making friends in the crypto industry. Crypto enthusiasts are some of the kindest and smartest people you will ever meet. I’m looking forward to meeting more of these innovative people.

5. Last but definitely not least — continuing to work on helping women understand and invest in crypto.

What are the 5 things that worry you about blockchain and crypto? Why?

To be honest, I don’t often worry about blockchain or crypto. Especially not bitcoin.

I don’t listen too much to mainstream concerns around the demise of crypto as I find a lot of their claims to be unfounded. Most critics don’t really understand crypto in-depth.

If anything, my concern is that the fall of bitcoin (particularly) is a result of a self-made injury, where a bug is introduced into the blockchain. This is why it’s important to learn as much as we can about the work being done to the blockchain and participate in the conversations around the future of bitcoin and its network.

How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world? Can you share a story?

In my personal life, I noticed a lot of my girlfriends didn’t know how to invest. Let alone how to invest (safely) in crypto. It was a huge hurdle for them to get started because they didn’t understand money and wealth in the first place.

So, I created a Slack group with my girlfriends where we discuss financial planning, investments and cryptocurrencies. It’s been a safe space for them to ask those “embarrassing” questions without judgement. And to meet other women with similar goals.

I’ve loved watching them ask questions, learn and dip their toes into crypto. Nothing has been as rewarding as that! I only hope this group continues to grow and help other women.

As you know there are not that many women in your industry. Can you share 3 things that you would advise to other women in the blockchain space to thrive?

I’d say if you’re looking to enter the space, you don’t have to be technical. In fact, you will learn a lot of the technicalities on the job. Know that you still offer a lot of value to the space even if you don’t have a technical background. Remember that.

And if you’re already in the space, I’d say develop your own framework of thinking and practice critical thinking because a lot will be said about crypto, blockchains, and whether the space will survive or not. Most of it is noise and clickbait. If you allow it to affect you, it will burn you out and hurt your work.

Finally, have fun! If you’re enjoying what you’re doing, if you’re passionate about it, it will ooze out of you. You’ll attract people and opportunities to you! Your world will expand and you’ll be able to make a great impact in your own unique way. But, nothing happens unless you don’t love it first. So make sure you’re doing what you love!

Can you advise what is needed to engage more women into the blockchain industry?

Personally, I think crypto enthusiasts need to change the language around crypto a little bit; and not talk about it in such technical, alienating and complex terms. Otherwise, the confusing terminology acts as a massive barrier to entry and that’s not what crypto is about!

I really believe that if we explain crypto in simple terms, and answer people’s questions with patience and empathy, then women will feel less intimidated to join. They’ll want to learn more, ask questions, test it out, and eventually participate in the space

Right now, it’s very much a man’s world (and a techy-man’s world at that). We need more marketers, story-tellers, data scientists, women, and people from all walks of life to enter the space.

What is your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share a story of how that had relevance to your own life?

There is a beautiful quote by Rumi that I love: “live life as if everything is rigged in your favour.”

I say this when I have a challenge or a hard task in front of me. For example, when I’m nervous before a podcast interview. I tell myself that this moment is the best moment for me to participate in the interview because life, the universe — or whatever you want to call it — knows I can handle it. This moment is when I am most prepared to handle it.

The quote reminds me that the challenging moment I’m dealing with has arrived at the perfect timing for me. It’s rigged in my favour, and therefore, I can handle it.

You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂

Data shows that women, children, low-income communities, people with different abilities and so on are often ostracized from the traditional financial world.

If I could start anything, it would be an organization and (bitcoin) fund that supports and invests in these vulnerable communities around the world. The goal would be to help them build long-term wealth with bitcoin. Of course, I’d have to think about the details but that’s where I’d start.

I want to see them uplifted and thriving! To me, bitcoin is the best way to do that.

How can our readers follow you on social media?

I’ve recently re-joined twitter. I’d love to connect there, @Ayelen_Osorio! Please don’t be shy to say hello! I’ve love to connect. You can also reach me on LinkedIn.

I recommend you also follow Netcoins on Twitter. It’s a great place to learn about crypto, the technology powering crypto, and industry news. We work really hard to produce great content for everyone! We hope you enjoy it.

This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!

Thank you so much for having me! I had a lot of fun chatting with you today!


Women Leading The Blockchain Revolution: “If you’re looking to enter the space, you don’t have to… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

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