At Long Last: Holding My Published Book for the First Time!

You know those days you never forget? Amongst all the days of mundane chores and repetitive work tasks, some days stick out as being special beyond belief. Such days usually feature big, momentous occasions like the birth of your children or the launch of a successful business. All days you never forget. They remind you why life is worth living. They prove to you that you’ve chosen to take the right journey.

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May of 2021 included one of those very special, unforgettable days for me. In December of the previous year, my publisher had mailed me a package containing several copies of my first book. A short six months later, I finally found that package on my doorstep!

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Clutching the parcel close, I shimmied through my front door and inside the house, eager to open it up.

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My children sat up straight, their eyes wide as they admired mum's gentle touch and exuberant smile as I prepared to open the box. They were just as excited as I was to tear the paper packaging apart and finally see, in real life, the books that lay inside. With an enthusiastic drum roll that soon erupted into an uncontrollable uproar from all of us, I tore the parcel open and gazed down at the shiny paperback covers of my book.

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There lay three pristine copies of my book, Blockchain Value, Transforming Business Models, Society and Communities. Printed on those crisp, clean pages was everything I once hadn't known and have now learned. It's the book I had needed when I first became curious about blockchain about five years ago. And it's the book I hope will help many others like me; people who are stuck, trying to overcome the hurdles I once faced.

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The focus of the book is blockchain applications. Blockchain technology, which underpins all cryptocurrencies, has great potential beyond just acting as a medium of exchange and the storage of value. Numerous emerging business models, including token economies, P2P, micro values, new asset creation, blockchain-based software, blockchain as a service (BaaS), and numerous others, are using blockchain technology in innovative ways that raise important ethical, legal, and societal issues.

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The book investigates emerging blockchain business models and their implications on commerce, society, and laws. The development of these business models raises important questions that need careful analysis and pragmatic solutions. I have interviewed CEOs, founders, and executives in roughly 10 industries that will be affected by blockchain’s imminent arrival, and, using real-life examples, I shared blockchain’s unique value propositions and developed a set of best practices for dealing with blockchain’s arrival in key industries.

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It's been quite a journey, but one for which I am eternally grateful and the result is something I’m immensely proud to call my own. May of 2021 gave me the gift of a great day that I won't ever forget. The pictures we took for social media after opening the parcel and the book that sits on the shelf are both testaments to my career journey and prove the potential for growth and achievement in this one-of-a-kind industry.