For those that do not know, there is a Call to Action for user-generated video clips to be considered for inclusion into "Freechain", the Hive movie being created by @lordbutterfly.

RULES:

1. Answer the question: "What does Hive mean to you". (No longer than 10-15 seconds. The answer can be 1 word or a few sentences. HAVE POSITIVE ENERGY IN THE VIDEO.
2. Language: Preferred English but if you do not speak English any language is ok. The goal is to show the diversity of people on Hive from all around the world.
3. Shoot a vertical selfie video like on TikTok in a well-lit room.

I can do that!

It seems simple enough, yet I am struggling for words. I know - The irony.

What does Hive mean to me?

I don't know where to start and then, I don't know if I will be able to encapsulate exactly what I want to say in a way that covers all of the things that it means to me. In many ways, Hive has integrated itself into my foundations, being a big part of my daily habits and experiences. How could it not when I have been producing for and engaging with the community daily for almost 7 years without a day break?

Is it an addiction?

Not quite, but some might see it in that vein. However, for me it isn't an addiction as much as it is a gateway to potential. Personal potential. Financial potential. Community potential. Global Economic potential.

That last one seems crazy, doesn't it? But I do not think it is. There is an increasingly relevant "cold" battle ongoing between centralization and decentralization and in the coming years, it is going to become an open war. We know that the current economic practices and mechanisms are deeply flawed and favor the few at the expense of the many, but it is protected by the very people who benefit, and those who are harmed are increasingly having their opportunity to challenge the status quo crushed. Be prepared.

And I think that this "preparation" starts with building the habits that are suitable to guide us toward the future we want to have. Hive gives an incentivized space to explore the philosophy, mindset, and build actions that move us in the direction toward decentralization, because it supports hands-on participation, not just user consumption.

And, even the consumption side of things is incentivized, for those who have some stake, which moves into another value that is of utmost importance for the future, ownership. Hive values ownership, which goes against the grain of the rent-seeking platforms that are monetized through ad revenue. Hive is not a slave to ad dollars, so the value of content is generated through the user base directly and therefore builds a direct relationship between content provider and the audience. This personal connection means that we don't need hundreds of millions of users to drive micro payments through ad views and, we don't have the algorithms to drive ad profits. It is more organic, natural, personal.

And with ownership comes responsibility and accountability. When you work for value, earn value and take ownership of that value, it becomes more valuable. This means how it is used and spent also gets considered. And for many of us, because we earn through creation of content, we own more than just the token, we also own our accounts, our personality, our entire Hive presence. We become responsible for ourselves.

And this responsibility means that we are more likely to actively participate in the community, in the day to day operations, and in the planning for the future. Here on Hive, ownership is more than a financial value proposition, it also impacts on the governance and therefore, what Hive is going to become in the future. Economic implications generally take the lion's share of the conversation, yet the underlying philosophy of a decentralized economy and community still hold fast.

And, this is something that inspired the movie in the first place, as Justin Sun attempted to commandeer the community through economic force. But, unlike what generally happens in the centralized economy, money doesn't buy the win, because a decentralized community has options that were previously unavailable. While there is historical immutability on the chain, there is always an "opt-out" possibility and whilst individuals can come and go as they please, nearly the entire Hive community opted out of one blockchain and took up residence on another - history intact.

The implications of this on the future are enormous, because once value is generated at scale on decentralized blockchains, businesses start to support it too. And, once they do, governments are forced to participate also, otherwise they will be made irrelevant. But, once they are at that stage, the irrelevancy has already set in, because people will build the understanding they need, and the technology will follow, to cut out the middlemen that take too much value, and spread it far wider.

Hive is a highly comprehensive approach to the problems we face now and is constantly investigating and building better through community-generated activity. It might seem like a social media, it might seem like a DeFi pool, or it might seem like a place where freedom of speech is possible, but it is none of these in singular. It is like an organism, always evolving based on the conditions, and always looking to find its line of best fit based on the community.

So, what does Hive mean to me?

I will think of something.

Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]

If you want to bounce ideas around in the comment section, please do.

I also recommend writing your own content around this topic to order thoughts, if you are going to submit a video.

And, if anyone wants to steal what I have written, just know, I put it on the blockchain first ;)