The Great Resignation has changed the way people think about work, and people have been leaving their jobs in droves across industries. The pandemic and a convergence of other factors have flipped the script, leading millions of people to reevaluate how they spend their time and the compensation they receive for it.

People are looking for better ways to make a living than spending their days locked away in a fluorescent-lighted corporate dungeon or a hellish fast-food kitchen. They are looking for options — starting a business, side hustles, freelance work, anything that will give them more control over their time and lives.

Tech has been one of the hardest-hit industries as employees feel like their future is finite at big tech companies. Once vibrant companies like Facebook and Google have turned stale, and many are finding little room for growth. Employees are leaving to small startups (often in crypto & Web3) that have much more to offer in a vision for the future — especially when it comes to the internet.

‘Web3’ has become one of the big themes for the internet over the last couple of years, seeing huge interest and exponential growth as new technologies mature and come to fruition, enabling features and functionality that have never before been possible.

But what is Web3, how does it differ from previous versions of the web, what opportunities are there to get involved – and is it really possible to build a whole new career in Web3?

Web 3.0: Read-Write-Own

The premise of ‘Web 3.0’ was coined by Ethereum co-founder Gavin Wood shortly after Ethereum launched in 2014. Gavin put into words a solution for a problem that many early crypto adopters felt: the Web required too much trust. That is, most of the Web that people know and use today relies on trusting a handful of private companies to act in the public’s best interests.

What is Web3?

Web3 has become a catch-all term for the vision of a new, better internet. At its core, Web3 uses blockchains, cryptocurrencies, and NFTs to give power back to the users in the form of ownership. A 2020 post on Twitter said it best: Web1 was read-only, Web2 is read-write, Web3 will be read-write-own.

Core ideas of Web3

Although it’s challenging to provide a rigid definition of what Web3 is, a few core principles guide its creation.

• Web3 is decentralized: instead of large swathes of the internet controlled and owned by centralized entities, ownership gets distributed amongst its builders and users.
• Web3 is permissionless: everyone has equal access to participate in Web3, and no one gets excluded.
• Web3 has native payments: it uses cryptocurrency for spending and sending money online instead of relying on the outdated infrastructure of banks and payment processors.
• Web3 is trustless: it operates using incentives and economic mechanisms instead of relying on trusted third-parties

The Benefits of Web3

Web3 is a huge wealth-building opportunity for current employees in nearly every industry. But just like the early days of the internet, there are those who are confused by the technology and dismiss the entirety of blockchain, crypto, NFTs, permissionless apps, and decentralized systems. If you can look beyond all the noise and see the implications, you’ll find yourself in the top echelon of tech, helping call the shots on the future.

Here are some of the other pros of Web3 work:

• Remote work and flexible schedules are the norm
• Higher levels of compensation closer to the source of wealth
• More passion is put into the work from people who believe in what they’re doing
• Tight-knit communities & DAOs democratize decision-making
• Random airdrops, bounties, and opportunities to earn crypto
• Thousands of global events and conferences

How to Land Your First Web3 Job

• Learn the Basics: Getting familiar with how blockchain tech and crypto really work will place you lightyears ahead of the crowd. Like the above tweet, you don’t have to be the expert; just get the basics down.
• Join Communities: Joining communities on Telegram, Discord, Reddit, and Twitter can be a surefire way to get your foot in the door and start making a name for yourself. Networking has new rules now, and if you can offer value as an advocate on a protocol’s social channels, don’t be surprised if you get a job offer.
• Get Involved: There are a growing number of ways to get involved if you prefer either IRL, URL, or the metaverse — conferences, meetups, and events abound globally. Do a little research, and you will probably be able to attend your first meetup by tonight.
• Put in Your Application: Search and register on web3 dedicated recruitment platforms like aibra.io. update your profile and be on the look out.

Who Will Find a Job?

In short, everyone! Web3 needs more talent in a huge number of areas.

Finance Pros

Economists, analysts, former bankers, and investment pros are in high demand to drive Web3’s underlying financial structure: DeFi. We need more talented numbers people to create the framework for Web3’s economy. Wall Street employees have already begun the migration to a promising new foundation of money.

Engineers & Product Managers

People are leaving engineering roles and tech giants like Facebook (Meta), Microsoft, and Google to come to Web3 startups where they can truly drive the product and design systems that we’ve never seen the likes of before.

Designers & Marketers

Web3 perhaps more than anything else needs people who can tell its story in a way that more people will understand and accept. Marketers and designers are needed desperately to improve UI and UX across the board while sending the right message to users.

Salespeople & Business Developers

In Web3, partnerships are essential. Sales teams and business developers are needed to connect projects to one another to build out ecosystems and fulfill the goals of these organizations.

Nearly All Other Specialties

Artists, journalists, chiefs of staff, recruiters, data center managers… In short, all hands on deck.

Technology has freed millions of people to choose how they make a living, giving them options when they had few. Web3 is breaking all the right rules on how people earn currency and spend their time. As Web3 attracts the smartest minds, it will doubtlessly have a juggernaut effect as they create an internet like we never thought possible — making a decentralized web the world’s default operating system.