Oddbean

It depends. If you want less than two FTE devs on payroll the current rate that Will shared. If you want to empower @jb55 with a team of e.g. five (5) devs, maybe a designer, and throw jet fuel in the nostr kindle you can extrapolate. There is an argument made that nostr is layer 3, and few devs have done more to grow BTC/LN that @jb55 has with 1) the introduction of zaps 2) onboarding and educating of thousands to LN by way of nostr and an awesome user experience @OpenSats mission is to “support and maintain a sustainable ecosystem of funding for free and open-source projects and contributors, especially bitcoin-related projects and projects that help bitcoin flourish.” “OpenSats provides funding for a variety of bitcoin-related projects, including: Development of new bitcoin & bitcoin-adjacent software Improvement of existing free and open-source software Education and outreach about bitcoin Research into bitcoin-related topics” I would ask @OpenSats if they have considered @jb55 for long term support given his merit and contributions in a short amount of time. Probably I am biased - it seems that team nostr and team BTC would want to keep @jb55 not only onboard individually, but also empower him with a dev team to amplify his impact. cc @ROCKSTAR

Focus is key. There is almost no room for exploration with this number of FTEs. The only core operational revenue stream Damus has is the wallet split. Is there anything else? Merch is not a true revenue stream.

I have a lot of thoughts on the subject, considering my own developer journey over the last 20+ years in various settings around the world. Ultimately, Damus is set up in such a way that it's all about what @jb55 wants to do. I greatly admire what he has done, and I've told Will numerous times that I'm always there if he wants to talk and share experiences. Regarding what I would say publicly, the most important point is: when you are contributing to FOSS, you're building a reputation, not compensation. You won't make nearly as much as you would if you chose traditional routes (fiat job, startup, VCs, etc.). A critical side effect of this is that you need to take care of the reputation, self-actualization, and motivation of everyone involved. Managing a FOSS project is a heavy burden. Money is a very powerful tool, and the fact that every civilization that has scaled invented it is no coincidence. It allows you to remove a lot of variables. Beyond a certain point, you can only scale with money to maintain structure. So, if I were in Damus, I'd prioritize the happiness and reputation of contributors over impact. The track record clearly shows that something great is being done, so I wouldn't worry too much about making it "greater." Instead, as long as the work continues to be meaningful for Will and others participating, that's all that matters.

Reputation is everything. This is how you can be successful in FOSS. It's a lot of work and it will not work for everyone or every project though. You need to find the right people and you need to be of the right mindset. Well said, Rockstar. You are, in fact, a Rockstar 🫂 nostr:nevent1qqsxuy3vnfhcv39nqewczh7vumvgpryxaehdezczqcsf9dxl77vucsqpz4mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduhsygy3exj7r2t5gy2vdl3dvxhym6px98425ra49ayz3qyncln7qdhcxgpsgqqqqqqsxwt5e6

My notes: Be a cockroach, not a unicorn. Back your supporters. Delight your donors. Focus on your reputation, not compensation; doors will eventually open. Prepare for the bear (market); treasury management is critical. FOSS is a pillar of freedom tech.

Please read @ROCKSTAR note several times before commenting below nostr:nevent1qqs2egevfr8cddqywvu3x33c9pegtzlrk6akxzmjqwuvrrwjzl20hespz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfdupzpywf5hs6jazpznr0uttp4ex7sf3fa24qldf0fq5gpy78ulsrd7pjqvzqqqqqqy7et8p8