From My Lens, A Story of Hive’s First Local Event

Before the sun was up, I was already busy transporting the merchandise and equipment needed for the event.

At the time, I only had 4 hours of sleep because I was tossing and turning, wondering if the event would be well-received. I had my fair share of worries because I set such a high standard for myself and this event.

As the first event in the country and, honestly, a pilot project to map out Hive’s interest, I hoped that it would go well and, most importantly, be well-received. We have a 5-month timeline for this event, and with such long preparation, Sunday was the main highlight.

The venue was Komunitas Coffee & Space, which has a small amphitheater-like setting. Since my home is an hour’s drive from the place, I got up early and prepped for it. On my way, I also picked up some of our volunteers. Basically, the people from @menulisid are called volunteers, and as much as I find that term quite interesting, let’s stick to that one, and that’s how they were addressed.

So, four people from @menulisid helped me with the event. Throughout this, they were responsible for different things such as graphic design, social media, connecting me with the event speaker, and another that helped me brainstorm and convey the messaging of HIVE so it fits into the audience.

We had meetings almost every Sunday to ensure an update on the event. I love working with them because they are so easy to work and collaborate with. It’s been a pleasure working with them, and since I am pretty straightforward and hate drama, I love that this wasn’t something I encountered with them. These team are pretty solid and was willing to find win-win solution for any challenges we encountered. Without them, this event won't be realized too.

Fun story: I learned my lesson not to stick the sticker on the booth by myself as it was bubbling. I should have sent it to the professional, but thankfully, the sticker can be fixed again :D So phew! I learned my lesson.

Before the participants were present, we assembled our portable booth, set up the chairs, and ensured that we had the snacks and water ready for the event. As you can see, this was our setup, and we have to make sure that it’s best for the people who attended but still has more space for us to move around.

I hadn’t had coffee then, so I was still sleepy and wasn’t so awake, but I tried my best when people started coming to the venue. I was the first to set the tone and introduce what Hive is within 2 minutes.

Among all the 30 people who came, they all knew about Bitcoin, and it was quite a breeze to explain what Hive is as they got the picture. It also introduced them to the fact that, unlike Bitcoin, Hive is unique on its own. I showed them some of how it works and the front pages of Hive before they were about to learn more about Journalism and inspiring talk about writing and the WHY we write.

The full report of this event will come out soon since I am still exhausted and ran out of energy. I got back by train because there were still some things I did. The train ride was long, and there were delays. I ended up sleeping for quite a while, and upon waking up, I didn’t even know where I put most things or what exactly happened, haha.

So please bear with me; I’ll update more as I am getting hold of my regular schedule and is done with my data analysis for this event. Not to mention, I was dealing with my dad being hospitalized just a few days before this event. It was definitely hectic!