Way of the Sovryn

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Way of the Sovryn: A Journey of Personal Responsibility and Communal Virtue

Fellow Sovryns,

I am compelled to address an all-too-common misconception about individualism. Many assume that it entails solitary autonomy - a rejection of community and empathy. However, this could not be further from the truth. Our best chance of achieving individual freedom and empowerment lies in being part of a community that aids us in reaching that goal. Of being part of a community that shares our values so that together we may construct a slice of the world that reflects our values.

Everyone yearns to be Sovryn, but not everyone is willing to put forth the effort required to attain such a state. Being Sovryn, first and foremost, entails personal responsibility. It demands that we take charge of our actions and emotions. The first tyranny one must overcome is the tyranny of one’s own emotional reaction. Only those capable of rational thought and self-reflection can hope to be Sovryn.

There are individuals whose initial enthusiasm for Sovryn stems from a misguided belief that, in a community centered around personal freedom and empowerment, they can act without restraint. They are wrong. To be Sovryn is to bear the duty of self-restraint.

Being Sovryn does not mean you can do whatever you please.That is a child’s fantasy of adulthood. Being Sovryn means that you are the only authority over your own behaviour. That offers freedom but also responsibility.

Sometimes the childish understanding of sovereignty appeals to people for the wrong reasons. They think Sovryn it is an invitation to do whatever they please. We have witnessed many individuals who have joined the project with immense motivation, only to see them eventually burn out, when their childish fantasy did not materialise.

In the interest of tact and decorum, we shall not dwell on those who have left our ranks. Instead, let us focus on the lessons learned over the past two years. We have discovered that smaller teams of skilled, professionally mature individuals outperform larger teams with weak links. We have afforded people ample time to find their footing and prove themselves, but we continue to refine our methods to reduce that time and identify what works faster. I have immense confidence in our current team, which has recently demonstrated some of our finest communication and educational efforts to date.

It should also be noted that decentralization does not mean “without leaders”. Instead it means that leadership is based on reputation and merit. It is the result of persuasion rather than authority. Our community thrives on the virtuous conduct of its members. In the face of criticism and baseless accusations, we maintain our composure and dignity. We do not engage in petty disputes or seek to tarnish the honor of others. Instead, we cultivate a culture of honor within Sovryn.

It is high time we revive the virtues of being gentlemanly to each other. In a world plagued by toxic tweets and celebrity feuds, we have witnessed the infantilization of society. As Sovryn individuals, we must rediscover the values of self-respect, self-decorum, and honorable behavior—these are the markers of emotional maturity required for those who aspire to be capable of self-governance.

I must emphasize that becoming Sovryn is no easy feat. It demands self-control, maturity, skill, and confidence. Building such confidence and self-respect requires fortitude and resilience - the exact opposite of a fragile ego. If one cannot be self-critical, one is blind to the truth of themselves. And if one is blind to the truth of themselves, one is blind to reality. We must therefore work to be able to self-reflect and be capable of accepting criticism ourselves before finding it in others.

When we falter and fail to live up to these virtues, as we all inevitably will, it is not the end of our journey. Instead, it presents an opportunity to learn and grow.

To those who have lost self-control, we do not reject you. If you can demonstrate humility, show that you have learned from your missteps, and seek forgiveness from the community you have harmed, we will welcome you back. We will support you and celebrate your growth and your resilience.

Let us, together, foster a culture that supports our shared aspirations while holding ourselves and each other to the highest standards of conduct. By doing so, we can build a world where freedom, empowerment, and self-sovereignty are not only possible but also within our grasp.

Together, let us stride confidently toward our Sovryn future, overcoming challenges together, and inspiring one another to achieve our fullest potential.

With utmost sincerity and dedication, Stay Sovryn,

Y.

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Or in the immortal words of Rudyard Kipling:

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;
If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: ‘Hodl on!’

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with Kings—nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!

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Hi Yago,

I couldn’t resist responding to you.

The lines you’ve given us are very valuable. Sometimes it’s necessary to share the strategy, not just in terms of the goals and the path to achieving them, but also the values one must uphold on that journey. Your words define the principles and values that you imagine for Sovryn. It’s good to know them, in order to make them our own.

I agree with the values you promote for Sovryn. I am particularly drawn to those related to others, such as empathy, respect, honor, and humility.

As for emotion and rational thinking, I prefer a balance between the two. The former makes us human, and the latter does too. I choose to be Sovryn with both. Fortunately, your messages are also full of emotion.

Stay Sovryn!

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I remember in some of the community calls a while back there was a talk of a “Sovryn Constitution”. I know there is a lot of work at the moment and this wouldn’t be a priority.

But I think at some stage we should re visit this idea and lay out the type of community we want to build, and what values are held more strongly to us.
This will not only make it easier for everyone to understand what we are trying to do, but also allow us to attract the people that already share those values.

Recently I did an interview talking about Sovryn with the TaHo community (the first DAO run Web 3 wallet).

What they did was create a pledge, one that you sign with your own wallet, describing the values the community hold more strongly. Members of the community are encouraged to sign it as a way of showing support and demonstrating that, even though they may fall short for those ideals, that is what they will aim at.

I thought the idea was intriguing and very interesting and wonder whether or not something similar can be done for Sovryn.

I believe we have one of the strongest community and if we want this community to both grow and also maintain a base level of values and integrity, it would be a good idea to have it in writing and then anyone can sign it.

Members of the community can then measure themselves and others against this set of values, and if we select this values well, the process of trying to live up to them should make us better. First as Sovryn individuals, and then as a community at large.

I do agree with what you expressed here and in the TG group, we must treat each other with honor and respect.

I think moments like this are the best opportunity to start establishing these values that unites us, that are implicit in a way, and when made explicit they are spread around in different places. If we had one document that makes it clear (and the document can change as we move forward) it would make it easier for the entire community to be on the same page.

I have been a member of this community for years now, I’m not going anywhere Sovryn has become a home to me, and I want everyone to be able to feel that as well.

Maybe it is a good topic for a future community call or a twitter spaces, so we can begin the process of distilling the Sovryn values. what it means to be a Sovryn individual and how we can all come together as a community.

Sorry for the long post and I hope this adds some value to the conversation without distracting too much.

Stay Sovryn everyone!

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nice tweak there, staying true to the old Sovryn theme of creating mutants :wink:

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