Coin Market Observer × Conso George: More Important Than Resources Is the Ability to Continuously Amplify Value

In this Crypto cycle, a very interesting phenomenon is unfolding.

More and more people are starting to discuss personal IP, solopreneurs, AI, growth methodologies, and how to acquire incremental users from Web2. Compared to previous years when the industry was keen on discussing public chains, DeFi, NFTs, or Memes, now everyone seems more concerned with a practical question: when traffic becomes increasingly expensive and competition fiercer, what should an ordinary person or a startup rely on for sustained growth?

From building a business at 21 that achieved tens of millions in annual revenue, to experiencing investor withdrawal and team disbandment; from quantitative trading to wallet products, to now deeply cultivating the TON ecosystem and user growth. Over the past eight years, George has experienced several important cycles in the Crypto industry.

More than tracks, financing, and valuation, George cares more about: how to continuously create value and continuously amplify that value.

Guest: George, Co-founder & COO of Conso

Host: yuanyuan, BitMart Marketing VP

The biggest crisis in entrepreneurship isn't running out of money, it's losing direction

Many people might think George's entrepreneurial journey is quite legendary. At 21, the project he founded was already generating tens of millions in revenue; later entering Crypto, he successively worked on quantitative trading, wallets, games, and other directions. Looking at the results, it seems like a very smooth entrepreneurial path.

But what truly left the deepest impression on him wasn't those highlight moments, but the sudden crisis in 2022. Forced by external events, his investor had to withdraw capital, causing the company's cash flow to break down rapidly. Faced with the choice of toughing it out or disbanding the team, he ultimately chose the latter. The team was let go, compensation paid out, business paused – everything reset to zero.

Looking back, he believes the hardest part wasn't the financial pressure, but the ensuing confusion. Directly copy-pasting Web2 products into Web3 wasn't sustainable, yet the new direction remained elusive. Throughout 2023, he constantly pondered one question: if the market environment changes, what capability can he truly rely on for the long term? Eventually, his answer landed back on growth.

Compared to investing, trading, or chasing trending narratives, he believes more in his accumulated experience in user growth and market operations. It was during that phase that he redefined his future direction – helping more Web2 users enter Web3.

Anxiety isn't a weakness, it's a competitive advantage

Another word George repeatedly mentioned in the show was anxiety. Many people hope to get rid of anxiety, but in George's view, it's almost impossible not to feel anxious. There will always be people better than you, new opportunities will always emerge, and new changes will always happen. The problem has never been how to eliminate anxiety, but how to coexist with it.

He says he has long been accustomed to a state of "walking on thin ice." Because this state constantly reminds him to cherish opportunities, treat every partner seriously, and keep moving forward. To some extent, this persistent sense of crisis has become a driving force.

Many entrepreneurs, upon reaching a certain stage, start relying on resources, connections, or past accumulated advantages. But George prefers to rely on himself. This is also why he insists on long-term planning. Inspired by a teacher at 18, he once set a life goal for himself: to achieve tenfold growth in five years – ¥1 million annual revenue at 20; ¥10 million at 25; ¥100 million at 30... It sounds somewhat idealistic, but the goal isn't for showing off numbers; it's to help himself continuously expand his capability boundaries. After achieving the first ¥1 million, he found that ¥10 million was no longer an abstract concept; after achieving ¥10 million, ¥100 million gradually became concrete.

For entrepreneurs, the greatest growth often isn't how much money you make, but continuously improving your ability to solve problems.

The essence of growth isn't paying for traffic, it's finding leverage

In the past few years, the industry has witnessed countless growth myths. Some relied on airdrops, some on subsidies, and others on traffic dividends.

George believes growth is essentially about finding leverage. He also shared a case where his current project, Conso, used a budget of about $20,000 to acquire over 1 million users. Many people's first reaction would be channel dividends or traffic luck, but in his view, what really worked was the stacking of a series of leverages. From TikTok's algorithmic recommendations to viral spread via small KOLs; from pay-for-performance models to synchronized multi-platform distribution; from localized operations to user referral mechanisms – each link is a fulcrum.

He always believes in the saying: "Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world." And growth is precisely the process of constantly searching for new fulcrums.

The opportunity for TON might be more than just a public chain

Over the past year, TON has undoubtedly been one of the most watched ecosystems in the industry. But in George's view, many people's understanding of TON still remains at the public chain level. What truly matters is the user network behind Telegram.

Compared to most Crypto products, Telegram naturally has a user base of hundreds of millions and has already formed a mature Mini App ecosystem. For many users in developing countries, Telegram has even become a part of daily life. This means the issues TON faces are not exactly the same as those of traditional public chains. Most public chains primarily consider on-chain users, while TON focuses more on how to better serve users off-chain.

George mentioned that one of the main reasons he is bullish on the development direction of Web3 financial infrastructure over the long term lies here.

The industry narrative has been constantly changing over the past few years, from DeFi to NFTs, from GameFi to AI. But the truly enduring main storyline has never changed: making Web3 a new financial infrastructure. Especially in many developing countries, where local currencies face long-term devaluation pressures and cross-border payments are inefficient, these real needs won't disappear just because a market cycle ends. Platforms capable of connecting hundreds of millions of ordinary users naturally have a greater opportunity.

The IP era: Everyone should become their own media

Besides growth and entrepreneurship, George has done one more thing in the past year – helping creators grow.

In this process, he discovered that many talented people lack not ability, but the skill of expression. Many developers, entrepreneurs, and even project leaders have good resumes and real achievements, yet have almost no presence on social media. It's not because they aren't good enough, but because they don't know how to convey their value to more people.

Therefore, George has become increasingly convinced that in the future, everyone should cultivate their own personal IP. This isn't about becoming an influencer, but about building trust. Touching on this point, he mentioned the young KOL "嗯哼" who rose rapidly in this cycle. In his view, many people see the results but overlook the accumulation behind them. As early as 2024, "嗯哼" was already actively learning and observing in various communities. What truly creates a gap between people is often not luck, but the ability for continuous learning and sustained output.

When industry information becomes increasingly fragmented, someone who consistently outputs content often finds it easier to gain opportunities, collaborations, and resources. Often, people don't trust you because they know you personally, but are willing to get to know you because they've seen your content over a long period.

In the past, a person's credibility came more from their education, resume, and company background. Today, more and more credibility is stemming from the public content itself. What you have written, what you have thought about, what you have shared – this is becoming a crucial basis for others to judge you.

For entrepreneurs, IP is not just a communication tool, but more importantly, a trust asset accumulated over the long term. The biggest characteristic of this asset is that it generates compounding returns over time.

AI won't eliminate you, but people who use AI will

In the age of AI, work that used to require three people can now be done by one. A large amount of repetitive work in design, editing, data analysis, and operations management is being redefined. George believes the greatest value of AI isn't replacing jobs, but amplifying individual capabilities. Conversely, capabilities that are truly hard to replace will become increasingly important, such as product skills and creative abilities. Because AI can generate answers, but it cannot replace the person who creates the answers.

Future competition might no longer be about who masters more tools. It will be about who can use tools to create more value. He also stated that AI cannot replace him, so he wouldn't consider entrusting his social media accounts entirely to AI for maintenance.

True opportunities come from continuously amplifying value

Resources can disappear, connections can change. But when a person can continuously create value, opportunities often come knocking on their door. And this is perhaps the most important takeaway from George's eight-year entrepreneurial journey.

"Entrepreneurs need to break free from their reliance on resources and connections, and prioritize self-improvement," he says. He explains that investors leave, markets change, trends shift, and methods that work today might not work tomorrow. The only thing that can accompany you for the long haul is your capability itself.

Whether it's the TON ecosystem, driving growth, building an IP, or leveraging AI, the single thing he truly cares about remains: how to create value, and how to amplify value. Because a person's ability to create and amplify value will accompany them through cycles – this is true for entrepreneurs, for companies, and perhaps for the entire Crypto industry as well.

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The statements or opinions expressed in this column represent only the personal views of the guest and do not reflect the views of BitMart or its affiliates, nor should they be considered professional financial investment advice.

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