Crypto by the pool
An open community demystifying male-dominated knowledge topics in a fun, female, and approachable way.
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The confidence to shape the future
Male-dominated knowledge topics, especially in technology and finance (crypto), are often presented as more complicated than they really are to preserve the powerful people who profit from them. It’s, like, totally unnecessary. The world needs more women who have the confidence to discuss and shape the future of technology. We are a wide open door to that process.
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It can't be difficult if you can’t discuss it while sipping on a Pina Colada.
Requires no prior training in computer science, programming, finance or mathematics. Its only prerequisite is curiosity. Its dress code is a bikini and sunglasses.
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The Topic is always you and your confident ability to thrive in today’s world. The subject is always self-empowerment.
At its core identity, the By The Pool is about self-help, and self-improvement for women seeking personal or professional growth through the empowerment of knowing what the hell is going on. The By The Pool community is not defined by crypto as much as it is by the resulting empowerment that is the byproduct of this knowledge and enablement.
Hello
My name is gretchen andrew
As an artist, I have built a career around looking like a dumb blond while blowing people’s minds with my technical power. I’ve created a community of women who feel empowered through my work and a critically respected and successful art career around demystifying technology through absurdly approachable. People see me and think, "If she can do this, then I can too.” This is the same approach taken in Crypto by the pool.
About Me.
I'm an honors B.S. in Information Systems who worked 6 years in Silicon Valley as a software engineer, analyst, and product manager before dropping out of the male-dominated culture of tech.
Since getting my first programming job at 16, javascript-based ActionScript animation at the time, I’ve faced the prejudice and unconscious bias of the technology industry whose icons, then and now, are almost entirely male.
From programming, in javascript, I worked at Intuit through university, received an honors degree in Information Systems from Boston College, and landed a much-coveted job at Google. Then, in 2012, after years of frustrated ambition, demeaning comments, dismissive bosses claiming credit for my work, and blatant and subdued sexual harassment, I ostensibly exited the technology industry.
Ostensibly. But of course, I have never actually left tech. I only set out to do it differently.
Why is this relevant?
The above is not just an explanation as to why I decided to develop my technical career and reputation outside of Silicon Valley and its corporate structures, but also why I am so passionate about the demystification of technology as a means to bring more women into it. Having found the traditional technology path rife with hazards, I blazed a parallel trail through art, academic research, and education. To the technology industry, I am a well-trained, intentional outsider.
Let's do it our way, by the pool.