Jay Cleary, is a Community Manager & Event Logistics Project Manager for Aion Network — a blockchain infrastructure platform & foundation designed to address issues of scalability and interoperability. He has a long history of being a community builder in the music scene and is a part-time musician and DJ.

1) List five adjectives that describe you

➡️Positive

➡️Outgoing

➡️Passionate

➡️Whimsical

➡️Musical

2) Which living person do you most admire?

I’d have to say Stevie Wonder. Stevie has an incredible catalog of timeless music. He was innovative not just with futuristic sounds on his albums but he was also deeply involved in music technology, co-founding a ground-breaking synthesizer company called Kurzweil. His work in the civil rights movement was very impactful, and he was instrumental in creating the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day holiday. He had incredible humility about his blindness, he was funny and light-hearted about it. His talents were acknowledged by circles that cut across age, race, and musical style. I can’t think of any other living artist alive who has brought so many different people together, who changed the way people think about race and disability. He’s made a lasting and profound impact on culture internationally.

I am inspired by people like Stevie Wonder who move the needle on a broader societal scale in terms of how people think and relate to each other.

3) What do you most value in your friends?

Honesty is the most important quality I value as it speaks volumes to the integrity of a person on a fundamental level. Dependability and the ability to think outside of the box are other things that I really value.

4) Where would you most like to live?

I lived in New York City for six years and felt like I was living the American Dream. I worked on Wall St, and spent every moment soaking up the city culture. I would love to move back there someday.

Hong Kong, Paris and Brisbane are other places that come to mind in terms of living experiences I’d like to have. I’ve been lucky to travel all over the world.

I am grateful to be currently in Toronto. It’s a very exciting time to be here, and the tech community is thriving. There’s a very special collaborative vibe happening here right now.

5) What is your current state of mind?

Electrified! The industry is still so new, and it’s very exciting to participate as it unfolds and changes so quickly.

Every day at work I’m around some very inspiring people including Aion Network founders Matt Spoke, Kesem Frank & Jin Tu. They energize the team with their “blockchain will change the world!” exuberance. I love my job because I’m surrounded by a passion for change, and afforded the freedom to be creative with my initiatives to build and mobilize our community. It’s been an incredibly exciting and exhilarating feeling to have a front seat influencing mainstream adoption of blockchain technology globally.

6) What is your motto?

“The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars…” Jack Kerouac’s novel ”On The Road”

In my life, I’ve always gravitated to the free thinkers, entrepreneurs and those who’ve forged their own path. I’ve got several mottos, but the general gist is to carving out a unique life full of different experiences and follow your passions with extreme fervor.

7) Why are you passionate about your project?

The strong company vision and the compelling story behind the leadership team which first attracted me to the project. It has been fascinating to watching the project grow so quickly. I’m passionate about the role I’m playing in building this project into a long-term sustainable platform.

Being the voice of the community, one that has been so integral to the success

of Aion, is an extremely gratifying experience.

8) Tell us the best story about your community

Earlier this year we travelled to Africa for 10 days for a series of conferences and meet-ups, and we were thrilled to find a healthy community of token holders and people participating in our channels who have helped us maximize our impact. This is just an example of the support we’ve received on a regular basis and was the first time that I became fully aware of the global scope of Aion’s reach. Blockchain can sometimes feel like such a niche industry; however, in every city there are growing communities of cryptocurrency and tech entrepreneurs who are participating in this new digital revolution.

Aion Dev Meet-up in Nairobi

9) What are three things you find the most challenging about your job?

➡️It’s always changing

No two days are ever alike which makes getting into a comfortable routine almost impossible. The company is growing and my job is constantly evolving as new people join the team and our profile in the crypto space grows. It can be challenging to keep up with the pace of growth.

➡️It’s a 24/7 commitment

Our community is global and although I do log on to our channels in the evenings and weekends, it’s a challenge to keep up. Luckily we have some great dedicated members

(especially on our Twitter & Telegram channels) who can answer questions about our roadmap, keep the discussions on track about the technology and defuse any misconceptions.

➡️ Understanding the complexities

I’m challenged every day by questions from the community that are very technical or specific to our crypto-economic model. I’m constantly doing research and talking to our internal teams so I can be as informative and transparent as possible.

10) What are three things about your job makes you feel the most fulfilled?

Events:

We’ve had some great people and real visionaries come out to our meetups and events. For example, VoIP pioneer Jeff Pulver joined us at our conference AIONEX and said Aion gave him flashbacks to the enthusiasm of a 1986 conference he attended with Bill Gates and Steven Balmer about growing the PC industry. Relationships:

Meeting people outside of the company who are as passionate about the project as I am. Recognition:

Positive affirmation for a job well done from the community, from my peers and from the organization.

Internet Pioneer Jeff Pulver at AIONEX

11) What is your biggest accomplishment as a community manager?

I’ve really enjoyed being the voice within the organization for the broader community. I spend a great deal of my time facilitating ways to mobilize our community for various Aion initiatives. The ability to rally thousands of our supporters towards a cause that is bigger than ourselves is an amazing feeling and something I am proud to say I do everyday. This entire experience has taught me many valuable lessons about the value of community, connection and collaboration, and makes me incredibly proud to be in this line of work.

Connect with Jay

You can connect with Jay on Twitter, LinkedIn and Telegram at @AionJay.

Connect with OmniSparx

Crypto is powerful — but it won’t be revolutionary until we all work together. Trusted co-creation for crypto communities, at last. Omnisparx. Join our telegram channel to follow discussions on community management in blockchain and crypto and follow us on Twitter.