Proposal: A Structured Mentorship Space to Support Struggling Newbies

[Donneski]

INTRODUCTION
I joined Bitcointalk in April 2023 with a strong desire to learn and contribute but my journey didn’t go as I hoped. For almost two years, I struggled in silence, unsure of how to engage or make progress. It wasn’t until January 2025 that I finally opened up about my challenges in the Beginners & Help board. That experience and the response I received, reshaped my entire journey and inspired this proposal.

My Early Struggles as a Newbie
Below is the post I made when I decided to speak up after nearly two years of struggling:

I'm also new here even when I know that I've spent close to two years here. I've been very inconsistent with my activities here and that's because whenever I want to concentrate and try make progress on this forum, I find myself struggling on what to do and how to go about it. I'm just like a newbie in the forum despite signing up to become a member of the forum since 2023. I've not been able to make progress despite trying everything possible to improve my knowledge. I feel like I'm stuck in a spot or probably the forum isn't favoring me. Everyday, I see new members making significant progress  and growing in the forum which always leaves me with the question of "why is my own case different"?

I've made up my mind that I must grow in this forum and if it'll cost me paying an expert here to help mentor me improve my knowledge about the forum, I'm very much ready to make some sacrifice to remain in this great forum.

It was because of my inability to improve my knowledge of the forum that made someone left a neutral tag with me. That said, this is a new year and I'm fully back with a determined mind and spirit to make progress. I've already sent someone a PM as I was recommended by a member here, that the person will guide me. I'm now looking forward to a response from the person.

Please, if there's anyway you guys can help me grow I'll appreciate.

As you can see, I was frustrated, confused, and almost ready to give up. I even considered paying someone to mentor me just so I could find my footing.

The Turning Point: Guidance from a Senior Member
Thankfully, an experienced member responded with words that became my turning point. Below is the response:

(removed)

From the depth of my heart I understand how frustrated you are, it is all over your write-up. You obviously need help, and believe me, if I were a merit source, I would have aided your journey to a full member and make someone happy. Meanwhile I have the following advice for you. I will also try to send you this in PM incase you will not return to this thread again.

1. You registered in 2023 and started well but seems you took a long break which set you back. As much as you can, be active in the forum. If you go AWOL, your account would be forgotten. No one cares but yourself.
2. I have gone through your post history and discovered that you started well from your local board but later on you stopped posting in your local board. Go back to your local board and make friends there, you can grow faster there.
3. I can see that you are emotional, just be strong and bold because there are alot bullies behind the computer.
4. Learn about bitcoin so that you can make good posts.
5. Don't send random people PM's, you could be banned if reported.
6. Finally, as much as you can, appear in the forum atleast 3 to 4 days in a week.
7. Stop posting in spam threads, post where quality conversation is happening, it is there you can gain merits.

Be strong and face your fears.

 It was the above advice that gave me the confidence and direction I had been missing.  The guidance reshaped my mindset. Immediately, I began to apply the advice and over time, I started to grow steadily. Today I’m grateful to say I’ve become a Full Member.

My Proposal
This experience made me realize something and that's if I silently struggled for nearly two years, there must be many other newbies going through the same or worse. Not everyone will be lucky enough to receive the right advice at the right moment.

That’s why I propose creating a structured mentorship space. It can be a dedicated thread or even a separate board, strictly for struggling newbies. This would allow them to:

• Freely share their difficulties without fear of ridicule.
• Receive constructive mentorship from experienced members.
• Learn how to grow the right way rather than seeking harmful shortcuts.

Goals of This Proposal
The intended outcomes of such a mentorship space would be:

• Raising genuine newbies into valuable contributors and future legendaries.
• Reducing account abandonment due to frustration or lack of direction.
• Strengthening the culture of knowledge-sharing while preserving independence.
• Discouraging shortcuts that go against forum rules and objectives.

CONCLUSION
I’m not suggesting Bitcointalk should remove the self-learning culture that has shaped it for years. Independence should remain at the core. But at the same time, a safe mentorship space could make the difference between a newbie who gives up and one who grows into a long-term contributor.

[Mahiyammahi]

I still remember my early days. I didn't know how to make a post do a proper reply. As a result of this , I found out I was doing spam. Then there was lot's of good folks corrected me. Some even reached out to me via pm. There was a personal message option on forum. You can say that's the most ignorant thing in forum. But I found out everyone is  very helpful. I reached some folks , thought they would neglect me as I'm a low ranked memeber or won't be that helpful. But I was wrong. I didn't find anyone less helpful.

Well the idea of improving yourselves isn't that you don't have any mentor or no one telling you where to learn it's you taking your first leap towards it. Mistakes happens and the beautiful part of mistakes is you're learning from it and building your ground more strong that's what I belive.

Your idea of helping and mentoring newcomers is admirable, and I’m not against it. But think of it this way: this forum is already structured into different sections, each dedicated to a specific area of learning. You can choose where to start and what to focus on. Many members have specialized in certain fields and stick to those boards, so it’s up to you to follow the path that aligns with your interests.

You won’t always find all the talented people gathered in one place to teach and guide beginners. However, your idea still has merit  there are always kind-hearted members who are willing to help newcomers build a strong foundation so they can grow and level up on their own.

[lovesmayfamilis]

Do you know why you had difficulties? Because you came to the forum not for knowledge or information about Bitcoin, but for growth in rank and further participation in signature companies. There is no need to explain or justify anything; this is the first reason.

Many people forget that this forum is not about work. Although I admit that I also discovered the forum by chance on YouTube. At that time, my forum, where I often hung out, was not working; I was just surfing and found out about this forum. I also decided that I could get something from the bounty, but then I quickly became disappointed and started just reading, as all people who visit forums do.
 
Our forum is unique, and many confuse it with a place to earn money. Do those who just read have difficulties? Unlikely. There is a sea of ​​information; go and read. If you don’t like one topic, move on. Beginners are hasty.

Now, you suggest dividing the section for beginners in half: that is, for the strong and the weak. Are you serious? This is a forum, a place where you need to communicate. The world is equal; there are many rude people, and there are many who pity everyone-such is society. But the forum is not a school. Why do so many people think that someone owes them something here? I can say that if someone asks one question, there will be ten times more answers. Do we need more mentors? Honestly, are these the words of a man? Aren't you ashamed to say that you are weak?

Hello everyone I'm new here.
Please what are  the fastest ways to learn about bitcoin? and how can a software development student meaningfully contribute to the forum?

No need to rush!

[Satofan44]

No, thank you. You are not entitled to shitpost for money.

Our forum is unique, and many confuse it with a place to earn money. Do those who just read have difficulties? Unlikely. There is a sea of ​​information; go and read. If you don’t like one topic, move on. Beginners are hasty.

It is not possible to "struggle" with a forum.

[Donneski]

Do you know why you had difficulties? Because you came to the forum not for knowledge or information about Bitcoin, but for growth in rank and further participation in signature companies. There is no need to explain or justify anything; this is the first reason.

Many people forget that this forum is not about work. Although I admit that I also discovered the forum by chance on YouTube. At that time, my forum, where I often hung out, was not working; I was just surfing and found out about this forum. I also decided that I could get something from the bounty, but then I quickly became disappointed and started just reading, as all people who visit forums do.
 
Our forum is unique, and many confuse it with a place to earn money. Do those who just read have difficulties? Unlikely. There is a sea of ​​information; go and read. If you don’t like one topic, move on. Beginners are hasty.

Now, you suggest dividing the section for beginners in half: that is, for the strong and the weak. Are you serious? This is a forum, a place where you need to communicate. The world is equal; there are many rude people, and there are many who pity everyone-such is society. But the forum is not a school. Why do so many people think that someone owes them something here? I can say that if someone asks one question, there will be ten times more answers. Do we need more mentors? Honestly, are these the words of a man? Aren't you ashamed to say that you are weak?

Hello everyone I'm new here.
Please what are  the fastest ways to learn about bitcoin? and how can a software development student meaningfully contribute to the forum?

No need to rush!

Thank you for your honest perspective. Just to clarify, I wasn’t after money when I first joined. My main concern was how to gain the knowledge that would allow me to make meaningful contributions. Perhaps my way of expressing it gave the impression of being desperate for rank or campaign participation, but that wasn’t my true intention.

My proposal is not about dividing people into “weak” and “strong,” but rather about giving those who may feel overwhelmed a safe place to ask questions without fear. I believe this could reduce silent frustration and help more people remain active long-term.

I respect your point that no one is “owed” anything here and I fully agree. What I’m suggesting is more about culture-building not obligation.

[Satofan44]

I respect your point that no one is “owed” anything here and I fully agree. What I’m suggesting is more about culture-building not obligation.

This is not about culture, this is about building accounts for signature campaigns.

Goals of This Proposal

• Raising genuine newbies into valuable contributors and future legendaries.

A real contributor couldn't care less about their rank.

[Helena Yu]

So, someone who earn 11 merits from making 42 posts in 2023 and 2024 claiming to be struggle?

11 merits from 42 posts is a good statistic especially for newbies, many newbies even not able to earn any single merit after making 100 posts.

You don't need to make any proposal because your idea have been realized by forum members, it's the local users who support struggling newbies. The way I see your merit history, you're already belong to one of them.

[Jet Cash]

I was fortunate in that I joined the forum when Bitcoin was struggling to find its feet as a medium of exchange. I received a lot of help from members here, and it is unfortunate that many of them have moved on. Bitcoin is a victim of its own success, and it is now seen as a medium of wealth creation, and this has distorted the motives of new members. I believe that it has now moved on from this, and it has become a medium of wealth preservation. This has moved it into the political arena, and this is creating problems, not least from those who see it as a threat to the strength of gold and silver ( which it isn't ). These days it seems that knowledge of politics and economics are more important than knowledge of the technical intricacies of Bitcoin. Unfortunately this means that there are many conflicting opinions that seek to provide advice to push their own agendas.

[Donneski]

I respect your point that no one is “owed” anything here and I fully agree. What I’m suggesting is more about culture-building not obligation.

This is not about culture, this is about building accounts for signature campaigns.

Goals of This Proposal

• Raising genuine newbies into valuable contributors and future legendaries.

A real contributor couldn't care less about their rank.

Thanks for pointing that out. I get why you did interpret my suggestion as being tied to signature campaigns since many people do see rank as the end goal. But in my case, it’s really about building the confidence to keep learning and engaging. When I struggled earlier, it wasn’t because I couldn’t rank up but because I didn’t know how to participate properly and felt out of place.

That’s why I framed the idea of a mentorship space not to “hand out ranks” but to help people stick around long enough to actually become meaningful contributors. I completely agree that real contributors don’t obsess over rank and that’s exactly the kind of mindset I think newbies need guidance to develop.

[Lucius]

I have to admit that the idea or ideas proposed by the OP make little (or no) sense to me, considering that every beginner on this forum can get all the necessary information found in the sticky topics in Beginers&Help and the Meta board, and many of them have been translated and can be found in local boards.

Forum as a platform for discussions and exchange of ideas is not some kind of labyrinth where someone should lead people by the hand at every step - everything can be achieved with a little patience, reading and understanding.

I wonder what people are like in real life if they can't manage on a regular forum?

[Aanuoluwatofunmi]

What has happened to the beginners and help section, what about the pinned threads, the use of the search button or even every relevant links members provide on newbies upon requests, anyone that is new in a place and seek for direction, then he will surely be helped in the right manner, some newbies are not being patience, not observant and don't even take time to read about anything before making post, what should we do about those categories as well.

[Satofan44]

So, someone who earn 11 merits from making 42 posts in 2023 and 2024 claiming to be struggle?

If there are interesting topics this should be your weekly or even daily post count. 

Thanks for pointing that out. I get why you did interpret my suggestion as being tied to signature campaigns since many people do see rank as the end goal. But in my case, it’s really about building the confidence to keep learning and engaging. When I struggled earlier, it wasn’t because I couldn’t rank up but because I didn’t know how to participate properly and felt out of place.

That’s why I framed the idea of a mentorship space not to “hand out ranks” but to help people stick around long enough to actually become meaningful contributors. I completely agree that real contributors don’t obsess over rank and that’s exactly the kind of mindset I think newbies need guidance to develop.

Good, then remove the rank stuff completely. Ranks do not matter to real contributors. It is easy to get sucked into the merit game, it works similar to likes on social media. If you start caring about those, you are already losing.

[Donneski]

So, someone who earn 11 merits from making 42 posts in 2023 and 2024 claiming to be struggle?

11 merits from 42 posts is a good statistic especially for newbies, many newbies even not able to earn any single merit after making 100 posts.

You don't need to make any proposal because your idea have been realized by forum members, it's the local users who support struggling newbies. The way I see your merit history, you're already belong to one of them.

I get your point, looking at my merit history, it doesn’t look like much of a struggle compared to what some others go through. But for me, the real challenge wasn’t earning merits, it was overcoming fear. After I received a negative tag, I actually went silent from July 2024 to January 2025 because I was scared of breaking the rules again or posting wrongly. That long break made me feel stuck and that’s why I framed it as a “struggle.”

I just think if there were a space where newbies could freely share those struggles without fear, it would help more people avoid the kind of break I had. That's the main idea behind this topic

[LoyceV]

Do you know why you had difficulties? Because you came to the forum not for knowledge or information about Bitcoin, but for growth in rank and further participation in signature companies.

I was thinking the exact same thing! OP got here for the wrong reasons.

I struggled in silence, unsure of how to engage or make progress.

Please explain what you mean by "progress". I have a feeling you mean "account rank" and "earning money" instead of "learning about Bitcoin and other cryptos".

4. Learn about bitcoin so that you can make good posts.

Learn about Bitcoin so that you can .... use Bitcoin and understand how it's better than fiat money! How's that? Making good posts shouldn't be the goal, good posts are what follows once you understand what you're talking about.

My main concern was how to gain the knowledge that would allow me to make meaningful contributions.

Why? What makes someone go to a random internet forum with the sole purpose to make "meaningful contributions"?

That’s why I framed the idea of a mentorship space not to “hand out ranks” but to help people stick around long enough to actually become meaningful contributors.

For most users, it's quite clear from their very first post how the rest of their "forum career" will go. Shitposters turning into good posters is rare, and I've only seen it happen once on Bitcointalk.

But for me, the real challenge wasn’t earning merits, it was overcoming fear. After I received a negative tag, I actually went silent from July 2024 to January 2025 because I was scared of breaking the rules again or posting wrongly.

You're lucky you weren't a Newbie when Lauda was around

As far as my "mentorship" would go: you learn more from reading than from posting.

[lovesmayfamilis]

When I struggled earlier, it wasn’t because I couldn’t rank up but because I didn’t know how to participate properly and felt out of place.

Buddy, you're being disingenuous. Now is the time of AI development; even two years ago, you would have found an answer to your question in Google: "How to use forums." So, I repeat, you didn't come just for knowledge; your first posts, in this not-first account, say it between the lines.

It was because of my inability to improve my knowledge of the forum that made someone left a neutral tag with me

I don't want to blame anyone for the fact that people need additional income, but sometimes it's not very pleasant to look at outright lies.
Tell me, when did you learn to use the Internet and search on it?I find it hard to believe that a programmer is not familiar with this.

[tbct_mt2]

Buddy, you're being disingenuous. Now is the time of AI development; even two years ago, you would have found an answer to your question in Google: "How to use forums."

Without Google, without AI, any new member of the forum can read the pinned thread especially if he visited Beginners & Help board, and created a topic to ask "How to use this forum."

Newbies - Read before posting is one of sticky threads in Beginners & Help board.

There are more sticky threads but I hope that the Welcome message thread will be pinned too.
Writing a welcome message. This thread can be pinned in Beginners & Help board or Meta board.

[Don Pedro Dinero]

I don't mean to discourage anyone, but rather to express my honest opinion: I think that with so many proposals in Meta lately, in the end none of them will be implemented. If there had been only one, with majority support, perhaps after some time and careful consideration, they would implement it, but I think that in the end, so many proposals will leave things as they are.

OP, my recommendation is that you lock this thread. Your proposal has not been well received, and leaving it open will, I believe, bring you more disadvantages than advantages.

[Donneski]

I don't mean to discourage anyone, but rather to express my honest opinion: I think that with so many proposals in Meta lately, in the end none of them will be implemented. If there had been only one, with majority support, perhaps after some time and careful consideration, they would implement it, but I think that in the end, so many proposals will leave things as they are.

OP, my recommendation is that you lock this thread. Your proposal has not been well received, and leaving it open will, I believe, bring you more disadvantages than advantages.

Yeah...
I've seen that the community did not accept my proposal so I'll lock the thread now.