For this edition of The Blab we'll have a chat with the multifaceted entrepreneur and technologist Stephen Chip, renowned in the XRP Community as the man behind The XRP Minute and more recently as a key contributor of the recently launched On The Chain.

Chip is also a great friend and contributor to the One More Home campaign having shared his creativity to design the T-shirt that would be printed and sold locally in El Salvador to raise funds and awareness about the campaign aiming to help New Story Charity build homes for families in need in Ahuachapán:

(RR) Hello Chip, thank you for taking part of The Blab! Let's start off with a really exciting topic: On The Chain. How is it like to be part of such a cool project as onthechain.io?

(SC) It’s really special to be part of a great group of content contributors who are like-minded. The idea behind On The Chain was to create a space that would unify communities, reward content contributors, and have a place for new people entering the crypto space to go for good solid information sans the hype.

The XRP community is a solid, engaged community. OTC is bringing other content contributors from other digital asset communities in addition the XRP content.

We are making the content available on many platforms including Cinnamon, Coil, Youtube, Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Spotify, and Stitcher. With more podcast platforms in the future.

We have heard from many that they mostly listen to content creators either at work or on-the-go. This is the reason we moved beyond Youtube.

We are very excited about Coil and Cinnamon as well. The move to get away from traditional advertising is very refreshing and it’s fantastic to see Coil and Cinnamon leading the way.

(RR) It's really exciting! Definitely a unified community around a reliable source of information is a major step towards maturity in this space. And what are your expectations and goals towards the future?

(SC) We are planning on adding written content, news, and more.

(RR) By the way, I really liked the teaser short videos “Down With OTC” you tweeted ahead of the launch.

(SC) Thanks! Those were fun to make. You can see the promos by searching the hashtag #downwithOTC

(RR) I can definitely recommend to watch the promos and check out their content! So let's move on to knowing a bit more about you. Where are you originally from?

(SC) I'm originally from a small town in New York next to Niagara Falls called North Tonawanda. Tonawanda means “swift waters.” The Neuter and Erie Indians coined the name, the area's original inhabitants. The population was roughly 24,000 at the time.

(RR) So you have moved around a bit! And how about college? what were you like back then?

(SC) I attended the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. Since I was from a small town, it was a bit of a big city surprise compared to where I grew up. I started listening to alternative music, grew my hair long, joined a band, and became an art school kid.

I made lots of new friends and went to plenty of parties. It was a really an experimental phase of my life. I also studied hard and pulled all-nighters.

(RR) That is pretty awesome! And what type of music did your band use to play, alternative music as well?

(SC) It was probably more along the lines of experimental, but yes, alternative.

(RR) One of the things I admire from you the most is your creativity. You seem to be hard wired to a source of creativity all the time! How do you find your inspiration?

(SC) I remember being in third or fourth grade in elementary school and first reading the short story “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.” It was the first time I really identified with a character in a book. Not to say that I didn’t identify with story books as a toddler.

I really could see the parallels between this Walter Mitty character and myself when it came to daydreaming and always in this perpetual creation mode. I really did feel like an outcast. I would talk to my friends about the way they thought about things compared to my view even as a young adult and it always seemed wildly disparaging.

Going back to your original question about where I found inspiration. Basically, all around me. One of the first big influences were my parents. They always encouraged my creativity whether it was building or drawing something, They always supported me and any of my creative endeavors. I remember my mom driving me to Buffalo to the Albright Knox art gallery for art lessons. It was quite the drive and also was an expense. But my parents really wanted me to find my way.

When many of my friends were announcing the universities they would attend, my parents knew that I wanted to go pursue art. While my other friends from my high school art classes were being told things like “be realistic, pursue a real career, you’re not going to art school.” My parents found a way to send me to art school.

I had visited the school campus one year before attending. Years later, my parents shared that they didn’t know how they were going to get the money to send me to school. At the time they didn’t wanna tell me because they didn’t want to discourage me in anyway. They found a way And I am eternally grateful.

The Beatles were another big influence as they broke every rule at the time when it came to constructing and arranging music. To this day the modern song structure is largely based upon the foundation the Beatles layed.

(RR) To have the support of your parents tin pursuing what you really want in life is definitely the best heritage they can pass on to you.

Who would you say is the most creative person you know?

(SC) My father is the most creative person I know. He can fix anything and always engineer a better solution.

My mother is very creative as well. Although she would probably say that she wasn’t.

My wife is incredibly creative. She handcrafts soaps and body oils.

She sells her soaps and body oils here.

(RR) It all makes sense, as your creativity was really sparked at home!

Can you tell us...when do you feel truly “alive”?

(SC) I feel truly alive when I’m with my wife and two daughters. My wife is an amazing woman and she is one of the greatest blessings of my life. I’m so proud of both of my daughters and who they turning out to be. Watching the evolution in their life is truly amazing.

(RR) That is truly a gift!

Now let's talk a bit about music, movies, literature...What’s your favorite album?

(SC) The Beatles – Abbey Road.

Although, I will supplement that answer with the following:

Legend – Bob Marley

Core – Stone Temple Pilots

(RR) Abbey Road is an indisputable legendary album indeed! Which one is your favorite movie quote ever?

(SC) My favorite movie quote is From Glenngary Glenross. When Blake, the Alex Baldwin character says “Put that coffee down” “Coffee is for closers!”

(RR) What book had the most significant impact on you?

(SC) I’ve read a bunch of great books over the years and would cite different books for different reasons.

From a young age, the Bible, particularly the New Testament, is a great guide for how to live your life. I am thankful now that I had to study the Bible growing up going to Catholic school. Back then, not so much.

I liked the” The Alchemist” by Paulo Coelho. It’s a beautiful story that I believe we can all relate to. That which we seek, we already have. Sometimes we cannot see it ourselves.

A book that really helped me transition from the creative space to the business world thee “The Art of the Deal,” I first picked it up in an airport and read it on the plane.

I later reread the book in the mid 90s and it had a measurable impact. The company I worked at the time was attempting to put some deals together and were unsuccessful. I asked if I could take a shot and they laughed and said “sure, go for it.”

Needless to say I was successful and this new skill set came in handy with my first startup.

(RR) Quite a nice selection, out of those, I'd also highlight The Alchemist. As somebody said: “The secret of having it all is knowing you already do”.

And let's chat a bit about the future...what are you looking forward to happening in the coming months (other than XRP mooning)?

(SC) I’m looking forward to getting my new stealth startup going.

(RR) Stealth startup? That sounds awesome! Can you give us a scoop?

(SC) I can say that it’s in the blockchain space.

(RR) Ok, can't wait to know more!

Now let's have a few questions for fun: If you were featured on the local news, what would you most likely be on there for?

(SC) Probably for business or helping someone.

(RR) Can you tell us your go-to joke?

(SC) A horse walks into a bar. The bartender asks: “why the long face?” Maybe not the best but the only one I remember.

(RR) 😂 That's a pretty good one!

Let's suppose life is really a game, what are some of the rules?

(SC) The best way to answer is a quote by Steve Jobs.

When you grow up, you tend to get told that the world is the way it is and your life is just to live your life inside the world, try not to bash into the walls too much, try to have a nice family life, have fun, save a little money.

That’s a very limited life. Life can be much broader, once you discover one simple fact, and that is that everything around you that you call life was made up by people that were no smarter than you. And you can change it, you can influence it, you can build your own things that other people can use. Once you learn that, you’ll never be the same again.

And the minute that you understand that you can poke life and actually something will, you know if you push in, something will pop out the other side, that you can change it, you can mold it. That’s maybe the most important thing. It’s to shake off this erroneous notion that life is there and you’re just gonna live in it, versus embrace it, change it, improve it, make your mark upon it.

I think that’s very important and however, you learn that, once you learn it, you’ll want to change life and make it better, cause it’s kind of messed up, in a lot of ways. Once you learn that, you’ll never be the same again.

(RR) Thank you Chip for having shared about your perspectives and different aspects of your life! It's been a real pleasure to have this interview with you. 💬

And dear readers, as a reminder don't miss out on the XRP Community Choice Awards tonight at 7pm EST streaming live on YouTube, where Stephen Chip will be presenting the Graphical Artistic Creator Award. Here is the link to the event!