Post-Graduation Action Guide

Why This Guide Exists

Congratulations on completing the Crack The Orange program. Completing the Crack The Orange program is an important milestone. It means you now have a solid foundation in Bitcoin.

But Crack The Orange is not only about personal learning. Its deeper purpose is to empower you to become a community educator, organiser, or builder: someone who empowers and helps others understand, use, and benefit from Bitcoin in practical ways.

CTO was never designed as a program that ends with graduation. Its deeper purpose is to seed local Bitcoin educators, organisers, and builders who can translate knowledge into real impact within their own communities.

Many graduates struggle at this stage, not because they lack knowledge, but because they are unsure what to do next. The goal is not to wait until you feel like an expert, but to start applying what you’ve learned in practical, local ways. Without guidance, valuable knowledge risks remaining unused, and momentum fades.

This guide exists to help you move from learning to action, step by step.

1. What Success Looks Like After Graduation

You are not expected to:

  • Start a big organisation or initiative
  • Build complex products (if you are a developer)
  • Have all the answers

Success after CTO means:

  • Applying what you learned in your own context
  • Sharing Bitcoin knowledge with others
  • Taking small, consistent actions
  • Building confidence through practice

Focus on progress, not perfection.

2. Quick Self-Assessment

Before starting anything, take a moment to reflect honestly.

Answer these questions for yourself:

  • Who is my immediate community? (friends, students, colleagues, activists, journalists, youth, women, teens, traders, community or civic leaders, artists, etc.)
  • What money-related problem or financial knowledge gap do they have?
  • What skills do I already have? (teaching, writing, community organising, speaking, tech, translating, etc.)
  • How much time can I realistically commit per week? (even 1–2 hours is enough)
  • Do I prefer working alone or with others?

There are no right answers. This list is mainly for clarity.

3. Choosing a Simple Starting Path

You do not need a “unique” or “innovative” idea to start.

Here are common and proven ways CTO graduates can begin:

  • Hosting small Bitcoin discussion groups
  • Starting book or study groups
  • Running beginner workshops for a specific audience (e.g. university students, youth groups, women’s groups, small business owners, activists, NGOs, savings club/cooperative, market traders, journalists, community or civic leaders, builders, teachers, etc.)
  • Translating or localising Bitcoin content (e.g. Bitcoin for Fairness 2-page flyer or a simple Bitcoin explainer for beginners: bffbtc.org/flyer/)
  • Supporting a local Bitcoin circular economy (earning and spending)
  • Writing or speaking about Bitcoin in local media or online
  • Volunteering or assisting an existing Bitcoin initiative or community
  • If you are a developer or technically inclined, you can start a small local BitDevs group, help localise Bitcoin wallets or educational tools into local languages, build or contribute to small open-source tools that solve local Bitcoin problems, support non-technical educators by helping them understand wallets, Lightning, or node concepts

Choose one path to start. You can evolve or expand later.

Running Education With Little or No Budget

You do not need funding to start educating your community about Bitcoin.

Many effective Bitcoin education efforts begin with zero or minimal costs by using existing community spaces such as:

  • Community centers
  • Schools
  • Churches, mosques, or other faith-based halls
  • Local NGO or civic organisation offices
  • Libraries or youth centers
  • Public parks or open spaces

To keep costs low:

  • Meet after lunch or before dinner to avoid food costs
  • Keep sessions short (60–90 minutes)
  • Start with small groups
  • Focus on discussion and interaction, not presentations or materials

What matters most is conversation and knowledge sharing, not venues, branding, or budgets.

4. Your First 30 Days After Graduation

Focus only on the next 30 days.

Education is often the lowest-friction entry point. Even Bitcoin circular economy efforts require education first. People need to understand the problems Bitcoin can help them solve before they can earn or spend it.

This 30-day plan is about building momentum, not limiting your future options.

Week 1

  • Talk to at least 3–5 people in your community about Bitcoin
  • Learn to listen more than you talk
  • Note common questions or misunderstandings

Week 2

  • Decide on one small activity you can run (education, translation or localisation, community discussion, or circular economy support/volunteering)
  • Community education and discussions are low-barrier, easy to run, and interactive, which makes them ideal “starter activities”. This could be a discussion with as few as 5 people
  • Pick a simple topic you are confident explaining
  • Identify a free or low-cost venue (community center, school, faith-based venue, NGO office, park, library, etc.)
  • Choose a time that avoids food costs (after lunch or before dinner)

Week 3

  • Run the activity
  • Keep it practical and interactive
  • Do not try to cover “everything about Bitcoin”
  • Keep costs minimal or zero; focus on learning, not logistics

Week 4

  • Reflect: What worked? What didn’t?
  • If you are comfortable, share your experience in the CTO community
  • Ask for feedback or advice

That’s it. You have started.

Documentation as Proof of Work (PoW)

Documentation is a simple but important part of your Proof of Work. It means briefly capturing what you do as an educator, organiser, or builder, such as a short reflection, a photo, video, or a short post about what worked and what you learned. This strengthens storytelling around grassroots Bitcoin adoption, turns local action into visible, shared learning, and shows real progress through action, not claims. Documentation does not need to be polished. You do not need to hire a professional photographer or videographer. You can take photos or videos with your phone and share on platforms like X, Nostr, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp community groups, or a personal blog.

5. Working With Others

You are not expected to do this alone.

Use the CTO community or local Bitcoin initiatives to:

  • Ask questions
  • Get feedback on ideas
  • Learn from others’ mistakes
  • Find collaborators or mentors locally or internationally

6. Bitcoin Circular Economy (BCE) Focus

Some CTO scholars are especially interested in Bitcoin circular economies (BCE).

Start simple:

  • Most importantly, identify how or where Bitcoin can be earned locally
  • Begin with education for community members and local businesses before actual onboarding or spending starts.
  • Identify where it can be spent locally
  • Encourage practical learning about earning and spending, not just speculation
  • Connect with CTO scholars already working on BCE efforts

You do not need to create a full circular economy yourself. Supporting one merchant or one group already matters.

7. Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Waiting until you feel “ready”
  • Blindly copying projects from other countries without adapting them
  • Starting with funding as the first goal instead of community impact. In Bitcoin, proof of work comes before rewards
  • Teaching too much, too fast
  • Working in isolation
  • Comparing your progress to others
  • Believing you need funding, permission, or a perfect setup before starting

Everyone starts somewhere.

8. Your Role as a CTO Graduate

As a Crack The Orange graduate:

  • You are a community educator, builder, and organiser
  • You do not need to know everything: what matters is that you are curious and keep learning constantly
  • Your mission is to start where you are and bring others along

Small actions, done consistently, create real impact.

9. One Final Commitment

Before closing this guide, commit to one thing: Within the next 30 days, I will take one concrete action to apply my Bitcoin education in my community.

Write it down. Act on it.

10. Resources + Support Channels

Below are resources and support channels to support your teaching and community activities. Use what is relevant to your context and current stage, including learning materials you can reuse and channels for community support and feedback.