My name is Ian Reed. Reedvolution is not just a website. The name is obviously a play on the word revolution, using my last name. This is to signal an appreciation for my family and to welcome everyone to my community. Reedvolution is also a play on re-ed as in re-educating people to unlearn how to fit into a society that is fundamentally fucked up and to go back to our inner childhoods when we were just existing and experiencing the world without the cynical lens and rigid views we all develop with age. Lastly, Reedvolution is an encouragement to read (and write) more, as I truly believe that the more we read, especially from a diverse catalogue of genres and people, the more liberated and unruly we become.
The objective of Reedvolution is to create an online platform for verified real human beings (no bots or ai allowed) to promote creation of any kind that is actually interesting/beneficial to real people with a special focus on improving the future. No matter what our politics or divisive opinions may be, we can all agree that life is fucked right now, and it only seems to be getting worse. Instead of complaining and arguing about who is to blame or how to fix it, I wanted to actually build something that would connect people with common interests, inspire people to use their limited time on this planet to make their mark, and entertain without rich celebrities and corporations bombarding you with ads, subscription fees, or gatekeeping creative people. If social media reels and tik toks have taught me anything it’s that regular people are just as funny, smart, and talented as anyone with a recognizable name.
At first I plan on interviewing some friends and acquaintances about what inspires them, their proudest moments/achievements, their future goals, their weaknesses or road blocks, and their plans for overcoming them. Then I will start reaching out to friends of friends, or random people who I think are interesting and align with my vision for Reedvolution. I would also like to include a woman’s perspective which will probably be my wife to showcase other things that may not be interesting to me personally. I would love for men and women to be able to share a space to be platonic and cooperative and to give that example to kids
I never thought or cared about the future until I became a father, I just lived for the moment. Instead of becoming an addict to one thing, I juggled every vice in the book, and despite working and paying my way to a Bachelor’s Degree on my own, I was never a happy or fulfilled person. Sports, hip hop, nature, movies, video games, friends, and family kept me alive. Love took me to some weird places, and now I live on a beautiful, rural, blue-collar island on the east coast of Canada. I want to empower people to liberate themselves from their traumas and anxiety, to detach themselves from participating in a life they don’t really want because they “have to”. All we have to do is find food, water, clothes, and shelter. The rest is up to us.
As far as monetization goes, the first step is legitimizing the platform. Eventually I envision a home page that functions the same for everyone (no algorithms) of people sharing their creative ventures or small business goods/services. At the top of this home page will be a featured person who I personally interview with the same basic template as mentioned earlier while allowing for open discussion. These interviews will be conducted via text or email and edited with their final approval so they can fully flush out what they want to say. I may do an audio transcript just because people like to multitask and listening is easier than reading, but reading is preferred. This promotion will always be free for the people in my life but eventually be sold to others for a reasonable price on a case by case basis.
I also envision a collaborative section of the site in which people can share ideas for projects that they may not have time, energy, or the expertise to fully flush out themselves. Eventually I could even start a whole store of products conceived from this. The best part is that whether anything good comes from this or not, the act of collaborating on something that is mutually enriching is fun and leads to making real friends. I personally struggle with meeting new people because people can be stand-offish, manipulative (fake nice to get something in return), or downright obnoxious and now being far from home, some of my closest friendships were made with people from all over the world over a common interest and I’d love to create a place for others to experience that. Modern technology is amazing when used properly. I also encourage everyone to make their own website for online real estate/capital, because we can’t win in capitalism without our own capital, and a social media page owned by a billionaire is not enough.
In addition to making a living as an independent promoter/marketer and providing value to my clients, I also have a goal of using the reach of my platform to tangibly improve local communities all over, but this is a generic idea for now. One of my ideas is to create a free sports league that includes parents and kids of certain age ranges, boys and girls, in which all equipment is provided via donations or sponsors. The ultimate goal is to just have fun exercising and strengthen a relationship between the sport and the young athletes but also the parents and community at large, because the state of youth sports today is a travesty to me and I’d like to try and fix it. The possibilities are endless when we come together to make a better world.
All I ask to get this project off the ground is a follow on instagram @reedvolution_com and to stay tuned for more. Thanks for taking the time to read this.