A HiveBuzz Story for Learners & Leaders 🎅🏽🎄

What's a Dolphin?

Even if you're new to Hive, you probably know what a Whale is. But the term whale isn't just street slang for big accounts. It is a designation mathematically derived and is a significant marker within the Hive Ecosystem based on a top account's performance on the chain.

Hive Buzz is a well-crafted site and project designed by @arcange where you can look up your own or someone else's status and ranking. @hivebuzz is the friendly auto-reply account that notes specific benchmarks you've achieved on Hive. This gamification is vital to inexperienced users that lack traction or returning Hivians who'll have to work a bit to regain it.

Illustrations from Hive Buzz
Project Designer: @arcange | Web Designer: @techybear | Graphic Designer: @captaink

Starting from the top, Whales are Hive users that carry the most weight in Hive Power (HP) on the Hive blockchain. Just one level below that are the Orcas, who also still hold a lot of HP, so many significant leaders and builders are Orcas.

Then, there is the working class of Hive, the Dolphins. Dolphins hold a good deal of HP, and most of the seasoned posters & developers fall into this category. Next, in decending order are the Minnows category. Hivians can spend years as Minnows, even regular posters & community moderators.

The entry level of Hive is the category of Red Fish. But don't but misled! Red Fish are not at the bottom level. Oh, no! The bottom dwellers are the dreaded stinkers know as Dead Fish!! 💀

Die Hard

"How the heck did that happen?" you ask. It's easy. That user stopped using Hive. A few days ain't gonna hurt any fishy-body. A few weeks, not a big deal. But much more than that and your fish will start to smell like the houseguests who overstayed their welcome.😜

But again, you may ask, "Look at all those Vests listed under the carcass! Shouldn't that stand for something?" Well, yes and no. It's a bit like a crashed car with a speedometer frozen in place to the speed at the time of the collision. The amount of HP held, reflected here in Vests, stays frozen in time for as long as the user is away. And (sad story) it could stay that way forever, unless...

Lazarus, Come Forth!

The great news about the Hive blockchain is that for as long as you keep your keys where you can find them, your account is safe and remains as you left it. As dead, dead, deadski as this bony guy is in the HiveBuzz illustration above, all the user has to do is log in and do something - anything! Upvote a post, vote on a witness, power up 1 HIVE, or create something new and publish it. So, although your fish may be dead, yet may it live.

"Jesus cried with a loud voice, 'Lazurus, come forth!' " - John 11:43

You see, any action you take on the chain triggers a block to be produced. When that happens, it's a Christmas Miracle! Cue the monumental bars of Ode To Joy! 🎶It's just like in the Bible, "Jesus cried with a loud voice, 'Lazurus, come forth!' " - John 11:43

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So why do I tell you this story?

Hive is one of my "dozen favourite problems," the idea made popular by Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman. I struggle with Hive, I obsess about it, I even go dark sometimes, and yes, my fish died.

One time in particular I got my sensitive feelings hurt on Hive. But here is something I figured out about myself. I can be the creative leader I'm meant to be, or I can do drama. I cannot do both.

I can be the creative leader I'm meant to be, or I can do drama. I cannot do both. - Alessandra White

So, I decided to stop it with the drama. Instead, I used the beauty of HiveBuzz's gamification to do something different. I decided to look that Hive user up on the rankings. "I see you," I said to myself and drew an evil grin. I took careful note of their ranking and their HP. And I got over my bad self and went to work.

I upvoted, I replied, I added GIFs to replies, I wrote posts, I made videos, I promoted other Hivians' work, I shared Discord voice channels for shows my friends were doing. It barely moved the needle. Ugh. I almost killed my fish myself!

Then, it occured to me. "What if I start in again with vengeance still at my core? 😈 But this time, what if I do all that + Power Up 1 HIVE per day?"

The needle started moving. And it kept moving. I got excited. I got a tiny bit of traction. I checked HiveBuzz everyday. I marked my progress and subtracted it from the ranking and HP of the Hive bully. I still found my account lacking, but I was starting to close in on them!

I added in more interaction with speaking up in live shows and IRL meet ups. I spoke for my @creativeworkhour community, I ran a contest, and accepted an offer to speak as Hive's representative at a big deal of a conference, see my TOKENIZE:LDN Post.

All the travel, writing, speaking, posting, and daily powering up, I forgot to track my HiveBuzz progress until I got home from it all. Then, when the dust started to settle, I checked. There it was. I was about to move right past that bully. I ain't tagging anybody, mind you, but here's the image.

Screenshot of mobile web of HiveBuzz captured 10:28 UTC, Monday, 15 December, 2025.

Just look at that! I'm just one day away from satisfying what irked me. Tuesday came and went with my work trucking along as well as my drinking a cuppa with my daily power up.

Then, something much more interesting happened. Oh, yes, the difference a day makes! I received a Discord DM from @bitterirony.

Screenshot of mobile Discord DM from @bitterirony showing of HiveBuzz captured 06:39 EST | 11:39 UTC, Wednesday, 17 December, 2025.

The Moral of the Story

Hive isn't going anywhere, so take care of yourself and enjoy your Hive journey when you can. If you feel you're burning out or that nothing is working, don't force it. You don't have to post. You don't have to power up. You actually can just hang out with Hivians wherever you find them. Maybe it's in your feed. Maybe it's over on Discord. Maybe it's in real life.

Hive is No Different from Life

So, let your fish breathe, let it play, let it make friends, and get creative with how to manage all the feels when the bullies come along. Hive is no different from life. There are always bullies, but then again, there are always friends to be made.

I want to take a moment to thank some special friends who have so generously mentored me, even as I still strive to tackle one of my very favourite problems.

The Nice List

Here is my gratitude list of those who helped me the most to find my way to Hive waters, learn to swim, and navigate the currents.

As noted below, you can see that the user names with "+" are those I have spent time with IRL at @hivefest, @buzzparty, &/or @creativeworkhour events. The names of my helpers with "*" are those with whom I've enjoyed amazing conversations IRT in live sessions. Each one of these generous Hivians have inspired me to keep going, hosting, and encouraging others.

@adetorrent+	@arcange+	@artemisnorth*
@bitterirony+	@buttcoins+	@brianoflondon+
@blocktrades+	@crimsonclad+	@detlev+
@epodcaster*	@gtg+	@grampo+
@guiltyparties*	@mcsamm+	@melinda010100*
@mipiano+	@ph1102+	@roelandp+
@shadowspub+	@shanibeer*	@starkerz+
@steevc+	@stresskiller*	@thekittygirl*
@theycallmedan+	@tibfox+	@traciyork*

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Santa Asked Me To Make You a Stocking, Too!

If you've read this far you know I love the fun pairing of the Magic of Hive with the Splendor of Christmas.

In the spirit of becoming a brand new Dolphin at Christmastime, I'm making Hive Christmas Stockings for each one on the Nice List as a sincere thank you gift.🎁 But, wait! There's more!!

You see, I have my own AI workshop where I'm needling personalized Hive Christmas Stockings just like the one I created with my own Noël prompt using @hivebuzz's artwork on my workbench, not unlike I used to do as a luxury goods designer during the festive holidays.

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"How Do I Get My Own Personalized Hive Christmas Stocking?"

Reply below👇 from the account user name you want embroidered on your own stocking.

Want to share the stocking offer with a friend? Just reblog this post and I'll make one for them, too. They only need to reply from the account user name they want embroidered on their stocking.

For a Limited Time Only

When Santa's sleigh 🛷 is packed the workshop shuts. So hurry and get your stocking order in soon. In the meantime, I'll keep the sewing machine busy, stitching each one of your Hive username's on your own Hive Christmas Stocking...but only if you reply!

The Hive Christmas Stocking Offer Ends Midnight UTC on 23 December, 2025 🎁

May you all enjoy a Happy Christmas!🎄

Much love,
Alessandra 🥰

Alessandra, the baby-est Dolphin on Hive, at the AC Hotel, Glasgow, Scotland, after winning the HiveBuzz Daily Top Payout 🏆 on 10 December, 2025