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# Me warming up - totally fine if you skip. #

There's a piece that I have been drafting for donkeys now and I am sick of waiting. So, I decided to start sharing it in pieces.

While designing my pet project these days - an innovation platform called TINC - I found myself grappling with the very basic question of what is a token?
[I say I, but I am not alone in this project. I work with the wonderful and very interesting Anna Blekhman.]

This leads to the question:

# What is money? Also, what is a Token?  #

I'm gonna keep it short:

You'd think I would start with money - but I will start with Tokens - I think they represent a more general case.

A token is two things:

1. It is a **unit of measurement**
2. It is **used to facilitate transactions** 

In "Transactions" I mean a very general application of this concept. Of course, buying something is a transaction, However, communication, e.g., a conversation between two people, can be a transaction in the sense that people are exchanging something (information for example).

Money - in the modern sense of currency - coins, bills and digital (numbers that represent money) - is a specific type of token:

1. **Unit of measurement** - It is a measure of buying and payment power
2. **Transaction facilitation** - It is something that you **Give, Get or Hold**.

Think of money like this: It is a receptacle of value that can move in space or in time.

# So? #

Well, 

1. I'd like to hear what you think...
2. If you are thinking about a token - because you are planning an ICO or TGE or because you are planning to buy one - I suggest you ask yourself: What does this token measure? What transactions does it facilitate? How?

I think, if you answer the second question, you will have a far better grasp of whether or not an ICO/TGE is a good idea or if it is well executed.

Told you I’d keep it short.

Shahar