Hi Everyone!
It has been a very exciting 3 months since I started getting into this space back in September when one of my closest friends told me about it. I have been up over 300% since starting. This is my story and this is how it begins.
I was working on a small project that took up a lot of my time while also working full time at work. Juggling life with my animals and wife, work and side projects - it did not leave a lot of room to explore things outside of my silo.
I needed some help with work so I asked my friend to come visit. I distinctly remember him telling me about Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in general. I literally paid him no mind and brushed it off. This was back in June - keep this date burned into your head as you continue reading - and I just didn't have the capacity to learn something new at the time.
He left and he went on his merry way, but not before he added me to a chatgroup for cryptos. I quickly browsed through the chat and closed it down. I started getting hundreds of unread messages a day. I turned off the notifications and forgot about the channel.
Fast forward to early September. My project was finished and I took some time to relax and spend time with my family. I go into my chat list and noticed that I was removed from the cryptogroup. I jokingly ask my friend why I was removed and he told me that he removed me because it did not seem like I wanted to make money. I took the bait. I asked that I get put back on if only to glance over what I assumed to be some Bitcoin evangelism.
- Congrats bro! - said one person
- Your stacks flying high! - said another
I kept scrolling, one adulating comment after another. What the hell is going on?
I inquire and get the craziest answer in response. My friend who was trying to proselytize me back in June had bought into NEO under $2. He sold some around $40, and is now holding close to $20. He made a ton of money. Apparently, everyone in this chat room did, except me.
I felt left out. I felt cold. I also felt confused. I heard about this years ago, back when I was in high school. And just until now, I never took note of it. Should I learn about the tech? Should I start by trading? A million things started rushing through my head. It took me a while to process and when it did I asked them one simple thing. "How do I get started?"
They were kind enough to help me get set up on an exchange - to understand fees, to understanding the basics of trading. I've never done this before. It was scary. Every next step began with, "be careful, you can get screwed," or "you may lose all of your money." Did I really want to do this? I have bills to pay, I have debt, I'm not rich. Where is this disposable income going to materialize from?
Apparently, at the time, the market took a large dip, and it was a good time to buy. "Buy low, sell high" is what I heard often in the past, and what I am hearing once more. I thought to myself, how the hell can you time the market. The chat room audience guffawed at my hesitance and my friend laid it on me. "Do you trust me bro?"
It was some come to Jesus moment. Arnold came down and offered to take me to the chopper. I caved in and bought my first ETH on credit at $285. What did I get myself into? That's $285 dollars I do not have, and now I owe the damn bank. It was too late, I cannot turn back.
I was scared because I didn't understand the market, didn't know the history, didn't know the tech. But I did know one thing, I can get OCD. And that is what I did. I was now a proud owner of a cryptocurrency and I was determined to read into it. I started by reading articles on Coindesk; reading about trading on Investopedia. I hopped into the chat to read what everyone was doing. I was consuming knowledge like I have not done since leaving college.
I stopped playing games. I stopped hanging with my wife. I stopped eating. I stopped going out.
By the the I was ready to do anything else, ETH dropped. I was mad. It dropped again, I was even more mad. I wanted to sell and leave the space. But my friend laughed and tried to reassure me that it was a good time to buy in. I felt Iike I bought high, and am buying into a falling pit.
However, there is one difference from the first time I purchased until this point now. I did my research. My mind was blown. Blockchain technology. Are you fucking kidding me? Why hasn't this exploded yet? Why hasn't it?
The material is difficult. There is a steep learning curve but once you get over the hump, it gets a lot easier. It's just like writing that final thesis. When you start, you know absolutely nothing, but once you get over those first few research papers, it all starts making sense.
What my friend said made sense at that moment. He did not need to hold my hand and pull me up. Fuck you Arnold, I can get to the chopper myself. I took out my trusted credit card and bought more. My wife, already mad at me, got even more mad. We didn't sleep on the same bed for the next few days.
Tick tock. Tick tock. Manitiwoc? No wrong channel.
I waited, but it wasn't before long. ETH started making gains. Praise came from the group. I felt good. I felt like a smart investor. I dumped some more money in. I started making some more. Little by little it went up. And by little, I mean I was up by 30%. Every time the market dipped, I bought more.
What little I had, was still little. I didn't put in a lot of money but percentage wise, it was much better than my 401k, and my friends' other traditional investments. I was quite happy. Then a got some bombshell news. There are things called ICO's.
What in God's name are ICO's?
Initial Coin Offerings. The chat group had made a lot of money from it. He was now introducing this to me. I asked "Can I make money on this too?" He simply responded, "Do you trust me?"
This concludes the first part of my journey. I learned a little during this time, and I will share them with you today. The next leg of my journey takes me to soaring new high's and returns that I never would have imagined. Stay tuned.
Lessons:
- Do not invest in more than you can afford to lose - I made a dumb move and bought something I could not afford. Do not do it, it may not turn out so well for you.
- Buy what you know - I bought what I didn't know, but still made money because of no 3.
- You do not know everything, if you trust in someone, trust in their judgement - Would you let your mechanic conduct heart surgery on you? No. Trust successful people you are familiar with. Because more often than not, they have better insight than you.
- Don't make a decision based on someone else's decision - contradictory to the above point? absolutely. Read no 5.
- DYOR - Do your own research. That is right. Not everyone is right all the time. You need to get on their level in order to debate intelligently. Read read read. Read some more. If you cannot debate your trusted party, you are not ready to make real trades.
- Blockchain tech is here to stay - You ever tried explaining the internet, or smart phones, or Pokemon to your elderly grandparents? Unless they were freakishly adaptive, more than likely, they didn't know or do not care to know what these things are. Blockchain is the internet of the 80s. Most people do not know what it is and or get it wrong. Go back to point 5 - and DYOR.
To help you get started:
- Current, trending news for consumer consumption: https://www.coindesk.com/
- Ethereum news: https://www.reddit.com/r/ethereum/
- Bitcoin news: https://www.reddit.com/r/Bitcoin/
- What is blockchain?
I am not a registered broker, analyst, investment advisor or anything of that sort. I am merely a financial enthusiast like you. Everything that I provide on this site is purely for guidance, informational and educational purposes. All information contained herein should be independently verified and confirmed. I do not accept any liability for any loss or damage whatsoever caused in reliance upon such information or services. Please be aware of the risks involved with any trading done in any financial market. Do not trade with money that you cannot afford to lose. When in doubt, you should consult a qualified financial adviser or broker before making any investment decisions.