Living on cryptocurrencies full time is a goal that many of us dream of, but is not for everyone. This life is not for the faint of heart, that is certain. But the rewards you get from it are unequal to anything else I have ever done in my many different 'careers'. You can't just dive in full time and expect that you are going to go to the moon right off the bat... Nope... It's going to take time and effort, so don't quit your day job just yet...
FYI... Much of this information will be directed at US citizens, because that's just what I know... But much of it is still good for anyone, so let's crack on!
Ask Yourself, Why Are You In Crypto?
For some, and in today's society becoming more and more prevalent, are those that are just in this industry to make more dollars. They don't care about the underlying fundamentals of crypto and the freedom that it can offer. They are in it to see how much their portfolio will be worth in dollars that they miss the fact that they are building a sovereign fund for themselves.
Many, like the institutions are beginning to see it as a hedge against the coming inflation from the FED and government instability across the globe. But they are really flocking to assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum. That pretty much leaves the rest of the space to the average joes!
But for people like me, crypto has become a way of life, aside from just a financial tool. We find ways to earn crypto doing all kind of things, such as what I am doing right now...Posting on Hive has been an amazing way for me to be able to find new ways to create. I never thought I would just want to sit down and write and article, but yet here I am, loving every minute of my time doing it.
The freedom from the traditional systems and the freedom to be and do what I want is something that is pretty new, at least only a few years old to me at this point. After losing everything to a hurricane, and then the government screwing me out of any help I needed, I learned for certain, that the government DOES NOT care about you! So I wanted out! That's when I found Bitcoin and it was game over at that point... It was just a matter of time...
Finding Ways To Earn Crypto
There are many different ways that someone can earn crypto. But to make a full time living, it will take either a decent amount of capital to get started like with mining, or you can buy proof of stake tokens, stake them and earn some passive income.
There is also going the way of DEFI. This is another great way to earn some crypto. Providing liquidity to these decentralized markets can really earn you a nice return.
But you are saying... These all take investments... What about those of us that can't afford to put any money in? What are we to do?
Well... That is where content creation and education comes into play among other things.
Content Creation on The Blockchain
Now if you are reading this on Hive, most likely you already know where I am going with this... Hive is an amazing way to earn crypto for just being you! Using you brain, your knowledge, your skills, and more can earn you a decent living. BUT, and yes, I mean the big BUT... It takes dedication and hard work!
You can't expect to come and sign up and start making a full time living right away... Nah... Not gonna happen... It is going to take allot of time and effort to create solid content that the community is going to find valuable.
It also takes going out from your own posts and actually engaging with the community... You know, go be social! People like it when you go and comment on their posts. Go out and start conversations on other people's content. Guess what, you get paid for that too!
Building Your Business While Building Your Stacks
To succeed, you will need to have multiple hustles. For a while, you will probably need to work a regular job to pay bills while you stack your stacks. Think of it as building your side business while you work your main gig. This takes EFFORT! And it will take time, so be patient with yourself.
You may see others excelling while you are hardly getting crumbs, but don't let that discourage you. Instead turn that into motivation to find out what they are doing better than you, and figure out how to do it yourself! But again, just be patient, take the time to produce good content and build solid relationships.
If you do all this, while stacking the earnings you are making, it will really start to add up fast! With HBD now paying 20%, you can create yourself a nice savings account.
Just remember, we are all still early to the game... That means great earning potential, as well as very high risk! So you need to learn some capital protection.
Don't Be Afraid To Try New Things - Go Learn New Skills
Getting out of comfort zone will be a great way to challenge yourself on finding ways to earn. Maybe taking some of those stacks and risking them for some higher yields in a DEFI pool, then taking those rewards and going back into your HBD savings. This is a good way to stick your head into the DEFI world. Learning how those systems work will put you far ahead of many people out there. Learning to find good returns while also learning to balance and protect your capital is key!
Learn charting and the basics of trading, but don't try to be a day trader... You will lose your BUTT! Yep, your big BUTT, lol. But learning the basics of charting will help you when you need to cash out, get the best returns for your assets. You can also use this information to figure out trends and make some solid longer term trades that can really help you grow your stacks long term. The key is building and compounding, not losing, do never bet more than you can afford to lose!
Be careful aping in to NFTs and new shiny projects. This can be an easy way to lose your newly earned capital real quick... The key is to keep what you earn...
Learn the DEFI Lending Game
So debt is non taxable income. One major issue with living on crypto is the fact that if you sell it on a centralized exchange like Coinbase or Binance, you are going to have to report capital gains, most likely. Taxes suck and I don't want to pay them, so I don't for the most part. Most of my expenses are used with money that I LOAN against my crypto, instead of selling my crypto!
How I do this is using Venus.io on Binance Smart Chain. There is also Compound on Ethereum, you know if you want to waste money on network gas fees... But Venus gives you a way to wrap your assets like BTC, ETH, LTC, stablecoins, and more and actually lend them out to earn interest to the smart contracts. This is also building you a credit line for yourself that you can load against.
My game is that I stack up BTC, BUSD, BNB, and LTC, and then I loan against those assets using BUSD stablecoin and send that out to Binance to cash out for dollars. No capital gains taxes... PLUS... You are using debt, which if you are smart and using decentralized DEFI protocols, then you can just use those rewards to pay off your debt, then rinse and repeat! You are never using taxable income if all you are doing is spending what you are borrowing.
It's a hell of allot cheaper than using credit cards...I also use Hive rewards to pay down that debt as well. It's easy to transfer BUSD out of Tribaldex to my metamask wallet...
Be Careful Using Crypto Debit/Credit Cards
These are still ran by centralized exchanges and banks... So that means if you are trying to live outside the system, those cards will be a link between you and your crypto that can be tracked. If you are using my lending and stablecoin method from above, it's not as big of a deal, but still, it's a link because it requires your KYC, or know your customer, private information.
If I use one, I use my BitPay card. It's a prepaid card, and so far, I have never gotten a 1099 to report exchanges. But I really only use it for small purchases anyway and to get cash, thus keeping things on the down low as much as possible.
Gift Cards Are Key!
BitPay also offers gift card services where you can purchase gift cards for most major brands in the US. You can also look at companies like BitRefill which has more options as well. Gift cards are a great way to skirt the system by which you can buy credit at the stores and business you shop at anyway! You can even travel on crypto using gift cards.
Both companies offer airlines, AirBNB, Hotels.com and more. You can also get gift cards for Uber and Lyft to get yourself around as you travel... Groceries, clothing, rentals, pretty much anything you would need to purchase, you can get a gift card for using crypto and not having it attached to you because no KYC information is needed. With BitPay, if you get their card, yes, you will need to give up the info. But, you can select to not attach your gift cards to your account, thus keeping you somewhat anonymous.
In Short... Living Full Time On Crypto Is A Challenge, But So Worth It!
I am eternally grateful for Satoshi and what he built with Bitcoin. If I would have been smarter when I first learned about it, I would be set for sure, lol, but when you are a young dad with kids to feed, investing in magical internet money wasn't on the table at the time. But that all in the past, and is just stepping stones to where I am today.
Now this isn't to say that I have some million dollar portfolio, FAR from it! In fact to be honest, it's only in the 5 figures, but started from 0! So that's huge for someone that had to start learning in his spare time while getting his soul sucked out of his ears working for Apple on a daily basis.
It's been nearly a 2 year journey to get from leaving Apple, working as a delivery driver and building my crypto businesses, to now, I am living full time on crypto! Now I have had to learn to cut some costs, and live a very modest, and minimalistic lifestyle, but I am free to do what I want, when I want, and where I want! I am excited to see what the future hold and excited to be apart of this space!
Freedom of work, freedom of money, brings free time, which is more important than anything!
NOT FINANCIAL ADVISE KIDS!!! JUST EDUCATIONAL AND ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES ONLY... Blah blah blah... LOL...
Keep calm and Hustle on!
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Lots of pretty great tips here! I'm right now on that path to relying on cryptocurrency for my income. I'm on different social networks like Minds, Torum, Noise.Cash, obviously Hive and Blurt, just to grow my income while learning about crypto while sharing my personal life and thoughts. It's really not something that people should get lazy on. Especially if you're just starting out with not many friends or followers, it's really a grind. The point is to be consistent, and be open to discourse. Making good friends with people also help make the growth much easier.
Also, as you said, people should try new things. I'm just now trying to build up some reserve WEED to start making NFT's in the Weedcash community. I've never made any NFT's in my life, and I've only owned a few, but that's going to change as I learn more about how the process works.
Right on! Yeah gotta step out there sometimes. I just started posting on other places as well to spread the reach. Although building accounts in new places is daunting as well. But really isn’t any business worth it’s salt, a hustle and grind? Just depends on how bad people want things.
You hit a major key point here. People think living off crypto means owning a Lambo or yacht. It simply means having the freedom to actually live.
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Yep. Exactly. The way people are being sold on crypto is just that, all the BS that very few actually end up with. And even if I had FU Lambo money, I would still live the way I do.
Same. I'm a minimalist. I just wanna live and not work for some asshole.
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I just want a lambo or a yacht. Who cares about living? :D
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I am just going to add that doing crypto full-time takes a lot of effort but one of the first steps to achieve this goal is by living as minimal as possible. Cut down on unnecessary expenses until you can build your portfolio. You might have to make certain sacrifices along the way but it will pay off in the end.
Nice post mate. Very insightful.
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Yep, that’s all apart of it. Like O said in the article, I am a minimalist and on top of that I live in a van, so I can do it, lol. Still with debt and child support, it’s difficult, but hey, it’s freedom
Very resourceful Content. I started my journey into cryptoverse as a full Novice. I've learnt through the past 4 years and thanks to SocialFi on Hive that makes me earn alongside.
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Actully a huge wealth of info right here. As someone myself focusing on going fully into crypto and living off of it while I defocus from my business I started 7 years ago it has it's challenges still for sure. Mistakes in crypto and not knowing and jumping in too soon can be huge costs to the pockets for sure.
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Yeah, it stinks listening to people who are still stacking when I am having to sell to pay bills, but hey, I am glad I was able to build up what I did before the traditional world kinda shut it's doors on me. It was a universal push into this full time crypto world, and it keeps providing.
The way I see it, the more I put in, the more I will get out. It may not be happening on my timing, but if I am patient, I'll get what I need.
It's a challenge but it's so worthwhile.
The hardest past is the very beginning when you are finding you way and seeing all the established players that are so far ahead of you.
It takes a certain mentality to dig in and gring you way to a decent stack. One that you can use to create more wealth and eventually get to a sustained level of income that will support your life.
A lot of people have reached that level here at the moment but I'm just wondering how many will be able to maintain it if we have a crash.
HBD is a great hedge against this and with 20 per cent it makes sens2to build a big stack for the rough times.
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If we have a crash... I think that's already happened at this point. But it's certainly able to go lower, just not seeing it go too much lower from here. But yes it can be scary when those dips happen, especially when you have to pay bills lol.
But yes stablecoins are key!
I like this company for gift cards:
https://giftcards.bidali.com/
I will certainly look into it!
I like how you laid this out. I'm excited to learn more about lending via polycub and I like the idea of gift cards. I've just been grinding away on hive but defi is tough for me but becoming more clear as time goes on.
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Defi can be as simple or as complicated as you want to make it. Hey 20% APR on HBD savings is pretty easy and doesn't take much effort. But yes, things like liquidity providing and all the new bonding and blah blah, can get complicated for sure and in some cases just isn't worth the hassle. One step at a time!
Yeah, it's crazy that 20% seems boring already but It's mostly the right place for me until I learn. I dont catch as quickly as id like which is one reason why I love grinding it out on hive so much. Just power forward and you won't lose!
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20% is far from boring when you look at the average cash on cash return of owning a rental property. Most investors look at best at getting a 8 or 9% return on most long term rentals.
It's also making 20% on a stablecoin, or stable-ish, depending on how you look at it. The issue with most high APR models is you are making a very risky play on an unstable asset. I take all my high APR risk assets, which most are in the Cosmos space at the moment, and feed them into Hive, HBD, and BTC.
To live full time and do in a stable way, you have to mitigate risk. You can't ape into the latest shiny token or silly NFT and expect to keep your money in the long term.
youre right. I think for me, I'm feeling like I don't have enough for meaningful gains. I've let go of too much hive/hbd over the last couple of years but lessons learned. I sure hope HBD can continue to exist with an apr, I don't even care if it is 20%. As long as it is something. I would be awesome to draw from instead of social security. I have 11 more years to stack lol
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It’s all in the mindset. Just be safe out there
I think that is amazing. I really do. I would never dare to live like that. I wouldn't say that I live a modest lifestyle, but I definitely don't have FU-money.
Being free, doing what you want, whenever you want is great, but I basically did all of that when I was working as a freelancer many years ago. It was harsh from time to time. Being your own boss and everything.
I don't think that I will ever go all in on crypto.
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Oh I get it, it's not for everyone. But I am at a point in my life that I am living based on what I preach and on my convictions. I am sick of the traditional corporate, fiat world. I am pretty much done with it. The universe keeps pulling me this way, and so far, I keep surviving.
You spoken alot of pretty truth .crypto is a slow and gradual journey.for me I quit my job to concentrate on hive.although it hasn't been easy because I did that in very few days of joining hive.its a risk which I took but what ever that come out of it I just have to take it.i can say its a mistake and at the same time not a mistake my actions on hive was both for short and long term goal and slowly I think I am getting better.thank you so much for this wonderful advice it's really interesting reading your post.
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Yeah that's a big risk for sure. I had to gradually do it because of needing to assure that I had the income to sustain myself and my kids. If you keep at it, it will work out in the long run.
Yeah exactly the both the long and short term were actually what of thought of before taking the risk
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I'm a full crypto trader. I believe that crypto can change the world soon
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Right on! Glad you are able to manage yourself to be a full time trader. That is a hard one to do, lol. At least for me, my biggest issue is taking emotion out of it. Thats where AMM defi comes into play for me, lol.
That's it. Just learn how to remove your mind from the trade. Once I place my trade with stop lose ,I will not open it again until the candle stick close for 4 hrs.
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I have always been skeptical about crypto cards because I am very sure that there will be outrageous charges by the Insititutions that provided them since they will be aiming at making profit, unlike with crypto where fees are fixed and some are free.
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Depends on the company. With Bitpay it's only network fees. I also have the Coinbase card and the only fees are when you exchange for dollars. But you get up to 4% back so it works out. But it's just all the info giving and tracking.
Oh so that's cool, but tracking and information is it saved with the card company or with the crypto exchange company?
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Yeah that’s the problem with going to fiat with any medium really. That’s why I am starting to shift more into the gift card world. They don’t track that stuff.
Another thing, and this will be tomorrow’s post, so here’s some alpha for you ;), but another thing you can do is to buy silver and gold from different sites that accept crypto, or you can buy products at like new egg or overstock and then resell for fiat… But I don’t want to give too much away, lol.
Those are some great tips. I think the part about loans and capital gains is quite useful for anyone living off crypto but that only applies if you don't own a business right? I imagine you won't be able to avoid it if you make one.
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I don't see where there would be any difference. I was actually taught to do that from a real estate guy that uses his houses in the same way. Basically taking equity from the property and then paying back the debt.
It's actually what the Rich Dad guy teaches, so I don't know, lol. Not an accountant, but it makes sense, lol.
Everything takes work and crypto is no exception lol.
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Yep, there allot out there that think though that crypto is a get rich quick get something for nothing type of thing… Yeah… not so much, lol.
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I have become mildly obsessed with living completely off of loans that I make to myself. This is not very likely for me, but it has been a fascinating mind game.
In order to do this, I would need quite a large sum. However even having loans to myself provide the basics like water, food, and shelter would be a big psychological win and does seem obtainable.
Many cryptos provide enough of a spread between loan interest and investment interest to make this feasible.
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This was...inspiring! Thank you!
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