Prepping For Another Bear Market
I’ve been involved in crypto long enough now to have survived two bear markets. It’s excruciating to see your portfolio dropping by double digits day after freaking day. What I’ve learned after sprouting a lot of bear market-induced gray hair is, “To every thing there is a season.” In other words, even the least popular phase of the market cycle has its purpose and we can make it work for us. Deep breaths.
When it comes to investing, more often than not, our monkey brains try their best to betray us. Greed, ego, and fear are the main barriers to wealth-building for the average investor. Acting on emotion is our worst enemy when it comes to investing and so is listening to the news and the so-called “experts”.
Many of these influencers are either shilling coins they have a stake in or they're nothing more than prediction factories spewing out opinions to see what sticks. Often these influencers’ predictions are contradictory from the one(s) they made before and most are wrong but if they do get one right they’re quick to revel in their “win” and use them to gain more followers.
To be successful in the highly volatile crypto market you need to be behaving exactly opposite of the herd (herd = a majority of investors). You need only to remember two things to be fairly successful – buy LOW and sell HIGH, which typically means: 1. Buy when the herd is selling; and 2. Sell when the herd is buying. There are other, more nuanced tips you’ll pick up along the way but if you just follow those first two tips you’ll do much better than most.
The problem with steps 1 and 2 above is they’re deceptively simple and everything we encounter from the media, our egos, and even our crazy uncle’s financial advice at Thanksgiving dinner can throw us off track. News stories often have the end goal of striking FUD (Fear Uncertainty Doubt) in us to make us sell or FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) to coax us to buy. Still, after all this time I’ll occasionally read an article that, for a split second, makes me believe crypto would go to zero tomorrow or make me a zillionaire next week.
The reality is neither of those two extremes are true for most of us. If we’re lucky over a few years of experience, educating ourselves, developing psychological fortitude, and dollar cost averaging religiously we will have built ourselves not only a strong financial future but a global tribe of like-minded friends. The odds are these people (us) will help to build the foundation of a more equitable world and get humanity unstuck from this horrible slump it's currently in. Crypto and blockchain really do have this potential.
What Are You Reading?
I’m an unabashed podcast junkie but my addiction has got in the way of me consuming real books. I’ve decided to remedy this.
I’m reading “Liar’s Poker” by Michael Lewis and listening to “The Idiot” by Fyodor Dostoyevsky on Audible. Both are excellent so far. I have plenty of opportunities to listen to audiobooks during the day because I walk our dog around 3-5 miles per day and climb the stairs in our condo building for cardio for 20 minutes each night.
What are you reading? I'm looking for recommendations.
The Luxury of Time
I just wrapped up my last freelance job of the year a few days ago. It was a bespoke poem for a client who is retiring after forty years of practicing law. As I sent off the final draft I realized I have a little over two weeks with no real work to do and I intend on enjoying every second.
My buddy, Juan (@luckyfellow), and I just booked our Airbnb for our Montreal stay next summer and I intend on using the last few weeks of this year to plan out a few other getaways for 2022. I know we're technically out of the woods just yet but things are beginning to seem a little more normal.
Merry Christmas!
Just in case I don’t get around to posting before the holiday I wanted to wish you all a very Merry Christmas from our home to yours. Thank you so much for all of the support this year. I’m not asking for anything this year from family or friends. I’m flying for the first time since the onset of the pandemic in January to see my Mom, Brother and his family in Ohio. That’ll be the best present I can think of and the tickets cost me all of $11.20 after the airline miles I used. Thanks Delta! I can’t wait to share everything I have planned for 2022. It has the potential to be an epic year. Many blessings to you all.
(Gifs sourced from Giphy.com, photos are original.)
All for now.
With Gratitude,
Eric Vance Walton
Poetry should move us, it should change us, it should glitch our brains, shift our moods to another frequency. Poetry should evoke feelings of melancholy, whimsy, it should remind us what it feels like to be in love, or cause us to think about something in a completely different way. I view poetry, and all art really, as a temporary and fragile bridge between our world and a more pure and refined one. This is a world we could bring into creation if enough of us believed in it. This book is ephemera, destined to end up forgotten, lingering on some dusty shelf or tucked away in a dark attic. Yet the words, they will live on in memory. I hope these words become a part of you, bubble up into your memory when you least expect them to and make you feel a little more alive.
Pick up a copy of Ephemera today on Amazon.
Most of us have experienced a moment of perfect peace at least once in our lives. In these moments we lose ourselves and feel connected to everything. I call these mindful moments. Words can’t describe how complete they make us feel.
These moments are usually fragile, evaporating in seconds. What if there was a way to train your mind to experience more of them? It’s deceptively easy and requires nothing more than a subtle shift in mindset. My new book, Mindful Moments, will teach you to be much more content despite the chaos and imperfect circumstances continuing to unfold around you. Upgrade your life experience today for only $15.99 on Amazon.com.
Let’s Keep In Touch
It will be so nice to meet loved ones. The family is the only real wealth, you need to take care of the family, the rest will follow. Good luck to you.
Thank you! Yes, these visits home are the best present I can imagine.
Sometimes the cryptocurrency market is so hectic/volatile that we could think that both can happen in the same week.
Mostly fantasy books to escape the unfair reality.
Merry Christmas to you and to everyone. I give you some !PIZZA and some !LUV.
Have a nice day. All the best. Greetings and much love from Hungary.
I agree, this market cycle has been unique to say the least. Meme coins and DeFi pools/leveraged trades have made it feel more like a casino than a financial market.
I listen to fiction audiobooks and short stories for the same reason, a little bit of escape.
Thank you my friend. I wish you a very Merry Christmas. I hope to make it to your part of the world someday.
@xplosive(3/3) gave you
I am reading three books that are related to climate change:
Those all sound like good reads. I met an interesting person when I was in England, Russ George. He has a plan for combating climate change by restoring the oceans back to health.
I'm usually reading a few books at a time too but don't normally make fast progress because I have so little time to dedicate to it.
So you survived 2 bear markets Eric. This is nice, they added up to your experience.
So you listen Audible, what a great way to use that time while walking the dog/climbing the stairs! I considered subscribing to Audible , I have seen many great book selections.
I am currently reading Harv Eker and his book about the millionair mindset. I finished Erich Fromm's book abour how to love ( I really liked it) and I am planning to read Daniel David's book about the psychology of the romanian population, he is a well known professor of cognitive science in Romania
I also read Michele Obama's Becoming, she has some great memoirs.
I have this habit of reading several books in parallel, it keeps my brain excited lol
Thanks! I love Audible but find I can't take full advantage of the 2 books per month that the subscription includes. I can't listen fast enough and end up with tons of book credits to use. The books you're reading sound great. Are you from Romania?
How much is the subscription? Can you listen more than 2 books? I had a sneak peak and listened to the introductions to several books and I loved it.
Yes I live in Romania, have you ever visited?
I think it’s $14.99 per month here for 2 books. Anything over that you have to pay more for. I’ve never visited Romania but would like to experience it someday. I watch BaldandBankrupt on YouTube and he’s been there a few times. Merry Christmas to you!
Uh so the industry of audiobooks is quite pricey! This is great news for those who record this kind of materials. I often thought of recording audiobooks myself, it would be kind of cool.
Romania is very picturesque and rustic. It is very bohemian in the rural areas where nature is left exactly as it is. The food is also delicious. We have a famous dish called sarmale which is practically stuffed cabbage rolls with meat and rice inside. Romanians go crazy after these lol. I hope you visit one day! Merry Christmas to you too Eric 🤗
Wishing you "MERRY CHRISTMAS ".
Your loved ones are waiting for you
Thank you very much!
That is awesome that you get to fly home! Can't really beat that price either! I am not really worried about the bear market. I know it is inevitable. I am just worried that I am not ready for it. I was hoping to have some more money in stable coins by now and I was also hoping to have some more passive income streams up and running. For now I just need to wait for another small pump (maybe today?), so I can finish moving some stuff around to be ready for those rock bottom prices! I hope you and your family have a happy and blessed holiday season!
I'm thrilled to be able to do it. It's just awesome to spend time with them. We have another relative who is in intensive care with Covid so we're praying he pulls through. He's almost my age and had no underlying conditions that we're aware of but will probably be put on a ventilator today.
I'm not fully ready for crypto winter either but should be okay if it hits within the next month or so. I always hope for one last spectacular pump but I don't know if we'll see it this time. I was going to move more into index funds but this inflation issue has me rethinking that. Thank you my friend. I wish you and yours a wonderful Holiday!
I am really sorry to hear that! I hope they pull through okay. Sending extra thoughts and prayers your families way.
Thanks! We appreciate it!
I think this was the crypto post you mentioned writing. I was looking for this, but it seems I missed it, somehow.
So definitely taking that advice to heart.
Have you read Yoko Ogawa's "The Memory Police"? :) I think you might like it. Would you say it's easier to listen to Dostoievski than read him? I've always wanted to get into that, but it's always seemed daunting.
I seem to remember this is a tradition for you guys, right? I'm so glad to see it's still going. I hope you have enough adventures in 2022 to make up for the past couple of years, Eric. And I hope you have a great Christmas <3
It's easier said than done (including myself). Greed always tries to kick in and makes us hold off "just a little longer" for a higher price and we end up being a bag holder as prices drop. Selling little bits as the market rises once you're in profit territory is the easiest way to reap profit. You can even set automatic tiered sells on exchanges at certain prices.
I've never read "The Memory Police" but will look it up. I find Dostoyevsky's work easier to listen to than to read. The writing is so formal compared to today's authors but it has a certain charm. I'm three chapters in now and it didn't grab me until the second chapter but now I'm hooked. I'd highly suggest the version available on Audible.
Yes, we've done our buddy trip now since 2000 and have only missed two years, I think. We have some crazy/fun memories from those two decades of experiences. We always laugh about the first year we went to Chicago. We were both so poor that we had $160 between us for four days in a fairly expensive city. We ate Subway sandwiches for lunch a dinner for most of those days but ended up have a really good time. Thank you so much @honeydue. Merry Christmas to you and your family! I wish you an amazing 2022 as well.
Yes, a friend advised me to do that at the beginning of the year, and so I've tried to take that advice to heart, as the markets got higher.
I actually love this sort of recommendation, since it makes you wanna stick to the story. Thank you!
that's precious - I'm sure it reminds you still that it's not so much the money or the expensive, fancy dinners/accommodations that matter, huh? I've met a lot of people who regard traveling as a "rich people thing", but I don't think it has to be. Obviously, not worrying over it has its benefits, but it just seems to me it's a matter of priorities, in what you choose to spend on.
Thank you <3
Dollar cost averaging really takes some of the stress out of investing. I'm so happy I started using this strategy.
I would say travel is as important as a university education, maybe more so. Traveling on a budget is the best way to go IMO because it forces you to use your creativity and usually always equates to a more memorable trip. Oh, the stories we have from traveling on a shoe string budget! Like anything else it's not expensive if you save/budget for it.
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Yes you are right. In playing crypto the first thing to note is to buy assets when low and then sell when the price is high. Unfortunately when I bought crypto it turned out that the price continued to fall until now. Lastly I have to hold these assets for an unlimited time. .
how are you dear friend @ericvancewalton
The crypto business is very complicated, but as you say, we are the ones who take care of it, with our way of thinking. You are very right in what you say, and it is simple; Buy when everyone sells, and sell when everyone buys.
Merry Christmas dear friend; May it come to you with health, peace and happiness