The Problem With Bitcoin Part 2: Be Part of the Solution

in #finance6 years ago (edited)

The first part of this article can be found here on Steemit. The bounty is now closed, thank you for participating!

Read the full article on Medium

How To Become Part of the Solution

If, like me, you really believe we are seeing the birth of a new economy, then let’s work at it. Even as prices seem stagnant, a lot is happening right now. Stop looking at prices and start looking at value. Real value is something you create through your actions and interactions. We don’t know what the crypto economy future might be, but one thing it’s not going to be is a future of magical internet money that you get just for logging in.

What can you contribute today towards your own future?

Are you making enough to put some fraction of each paycheck into savings? If not, don’t look to Bitcoin to save you. If you don’t have much to invest, even a 1000% gain cannot compare to a regular, steady investment into something that grows.

I needed convincing of this, so I sat down with the calculator. After 3 years, even a small (2% of my income) monthly investment beats a one-time jump of 1000%. Besides, you and I both know that if I haven’t figured out how to save 2% of each check, I will spend that crypto windfall as soon as it appears.

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My entire fiat savings from 2017

You can contribute towards your future today through two practices: productivity and discipline. When you are productive, you create more value and earn more. When you are disciplined, you nurture and restore that which makes you productive. You take care of your health, your systems, and your relationships, so you don’t overdraw in any area.

Notice I did not say “spend less.” Sure, it’s unwise to spend what you did not earn. So who is limiting what you earn? No doubt it’s someone from the old economy, who never would have put a camera on a phone. Isn’t that the whole reason you bought Bitcoin in the first place?

How can you contribute to this budding crypto economy?

Bitcoin was your gateway, and it continues to drive prices in part because it is the most widely accepted. Any crypto project you’d like to get into, it is likely you can buy in with Bitcoin. There are well over 1000 cryptocurrencies out there. Not all of them will make it, but some of them are giving rise to all sorts of innovations. Here is where we begin to diverge from our traditional notion of currency as “money.”

People are meeting, sharing, building on each other’s ideas. In other words, they are doing the things that create value in an economy. The value is being created now, regardless of which coins “win.” In fact, one way I believe cryptocurrency will change the landscape is that we don’t need one coin to rule them all.

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by Austin Chan on Unsplash

Three currencies have my attention right now: STEEM,
MANA (Decentraland), and EOS. Though they differ in their approach and application, they share an important distinction: the value is not created solely by “mining,” but through the meaningful interactions of their users. They invite users to build, create, and share. Their value depends not just on hodling and hope, but on people doing something worthwhile.

Speaking of doing something worthwhile, I’ve long had a hobbyist interest in programming and so far I know nothing of DApps (decentralized apps). This summer, I plan to embark on a beginner’s course in coding with some creative input from my son. The course is CryptoZombies, offered by the Loom Network. I’m sure I’ll write about it.

Bitcoin skeptics would surely call these investments risky. They are, from a worldview that says “money is finite and you either gain it or lose it.” This misses the real value that crypto’s diversity offers.

I can invest money, attention, and skill, and gain returns from each.

It is possible (though unlikely) to lose all of the money I put in, but even so I will retain the knowledge and skill, maybe even some of the relationships built through my efforts. Relationships and skill can be used to create value, which makes them more valuable than money. It’s the difference between having a fish and learning to fish.

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Photo by Andre Francois on Unsplash

There is someone in your community, right now, who will gladly accept payment in Bitcoin for their services. In my town it is the local music shop. This summer, I’m signing my son up for some lessons. Likewise, there is something you can offer in exchange for the coin of your choice.

If there is one thing you take away from this article, I hope it is this distinction between "money" and "value." It will serve you well in the Crypto economy, and perhaps spare you the pain of anxious waiting for Bitcoin to rise. You have opportunity all around you, regardless of the BTC/USD exchange rate.

Be part of the solution.


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Nice post, I think the true value of Bitcoin is if people start to use it, not its measure in fiat.

Unfortunately we are in a speculative stage for most cryptocurrencies and we greedy humans see an opportunity to make money so....that is its primary draw at the moment.

Yep, you nailed it!

Go here https://steemit.com/@a-a-a to get your post resteemed to over 72,000 followers.

Coins mentioned in post:

CoinPrice (USD)📉 24h📉 7d
BTCBitcoin7643.840$-0.85%1.45%
EOSEOS13.962$0.08%14.04%
LOOMLoom Network0.295$-12.09%-18.84%
MANADecentraland0.104$-1.23%-0.01%
STEEMSteem2.291$-4.45%-3.83%

@cardboard ^ see, I think it hates me lol

In other words, cryptocurrencies competes with each other to be the best which is the secret behind supply and demand, in free markets, and better systems are encouraged and it is a battle but all for the best. I have some Bitcoin. I may try Ethereum.

Yes I agree, and I think in free markets there will always be more than one "best."
Etherium is a good choice. I could be wrong, but I think both etherium and BTC will be stable coins that set values for the others, for quite a while.

Great. I thought I heard some controversy about Ethereum or it might have been an extension to Ethereum or something. I could be wrong and I will need to do more research on that again.

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