In for a penny

Anyone tired of this downslide yet? I am - it is far more exciting when things are going up because people are more excited - but, it is the way it goes and there is not much to be done about it.

One of the interesting things I have seen in the media of late is how much influence Elon Musk has over the crypto prices, able to make things moon or dump on a Tweet. What I wonder is, who is actually influenced by Twitter? I think the answer to this question indicates the kinds of people who are getting into crypto now. Those who do not care much about crypto, they are just bored and want some easy gains with no work.

Maybe the bull market is done for this cycle, maybe not - but what actually changes? I was thinking about this in the morning and trying to imagine the scenario where we are back to the bear market and how I would cope with that.

While I would far prefer the bull to continue and to see Bitcoin at 300K and HIVE at 10 dollars, if that is going to be four years or ten years away, I am essentially in the same position I have always been in, as I don't live off crypto. Yeah, some of the things I have planned would be put on hiatus, but I will still have to live within my earning means as I have been doing. I haven't spent money in the hope of a crypto market upswing and the debt I have is manageable with the work I do mining fiat.

What would change however is likely my activity in some way, as since I am getting a fair bit older and greyer, I have other aspects of my life that I will have to focus on at some point, like my health. These things have suffered a bit over the last years, as there are only so many hours in a day and a lot of mine are spent living in the digital crypto space in one way or another.

But, this doesn't mean I have to go dormant either, I don't have to go into hibernation. One of the great things about crypto is that it is possible to choose the level of activity one is willing to put into the game, something that is much harder to do in the world of fiat mining. The amount of attention I put into it might shift for example from writing to trading, or vice versa, or I could look for various yield vehicles where I can act weekly, rather than daily. There are many ways to go and of course, I can do all of them if I choose.

The other thing is and perhaps this is more salient at the moment, I am not tied to a location to do anything, other than needing an internet connection. I can work from home, I can trade on the weekends, I can interact with the industry when and from where I choose. This is going to be increasingly important for many people moving forward, who will look to add additional income streams to supplement their more traditional incomes.

Even small amounts can matter in this regard, especially for those who don't earn enough to have financial investment availability. For me, this will hopefully come through various DeFi pool options, where I will be able to park my capital for some earnings, that I will then use to diversify into other tokens and projects. I am looking forward to being able to use DeFi pools to get percentage stake in business models that are more than just DeFi pools - What those will look like is still in the making.

Multiple streams, some passive, some more active, some very labor intensive - but the more the merrier. Hive for me is very labor intensive and has been from the start, but it has also been rewarding in many ways also, not just in the amount of HIVE earned. However, when people do look at the amount one of my posts get, they don't see the real work put into it, nor the risk.

Perhaps an analogy for it is a young actor looking to get into movies in Hollywood, where they are in drama school, singing lessons and waiting tables, while auditioning for whatever parts they can, hoping to get cast. Most don't make it, but for those that do, they no longer have to wait tables or go to casting calls, because casting directors come to them and for the elite, movies are built around them as actors, with parts written with them in mind. Not every movie they make will be a blockbuster success or even good, but the audience goes to see them because they enjoy the actor.

I used to teach English to a well-known local actor, as she was hoping to get more parts in English, rather than the Finnish parts she was getting. From what she said, it is a pretty difficult profession getting rejection after rejection in the hope for a yes, but the unknowing audience only looks at those who succeed, not at all of the failures.

When it comes to specialization in any paid field, there are always going to be more failures than successes. However on Hive, there are many professions and pathways to take and it isn't a winner takes all platform, as literally, almost every account is monetized on Hive. The level of financial return is going to vary due to a host of aspects, but anyone can earn something.

Of course, earning is guaranteed for those who invest, as powering up any amount of Hive will give access to earning from the rewards pool on curation to the tune of about 15-20% a year. That is a very high amount if looking at it in comparison to most investments, but a lot of people are too scared by the risk of investing into an asset that can go down, so keep their money in the bank so they get the sense that they are holding it, while it is slowly bled by inflation. For those who take the risk and buy at the bottoms, earn the curation percentage and look to a point that the token value is higher, they can do very well. Hive is the original yield farm, it is just that most people haven't see it in this way, until DeFi normalized yield farming.

It is interesting in crypto though, as people are quite greedy and want massive results on minimal investment very fast. But as I have said before, what were people doing before crypto and Hive? How were they making ends meet, if they are now relying on income from a volatile asset class? As said, this is a supplementary income stream and for most of us, it is unlikely going to be enough to be our sole income stream. So, rather than looking to sell at a peak, I reckon it is better to build a personal income model that is sustainable, with crypto, and without crypto.

If crypto disappeared today, I would be in an identical position I currently am tomorrow. I would be super annoyed of course, but my current living standards will not change at all. However, my future living standard "expectations" would adjust significantly, as I see crypto as the economic potential that I don't have access to with my current conditions and capabilities. But at the end of the day, even my future will be the same as it would have been, if I had never known about crypto.

The thing is, I do know something and once it is known, it becomes part of my considerations and actions, giving me more options. Knowledge is power in how that knowledge is used, but most people aren't interested in the information that actually affects them and instead spend their time entertaining themselves by avoiding work and life. Crypto has helped many people wake up, but a lot of people have stayed asleep, seeing crypto as "just another form of money" without recognizing that it is a vastly different animal and has far greater ramifications than just as a currency for trade.

There is a long way to go for the industry to mature and the cryptoverse has to grow in many directions in order to realize its potential. The market ups and downs are tiring and can create a lot of uncertainty and fear, but the markets aren't connected to the capabilities of blockchains and crypto, they are directed by the treatment of them as currency alone, like forex markets, with a great deal more volatility. Once the projects themselves start to matter in the valuation of a token, the entire industry shifts in a different direction, one where business value matters.

It might be this year, it might be ten years from now. When it does happen, where will you be, in fiat or crypto?

In for a penny...

Taraz [ Gen1: Hive ]