Crypto entrepreneurship is like climbing Mt Everest

Guest post by Thierry Gilgen, CEO of MachinaTrader.

We are living in a special moment in time. There are not one or two technologies simultaneously changing the world, but five or so: AI and machine learning, blockchain, IoT, autonomous mobility, and data science. Each of them could have as big an impact as the steam engine. Furthermore, all of these combined are much bigger than the steam engine. I don’t think anyone can predict where these technologies all lead and how the world looks in fifteen years, but these technologies will not only impact technology but also global society, This tech will help improve efficiency and create better structures for the world. 

I became fascinated by one of these technologies in particular: blockchain. Initially, I was uninterested in crypto. But, five years ago, two different events changed my view. One of them entailed a family member who became very wealthy by investing in crypto at the right time. That is what first got me looking into this new technology. The other event was when an old colleague of mine told me about mining. I began reading about blockchain and mining and became intrigued. 

That very first night I spent learning about blockchain I immediately had ideas about how this technology could be used. I dreamt of a coffee supply chain and then about how it could be applied to data analytics for the medical industry and the management of patient information. I had fun envisaging these different concepts. 

I bought myself a mining rig and within three months had more than doubled my money. This mining thing seemed to work. So I had to play money, and I thought, “Why not try to trade on the markets?” I had a bit of experience trading, after all. So I started trading and immediately lost a ton of money. I made some trades based on FOMO and that was that.

The market smacked me in the face. As an IT engineer, I thought about how you should be able to automate crypto trading based on certain parameters. You can’t predict how markets behave, but you could apply technical analysis to find the right moments to enter or exit these markets. I decided to get to work on that, and that eventually became MachinaTrader. 

I am very glad I discovered crypto, which is providing so many new opportunities. Blockchain can change the way the world works. The world can become more efficient and we can re-establish public trust in many infrastructures and services. We have a big opportunity to take a big step forward as a society. 

Crypto has certainly changed my life for the positive. The best part of working in this space is waking up every morning and having the freedom to think of impossible things even before breakfast. We really are blessed in this industry, and we need to remain focused on our target—changing the world for the better—and never lose sight of this. 

We are like a climber who has a vision of climbing Mt. Everest. At the beginning, this is just an idea. Most people get cold feet before they even start the journey—whether they learn about the costs, risk or whatever. There are lots of reasons to back out. But, at some point, some people start that trek up the mountain.

As they climb, eventually the air becomes thinner and the temperature drops precipitously. Yet, the risk and personal hang-ups about making the trip up Mt. Everest melts away and all you see is the peak you want to reach. For many of us in crypto, we’re staring up the mountain and the peak is coming into focus.