I am not giving out any financial advice regarding crypto but rather giving applicable advice for new, intermediate, and experts that are currently in crypto or someone who is just now realizing what it is. Before reading this I have to say that this blog will be based off the assumption you have already done some research into Cryptocurrencies and the Blockchain ecosystem. I will still provide explanations and details to my best ability, however I encourage you to do your OWN research because only YOU will know how this 2nd Financial Revolution will best fit into your life. With that being said I hope you guys are just as excited as I am and I appreciate you reading my content.
Best,
Isaiah J.
FOR THE CULTURE
It doesn't take an expert to understand or explain what cryptocurrencies and blockchain can do for the world, but that might be the reason for the divide in the crypto community we see today. There is the tech perspective which I believe is solution-based but fails to explain to the everyday person why this is an important opportunity for us to undo the broken financial system we are currently in. Then we have what I like to call "Pump Beasts" which are the guys who are treating Crypto like Nasdaq. While it is possible to do this, it is causing strife within the tech community because one goal is solution-based technology and adaptation while the other goal is maximum profits to help them get out of financial strife (solution). This will be an inevitable difference and both sides of the coin can be addressed by both sides but research must be done from everyone to be able to bridge the gap and get this ecosystem rolling like a well oiled machine.
Now, what is cryptocurrency, what is blockchain, and why is everything going to the moon, why not Mars? Well first before we define "Cryptocurrency" we should know where the word "Currency" actually derives from which I feel is important to understand the magnitude cryptocurrency is playing and will play for upcoming generations and societies.
"Currere" - Latin word for "run"
"-Ency" - Noun suffix for "the quality or state of being"
"Currency" - 1. a system of money in general use in a particular country. 2. the fact or quality of being generally accepted or in use.
This is important to understand before getting into deep conversations because BOTH definitions are important to understand the true definition and use of Cryptocurrency. Currency is not only money for general use/exchange but is also the fact or quality of being generally accepted or in use. In my opinion, "Currency" is a one word explanation for the ecosystem we have created to identify valuable resources for the system that maintains the general consensus of "value". The general population is what makes a commodity/resource valuable because of sheer numbers, after all both phrases have the word "general" in them so I would assume the "General Consensus" would most likely derive from the "General Population" unless there is some sort of manipulation in play that takes the "General Consensus" and turns it into a "Localized" Consensus (sound familiar?).
My Point: Currency is "the fact" or "quality" that is generally accepted and is the general consensus as the standard. The problem is, currently the standard ($) is not valuable in favor of us because of our limited access to the necessary resources that the top 1% currently control. The dollar depreciates and unless we have the key to the system to manipulate our access to this system of "value", it will not work in our favor. We are locked out. That leads me to the word Cryptocurrency and what it means moving forward.
Cryptography is the word that Crypto is derived from and will most likely become one of the most searched words on the internet for years to come. There have been curriculums added to our universities to study the phenomenon, which usually is a societal indicator of adoption and integration.
What is Cryptography exactly you ask?
Crypt - comes from the Greek phrase "Kruptos" which means "Hidden" then translated to Krupte which is "Vault" and the Latin word "Crypta"
The late English definition would be "hidden cavern" essentially
-graphy - is the noun suffix for "the field of study" or "writings of"
All these root words bring us to the juicy stuff - Cryptocurrency
Cryptocurrency -a digital currency in which transactions are verified and records (blockchain) maintained by a decentralized system using cryptography, rather than by a centralized authority.
What does all this mean? Currency is tied to the word "general" and "consensus" because those are the two aspects that help find the intrinsic value of whatever is being exchanged. The only issue is the word consensus, because in the phrase "general consensus" the term "general" has actually been "specific" all these centuries by the 1% and big institutions who control majority of the world's currency. Cryptocurrency in theory is a system of value, TRULY based on general consensus and trust that is protected in a vault of coding (blockchain). Nobody can hack this vault unless you give out your password or (the exchange is compromised), even the government that controls your bank account and probably spies on you through your cameras on your phone and laptop..........BUT ANYWAY.
My point of writing this article is to try and spark the flame of curiosity for the everyday person that is tired of being shackled down by the system we currently operate in. This is our chance. We have been behind in this system because we did not create it, we were born into it with no other options, this is our chance to change that. We no longer have to go "buy" the standards of the localized consensus that is the 1% that doesn't have our best interest in mind. We are now able to create the consensus of value that we should be in control of in the first place. With that being said I am not trying to persuade anyone to invest in a certain coin or become a "pump beast" just because Elon Musk tweeted about a certain coin he hasn't even invested in. I want the general population to realize the magnitude of this 2nd Financial Revolution and realize that this will be a chapter in the history books for everyone.
With that being said, I have come up with some tips for people that are new to the "Cryptosystem" to ensure that the small guy gets a fair chance and can come up with an educated opinion on where we should progress as a society.
TIPS
1. RESEARCH RESEARCH AND RESEARCH
In the digital age we have an endless amount of information at our fingertips, so we must know how to locate the information that we need to help make a decision. Before I put one cent into an exchange I did about 2-3 days of research. This research included the behavior of charts and how to read trends for predictions. Charts have many indicators that have different purposes for investing and trading. Whatever your strategy is (HODLing is superior in my opinion) research different indicators and what they do and why they are used to know which ones you will apply to your strategy. Coupled with this, I also do extensive research (as much as possible) on the project I am looking to invest in and what their goal is. Luckily with blockchain technology and the culture of Crypto, we are able (or supposed to be) to check on the progress and activity level of the projects we are interested in to make sure they are living up to their promises. This, I believe, is another extension of the "Proof of Work" blockchain on the consumer level because we as a consumer are actually able to track these companies' activities and hold them accountable. After all we are investing in these companies with our money so we should be able to see what is being done with it. I cannot stress enough that equal energy needs to be spent looking up how to read charts regarding crypto and also what company you are going to invest in. This is the honeymoon stage where ATH are coupled with ATL and people will freak out and end up in a worse position than those that held on for dear life!
Indicators I Use:
StoRSI
WMA (Weighted Moving Average)
SmMA (Smooth Moving Average)
Volume
My portfolio choices are based off of my own research for companies that I feel are not shady, are promoting decentralization, have established reputation and partnerships, everyday use cases, and has the potential to create and dominate their own market in the crypto industry.
My Portfolio:
Chainlink - Oracle Network
Stellar - Decentralized cross border transactions
Vechain - Logistics Tracker
Polygon (formerly known as Matic) - Ethereum protocol network that connects Ethereum compatible networks.
Bitcoin - Digital Gold
Ethereum - Open source blockchain with smart contracts.
The Graph -indexing protocol for querying networks like Ethereum and IPFS.
2. DON'T BELIEVE THE HYPE
Hype in crypto will leave you broke and sad. We must realize that this is still a game by the "whales" which have a large amount of shares and have the ability to manipulate the market price of a certain stock or crypto by buying and selling in large amounts. What people don't realize is that when they sell and sell everything they are giving the whales leverage thus giving them more control and ability to manipulate the market. Example: You buy stock A at a price of $4 and the price goes up to $8. Obviously you would have doubled your investment but then the market has a correction and the stock dips to $3. Sell? No, buy more. The second you sell your initial position which is for profit ($4) a whale buys it because little did you know they came in at a worse position than you ($6) and they decided to scare people away by dropping the price drastically because of the % of shares they own getting them to sell bringing the price down to $3 where they have a better position when the stock jumps again. If you HODL, this limits the amount of shares these whales have along with limiting the amount they are able to grab because you didn't sell. It may not be much to you, but if this strategy was taken by % of investors, prices would be much more stable.
BUY THE DIP AND RIDE TO THE TIP
(THE INITIAL PRICE ($1) WAS HIGHER THAN THE "DISCOUNT" ($.04) PRICE AND THE WHALES DIDN'T LIKE THEIR ENTRY POINT SO THEY MADE THE SMALL GUYS GIVE UP THEIR POSITION OF LEVERAGE THROUGH FEAR AND NEARLY GOT A 15% DISCOUNT)
3. HODL (HOLD ON FOR DEAR LIFE)
This is basically a continuation of #2 but needs to be said again. DO NOT SELL, BUY THE DIP AND HOLD ON FOR DEAR LIFE.
Selling your position on an exponentially growing crypto is like being the fastest in a race but not finishing it. You were in first and were going to win, why would you stop running? This is a game, a race that we were once at a disadvantage in, but now we are writing the new rules. Don't you want a say in where our society (and our money) is going? As you can see in the chart above, if a person bought a Bitcoin in 2011 and never sold, they would have over 1000% increase on their return rather than someone who sold their position in 2012 and had to buy back in at a higher position which basically eliminates the potential for your return. You start at 0 every time you sell, do yourself a favor and just buy when it dips to add leverage.
I am not sure if this was enough information to sway you to invest or research but hopefully I sparked the flame that will ensure cryptocurrency gets widely adopted for the little guys. Learn about these investments and be INVESTED and that in essence will prevent you from knee jerk reactions and will also make your picks simpler. Hopefully these facts and tips have motivated you to lead others around you to the promise land, we're all in this together.
Happy Investing!
