I’ve become addicted to cryptocurrency and I’m loving it

Only if these currencies were physical !

Here is a truth.

I got into crypocurrency as far as back in 2013. I researched what bitcoin was. Frankly, I was much younger (and stupid) back then. Didn’t understand whatever blockchain was (but you should research upon it).

Only knew it was a cryptocurrency and can be mined. Being totally aloof to mining, there were 2 options in front of me if I wanted to enter into bitcoin.

1. Buy the coin (Bitcoin)

Nope, that wasn’t gonna happen. It was not only because I couldn’t afford it but also, in my country there was no “exchange” to buy it from.

2. Look for faucet websites

This is obviously the course I took (cause free money, you know).

So if you’re unaware what a faucet website is, it basically gives you free bitcoin for solving puzzles.

But the world is not so rosy as it seems. You see, the thing is, 1 bitcoin is divided into 100,000,000 units, each called a satoshi (named after the anonymous creator of bitcoin).

So, these websites give away 100-millionth of a bitcoin. It’ll take you years upon years before you can even collect 0.0001 bitcoin.

As usual, I got bored very easily because I wasn’t getting anywhere.

And I left. (In hindsight, not my best decision)

Fast forward to December 2017

I heard bitcoin’s price reached $10,000 ! I was dumbstruck. I beat myself as to why I left bitcoin back in 2013.

Then it reached $11,000+ within 24 hours of reaching $10,000. It blew everyone’s expectations.

Ok, so here is the best part.

So, in my college, there are societies based on various interests (finance, economics, sports, dance and so on). I’m part of the finance society.

So, one day the president of the society introduced us to a super senior who had been involved in the cryptocurrency space since August 2017.

I got a basic primer on blockchain and other new tech (swift anyone ?) That day, while he was going, he told me to look out for litecoin (LTC).

Up until this point I was unaware of any other currencies except bitcoin. But that day, I looked up litecoin. It went up by over 100% and over $300!

Here is the thing: I’d been investing and learning about the stock market for about 1.5 years now. I’d seen some amazing gains but it was sort of boring for me.

I like the idea of my money working for me.

And I don’t know about you, but I LOVE THE VOLATILITY of cryptocurrencies. It gives me thrill. Personally, the prospect of a 50% gain is much more appealing to me than a 50% loss on the investment (obviously, your opinion can differ).

After taking some tips and researching here and there, I bought 50 units of Ripple (XRP)

And boy, it has been a crazy journey ever since.

Ripple broke all expectations, crossed $1 and (as of time of this writing) is the 3rd largest cryptocurrency by market cap (behind bitcoin and ethereum).

They’ve been working on getting partnerships with banks (I know people in the cryptocurrency space don’t like it when they hear ‘bank’) and I think they have a lot of potential going forward (but that’s just me, lol)

So, for you’ve read up until here, I’ve made up a small checklist of my journey with cryptocurrency up until now:-

1) I love the volatility of cryptocurrencies

You might differ. You might prefer when things don’t fluctuate so much. As I said, for me, the prospects of the gain outweigh the fear of being wiped out. Then again, only put money you can afford to lose !

2) You better research, and research some more

Really. Don’t buy a certain currency just because you read about it somewhere. Research on it. Find out how and why was it made. Does it have a vision? Does it use blockchain or something else ? Does it have a limited supply ? Is there any good/bad news regarding it ?

Trust me, this will help you. If you can’t do the research, don’t get in.

3) Have an entry and exit strategy

Profit is made when you buy, not when you sell

Like with most investments, I like to have a entry and exit strategy planned before I invest. This gives me a perspective on how long do I wanna hold the investment.

Your entry strategy outlines when are you gonna buy — is it gonna be when you hear something positive about it or when the price is low ? Be sure you stick to it.

Your exit strategy is even more important. Why and how long do you wanna hold the currency ? 4 months ? Until it doubles ? Until you need the cash? Make sure you plan when are you gonna exit.

Conclusion

I’ve fallen for the cryptocurrency space and have become addicted to it. My addiction doesn’t entail to constantly checking the prices, but to researching what path will it take. I think this is the wild wild west of the tech world.

No one knows the rules. Anything can happen. There are literally millionaires created from bitcoin. Probably some will bite the dust. Who knows for sure ? But this time, is sure exciting !

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