Musings of a Crypto Newbie - EP 1

Disclaimer: Nothing on my blog is financial advice, these are my own observations and opinions, do what you will at your own risk!

I start this blog as a self reflection, discussion platform with other crypto newbies and may be learn a thing or two about this new, exciting and revolutionary world. Because of the crypto space being its early stages, it is a bit lonely and isolated for newbies and I want to try and start up a community that will really help anyone new in this space.

I will bore you all with a brief about how I got into this space as I would like some comments on others that have taken the leap of faith into the crypto space in similar circumstances or are about consider taking on this space. I first heard of the Bitcoin i guess was a couple of years ago at least and it must have been in the regular media which i vaguely remember as being described as the currency that was being used for illegal activities. I never really gave it any thought and moved on until the big spike in interest in the early quarter in 2017. This time it was a friend of mine that was sensible and I trusted her judgement. She said that she had been squirreling away a few dollars to buy cryptos on coinbase. This was the turning event when I hopped on the roller coaster without proper research and succumbed to dreaded FOMO(Fear of missing out) and FUD(Fear, uncertainty and doubt). I invested a small amount right at the top of the May - Jun 2017 market. I am deep in the red now, but it has been an exhilarating roller coaster of a ride. I understand now the reason for my losses and more than that, I know a bit more than when I started about the technologies I invested in.

It was really difficult at the start for me to figure out with the limited amount of information available to find out which channels of information were legitimate and trustworthy. So if you are in the same kind of boat as me, I want to see if we can share some info in this space and get us all better educated.

If you know a little about cryptocurrencies, you will see the reason why this technology has so much promise and how it relates to the frustrations we have with centralised systems. For me specifically it is the centralised banking and fiat systems that just are so inefficient, expensive and yet are the only mainstream medium for any large scale financial activity.

For anyone that is really starting off in this space, my humblest and first request is not to fall for FOMO and FUD. I personally know how easy it is to hear all these stories of instant riches and jumping into this space blind. If you have found this blog and wondering where a good place to start is, then here is a list of information channels in no particular order that really helped, gave me useful information, guidance and encouraged me to get into the crypto space.

1. Ameer Rosic: Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/AmeerRosic/about
   You must have already watched this youtube channel if you did any research on youtube. Has a large number of subscribers. Talks are simple, provides details of the technology. If you are interested in a specific coin or technology try to find a related video on this channel. Is a great starting point.
2. Peter Saddington: Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnePINazJJpbn9FWaq_skQA/about
   Peter Saddington is one of the coolest fellows in the space. He has videos that are only about 2-5 min long on his channel which will really get you thinking about cryptocurrencies.
3. Ivan: Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrYmtJBtLdtm2ov84ulV-yg
   This is a channel full of technical detail and analysis on various crypto technologies and updates. If you understand the actual mechanics behind the crypto and blockchain space and want detail in depth information this is the go-to channel.
4. Tommy World Power: Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/Tommy77724/featured
   I accidentally stumbled on this channel from my youtube feed. A couple of videos in this channel are really worth the watch.
5. CoinFomo: Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChJIBcjqwGAv2PdJfIOSjeg
   Good channel to that provides initial research on some alt coins. If you are looking at some new alt coins, visit his channel and the videos will give you a really good start point for research.

All the above people also have Steemit accounts and if you would rather read about the same content then you can find quality content on their Steemit accounts.

One of the best videos in the space that just felt logical and the way to go for beginners is this video here:

If you are really new to crypto just forward to time 11:15 in the video and please watch the 7 min of video to the end. This is some of the best advice that you will get before you start your quest. Big shout out to Peter Saddington for making this video.

Also these websites are generally a great starting point to bookmark as they provide a variety of information on this space:

https://coinmarketcap.com/
https://www.coingecko.com/en
https://www.cryptocompare.com
https://www.smithandcrown.com/icos/
http://www.coindesk.com/

What I intend to do next over the weeks is to get one topic that really intrigues me as a newbie and create some context for an open discussion so that we can learn from it. Not sure about coverage but I hope that some experts in the space will find their valuable time to contribute to the discussions and impart some of their knowledge to the next wave of investors. Even if it is just links to information that is so scattered and scarce on the internet.

Also i am your average Joe with a full time job and life so this is just done as a fun project. So I will not be able to actively participate but hope the discussions I start will lead to useful information for others as they progress.

Happy researching and go blockchain technology!!!!!