Have you ever thought that being in crypto is like an on-chain experience of the legendary gold rush back in the day in California? That we're actually on the verge of a new, digital gold rush? Think about it, most of us are obviously the gold diggers after the new shiny thing but the boom has created other professions as well.
When a poor miner determined to succeed arrives in a dirty old town near the mountains he would first need some equipment and money to purchase those. I'm guessing back then some made a decent profit as loan sharks or by playing it safe by selling picks and shovels.
Similarly, in today's digital crypto realm, you don't need to be the one taking the most risk but instead can profit by providing tools for those willing to do "the dirty work". You can be a developer who builds the tools or just provide liquidity and earn a stable income without experiencing the hard conditions up there in the mountains.
Now when our once-poor miner has finally struck gold and is climbing down the mountains, new temptations and dangers wait for him in the town. After a couple of drinks in the saloon he can come up with an idea of multiplying his fortune in a game of poker (over leverage, pumpfun) without knowing the game is rigged.
Even if he would play it smart, there are always ghouls in the shadows(scammers) and all the pretty ladies (rug pulls) whispering the sweetest things while only looking to remove the gold from the miner.
Do We Need To Pick Just One Trait?
Back in the days of the original gold rush you probably needed to pick just one trait, learn to be very good at it, and try your very best.
However, despite all the similarities to those days, do we need to pick just one profession for this new, digital rush?
What if I want to be a content creator by day, a trader by night and sometimes even a prostitute (testnet farmer)? Actually, not sure if the latter one is a fair comparison though but testnet farmers do get fucked a lot. Just recently by Mantra, I believe.
I don't know if I'm just hyperactive or if I'm just excited about all the opportunities there are, but I feel like trying out everything. This has led to me becoming a sort of wanderer without a home—a digital nomad.
Yeah, I know:
"Pick a niche and focus on that."
Heard that thousands of times and I wonder, did they also tell that to Leonardo Da Vinci?
Choose Your Side
Just recently I read this awesome article titled A Starting Guide to the Crypto MMO written by JEZ where he or she presents different traits to pick for your crypto journey. These include traders, airdrop farmers, builders, etc.
I've tried all of these and still practising all of them more or less. No need to get fixated on just one. There's a wide-open prairie out there full of opportunities.
But if you are new to crypto you are probably looking for a community where you can ask questions and get support. That is actually very important but just like in the gold rush days, the community expects you to fit into a certain role and just like the drunk in the corner of the saloon, they tell you how it is. That is the way and in their opinion, it's always been either this or that:
If you are a no-coiner, you know nothing
If you have levelled up and now own Bitcoin, you still know nothing cos alts are the way
Then again, alts aren't real crypto - only Bitcoin is
Ethereum is an altcoin and therefore not real (you know nothing)
Don't touch Solana, it's too centralized
Don't touch anything! Everything is centralized
I could go on forever mentioning different sectors, sub-categories, chains, and tokens which all have rabid defenders but you probably get where I'm going with this. Normal people turn into raging, lunatic neighbours when they find a community, fiercely defending their territory and beliefs.
The Renaissance Man
I come across many people who get very sentimental about their favourite projects and communities and nothing wrong with that. I do know and respect loyalty.
But let's face it, when joining a new crypto project, we are skating on very thin ice. Everything is so new and fragile. The competition is brutal. The supply is huge. It really is the new frontier.
Still, I guess it's just natural for us to seek the warmth of a home, to try to find a community as it is cold and lonely up there in the mountains. As for me, I have always been sort of a lone wolf in real life as well, never settled anywhere for too long and now I am simply repeating the same old pattern in this weird crypto space.
My approach to the crypto game and hustling is to be sort of a Renaissance man, to do everything and be everywhere. Yes, it's quite consuming in many ways but also very rewarding. I've learned skills I can apply in other sectors and general crypto knowledge to help me avoid most pitfalls.
Conclusion
Remember the 90s film, Heat? In one scene Robert De Niro's character explains his philosophy of leaving everything in 30 seconds when the heat is on.
I try to apply something like that to my approach. Never get too attached, always have an exit planned and never position myself in a do-or-die situation. As a person who's experienced the Terra Luna crash, several smaller rug pulls, a couple of scams, and had my computer and all my accounts hacked, I still want to be loyal and support different projects but at the same time, I'm always ready to pack my stuff and leave.
Loyalty is a different thing than getting stuck in the comfort of a single place, in an all-in situation.
What jumping from one flower to another has shown me is perspective. It's like zooming out on a trading chart. While looking outside within a bubble(chain, app, community), the outside looks blurry and everything within looks legit and right. However, the truth is, that there are literally hundreds of crypto products similar to the one we are in. Some are better, some are worse.
Still, being stuck in one single bubble clouds our perception and we might end up rooting for a dying chain or holding a token all the way down to the bottom. The digital rush is on and it's getting trickier day by day. But the real comfort is in the thought that there are always mountains beyond mountains and new sunsets to ride into.
And just like in the old gold rush days, there are many dangers and malicious actors in this time as well. The only difference is our tools have now been upgraded. Just hold on to one thought: we are here to make money and we are gonna make it if we stay focused.
🔹 Starbase - new DEX on Base with an airdrop program
🔹 Holozing - is an upcoming play-2-earn game on Hive - get in before the launch!
🔹 Grass - $GRASS token launch surprised everyone, don't miss the second season!
🔹 Yapper - join Yapper and take part in Kaito airdrop simply by tweeting on X!
🔹 Prodigy - free testnet on Berachain
Posted Using InLeo Alpha