Imagine describing a debit card to someone in the Old West.
(okay, this is a space cowboy – but my point still stands.)
For someone in the 1800s, entire concept of money would have to be stretched in order to understand paying with a card instead of cash. Even a checking account would sound revolutionary. That’s what’s happening to all of us with blockchain technology. Our minds are being stretched.
Bitcoin is new and confusing. For those who don’t like being on the computer, or creating accounts on new websites, or logging in with complicated passwords and keeping track of so many details, getting started with cryptocurrency can be intimidating.
What if you do something wrong? What if you hit the wrong key and your money vanishes into the internet? What if scammers take everything you own, or your government outlaws cryptocurrency tomorrow?
There’s a lot of uncertainty and confusion in the crypto space, which is why it’s important to move slowly and deliberately.
The people who are the most confident in their relationship to the blockchain are the ones who have done some research, experimented and tried a few things, and examined their results.
I first started investing in cryptocurrency in 2017. There’s been a lot of new things to learn. Over the last few years, older friends who weren’t good at technology asked me to help them get started, by buying their first bit of bitcoin. I’ve shown boomers the basics often enough that I’ve observed something important:
Learning the basics isn’t that hard.
Getting started with cryptocurrency does take some time, but time passes faster with friends. If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed or stuck in trying to learn about Bitcoin and blockchain, ask some of your nearest and dearest to join you.
Is your financial life intertwined with anyone else? Do you have financial partners who are also curious about the future of money? Ask them to join you in a study group.
Share resources with each other, like FirstBitcoinChecklist.com, or the Digital Money videos on my YouTube channel. Talk with your study group once a week for an hour. Learn together, and it’s not so hard to get a grasp of the basics.
If you’d like to ask me questions about buying your first Bitcoin, I’m holding an AMA for the crypto-curious later this week.
During this free, interactive training and AMA, you will learn:
- Basics of Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency technology
- Security to set up and scams to beware
- Step-by-step instructions for buying cryptocurrency
Now is a good time to get started.
Some people fret that they are getting into crypto too late. I knew someone who bought Bitcoin when it was $80. She put everything she had into it – $12,000. Now she’s a multi-millionaire driving around in an RV without a financial care in the world.
You’ve probably heard that Chinese proverb – “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” So get started now.
Just be careful. Some coins go bust, some projects disappear, some exchanges dissolve. (Search ‘Mt Gox’ if you want to learn a crypto horror story.)
And finally, as a disclaimer – this isn’t financial advice. I’m just some dude on the internet. Don’t rely on me to make investment decisions. I’ll share with you some specifics about the technology, how it works, and what I understand about it, but any moves that you make are up to you. Wipe your own nose.
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