Early next year, my wife and I have a few large renovation bill deadlines maturing. We were able to postpone parts of the payments due to pandemic circumstances, which has been lucky considering we also had to add additional work to the renovation and upgrading. Now, we are working hard to make up the ground over the next 5 months and I am extra motivated, as any shortfall will be covered by crypto - and I don't want to cover any of it with my holdings. I have a problem for sure.
My name is Taraz and I'm a hodler.
Because of the future payments weighing on my mind, I have been looking at my own holdings with a little more interest of late and doing the mental arithmetic of what kinds of percentages I would have to use to cover what kinds of amounts. These amounts aren't extreme, but they would put a mighty dent in my holdings at these prices and I am hoping that there will be some kind of significant run up before payments are due. I hope that it will be a little earlier than I need of course, because I don't want to have to be forced into selling.
Being forced into making decisions is never a great position and I have been working over the last years to create some wiggle room so that I am not trapped into a corner completely. I started when I started my business about 7 years ago, but was cleaned out in the first months of my daughter's life by unforeseen circumstances that exacted a heavier financial toll than predicted and set us back significantly. My wife also took time off to finish her studies during this period, so it was hard to make much gain on top of all that was going on.
However, we have managed to manage our circumstances well enough that up until this point, there has been no pressing need to dip into the crypto kitty, my holdings, not that ridiculous Eth game. I think that the almost 4 year run of a zero crypto life is drawing to a close - but I am glad that if it does, I am not going to be using it frivolously and instead be moving it into another investment vehicle, our house. As much as it pains me, I am also looking forward to having something tangible to show for the relative mountain of time, effort and money put in over the last years.
For me, the problem is that crypto is in its infancy as an industry and while it needs to be used, using it also feels like selling out on the future, taking the bird in the hand, which equates to a weak hand approach. This means that at least for now, any crypto I do use will be out of neccessity, not to expand lifestyle. I wonder what the majority of people who made gains at the last bullrun have to show for it less than three years later and I wonder how many have more now than they did then.
The markets are all about speculation, which by definition means to form a hypothesis about something without firm evidence. In regards to investments, it is to act in the hope of gain with acknowledging the potential for loss. My hope is that my holdings now will be enough to sustain me for the rest of my life, but they are far away from being able to do that at these prices. So, I speculate that in the future, my holdings will be worth more and tokens like Hive will not only increase in value, but also give me a steady stream of income by holding stake in the platform and all of the second layer applications and services built now and in the future.
When I say "sustain me" for the rest of my life, I definitely so not intend to live solely off crypto, as I think it is far too volatile to do so unless a person has holdings much larger than mine in order to weather the ups and downs. What I am looking for is having tertiary sources of income that can trickle in to provide potential to either lower my living costs or hopefully, give me greater investment potential.
It doesn't matter if it is a little or a lot, in order to invest, there needs to be some level of economic freedom available, some extra resources that do not need to be spent on living and will not be missed if invested. The amounts might not be great now, but who knows what they will be in the future with strong hands holding them. A hundred dollars might not be much today, but it depends on what it is spent on as to what it will be worth tomorrow.
It is a broken record thing to reference now, but 100 dollars in 2009 is worth about 120 dollars today, meaning that due to inflation, 100 dollars is only worth about 83% of what it was 11 years ago. In February 2011, Bitcoin pulled level and gained parity with the US dollar, meaning 100 dollars would buy 100 Bitcoin - Well, that is worth 1.2 million dollars today - which covers the inflation rate pretty easily.
Now, Something like Hive is never going to be worth 12000 dollars each, but is 12 dollars possible? I speculate, yes. What will Ethereum be worth at that point, Bitcoin? No one really knows, so they hope for gain, while exposing themselves to the risk of loss.
What I find interesting is that currently we are seeing many people who have "done the right thing" suffer at retirement as their pension didn't return as expected. This is speculation too and it is a very long game, which means there is room for a lot of change in the process, wars, famines, global pandemics all eat into the return and there seems to be more down than up for most people. But, it is better to have something than nothing when it comes to resource availability and there are plenty of people with nothing. Four years ago, I was one of them and while still struggling and grinding away, I have at least managed to pull ahead and find a path to hack my way into investing.
If I hadn't have found Hive, I do not think I would own a stake in something that could be considered an investment in anything other than perhaps a property of some kind today. Still, I don't have anything traditional, other than my compulsory fund for my business, my contributions from my second job to a retirement fund and a few stock option I picked up from being furloughed - but I have actively built a small crypto portfolio that could one day be considered valuable beyond what it is worth today, minus the inflation.
While I understand the risk and volatility, it has given me a little bit of breathing room and some confidence in the future. I don't mean that it will actually be highly valued, but it has literally made me more aware of potentials and confident that I will be able to manage. When times are good, I will be able to invest a little more. When times are lean, I have a thin safety net to survive if needs be for longer than I could have before - which was zero, as I had no resources to my name.
This is where "consumer confidence" (however misinformed and misaligned it might be) comes into it, as when consumers are confident that they will have financial availability, they spend. However, when there is investor confidence, they spend too - it is just that each group buys different things. Once upon a time if I had extra in my pocket, it went on something consumable, something disposable, something that didn't have a chance of appreciating in value in any way. Now, I am far more picky with where the disposable income in my pocket goes.
"Disposable income" makes it sound like it can be thrown away - and most of us do throw it away. Not everyone though and I know people who have created a stable economic future for themselves by starting to use what they have early, rather than dispose of it until it is too late. Many of these people started when they were earning less than the average and a decade later, are in the top percentiles. But for most, that decade is far too long to restrict spending on consumables and direct it toward generative investments.
Now, I don't know about you, but I was tired of the constant chase in life well before getting into crypto, but I am also tied of the continued scaling back on the things I want in life in order to keep spending under control. The problem with the continuous cutbacks is, there is a minimum needed in order to live and at some point, all fat is trimmed, all entertainment, all hobbies, all the things that one might actually enjoy in life that take some amount of money to buy.
I think that a lot of people are learning to do without extras, which is great, but it can be a slippery slope if one is also not learning how to maintain or grow what they do have. I watch a lot of people bleed their economic future from a thousand cuts and are getting more and more depressed, not freer. The problem is that living frugally is fantastic, as long as one wants to live frugally. Having no choice and being forced to live without is soul crushing, especially when the things that start to get cut are those we want the most. It isn't enlightenment when there is still the conflict with desire.
There are a lot of people left wanting in this world while they themselves don't see that they play a role in there own outcomes, their on lack. Sure, there are plenty of exceptions on the cards too, plenty of individual circumstances, but on average, we probably all could do better with what we have than we are, which can be observed through people in similar positions as ourselves getting better results.
Right, this is far longer than I planned on writing for these thoughts and whether you can pick something of value from it is up to you - but for me, it is important to spend time understanding my position and considering if it is where I want to be or heading in that direction at all. I do this in many ways because life is complex and is made up of more factors of importance than what we generally pay attention to. However, one of those factors seems to be one that is almost of universal concern - and that is how much money we have in our pocket and, is it enough to buy the things we need and want in life.
Time. money, energy - we all make decisions with what we have to spend - Some will buy a drink, some a cigarette, some a game, some a few more satoshis. Where will you spend yours?
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]
Posted Using LeoFinance
My struggles were through most of my youth. We have reached a place of relative prosperity. The first couple years were a mess of satisfying pent up wants. We have since run out of things to want and have been building up our savings. We're even buying the house we were renting.
Our jobs are government, so we are rather secure as far as employment goes (you have to pay taxes even after you're dead). Unfortunately, because of the dip in taxes, we likely won't be getting raises for a while, which is an extension of the past 4 years I haven't had a raise.
Through savings in crypto and dividend-paying stocks, I can give myself a raise. We are slowing our paydown of the past 4 years and focusing on piling as much money as possible into these income-generating opportunities. One is Hive. The others are CRO and a dividend paying ETF that pays $1/yr each share. It's very mechanical. I put x away, I get y back in income.
Our debts are pre-brrrrr by the Fed. So, the real value will diminish in time. Of course, we're still paying down, just not as aggressively. I think I have a good chance of out-earning my stupid choices. If it doesn't work, then I'll just cash out and pay off the debts. In any case, I'll be much better off from piling up money.
I think that, similarly, if you pile up as much as possible now, you may have sufficient to cash flow your way through the home improvement payments.
Posted Using LeoFinance
I believe that this is an important factor in life - being able to increase, not just save. A couple years ago I needed a raise, so I took a second job :) Maybe it isn't everyone's idea of a good life, but it has allowed me to get into a house and clear a lot of debt. It takes work, but it is also far more satisfying than sitting doing nothing, suffering a continual lack of basics.
Better late than never - I am late to the game :)
I think you will be better off generating now and paying back later as the thing with the paying back, it will always be there wanting more. The opportunities to generate aggressively are rare.
Trying. :)
!ENGAGE 20
ENGAGEtokens.I consider myself immensely blessed that my work covers the bills and keeps the pressure off my crypto. Every time we get a bump, and I mention to my parents/in-laws, that we've had a boost and my crypto is worth another $10K, they fall over themselves suggesting real things to spend it on.
Doing up the back yard, buying a new car; the list is endless.
As if losing half in capital gains tax; then losing another half in resale value when I drive it off the lot, is somehow a sensible thing to do.
Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.
So much "real" to spend things on in this world, yet people don't seem to own anything, so what have they really bought?
I think that how people talk about these things is a pretty good indicator of how they are going to use their resources - and most people dream of not working and having a lot of luxury.
Compound interest is the eighth wonder of the world. He who understands it, earns it; he who doesn't, pays it.
_ Einstein.
It is no wonder that so little financial learning is offered to the average of the population - to the upper tier, none go without.
!ENGAGE 20
ENGAGEtokens.I suggest keep your crypto and see were it go after Bullrun
at the beginning of this year I, for the most part, put my wife and me in a position where we would have to save more. An automatic withdrawal was taken from our accounts every single week and put in a diversified portfolio. It was tough at first but eventually became nothing more than another bill to pay. After a while, I was finding ways to add to the account.
As much as I would like to use this account to pay down some debt, we are holding on to it as an "emergency" fund.
it feels good to know that if something major happens that requires a good deal of cash, that we will be ready for it.
Still, I really need to at least start a small crypto account soon. if only for bitcoin at first.
Automating this is smart as it means not having to "sell it" to yourself each month. People who support charities should do the same and then check back in every now and again to see if they want to keep the auto running.
It brings a confidence and calmness to life - especially for those who have responsibilities in other areas.
In my opinion - yes, you should :)
!ENGAGE 20
ENGAGEtokens.I totally hear you.
I invested a bit when bitcoin crashed to 3k in fall of 2018? Not near enough to have a stash worth much built a couple of years of bear squashed that. While I still don’t feel my stack is substantial enough, I try not to touch it and have done well. I try and swing trade to increase my holdings through learning and speculation. Building a business has its effects on disposable income in the early years so buying is unfortunately not an option at this point.
In the end though, we do what we do for lifestyle. You have increased the enjoyment of your home with is an improvement to lifestyle.
Seeing your mindset and dedication to crypto over the years on the blockchain(s) I have no doubt that if you dip into your hodl to finance the improvement in lifestyle, you will continue to work hard to make the fiat to buy it back.
Crypto is cool but only when it increases your lifestyle and happiness. You got this either way my friend.
Yes, I know this well. After those early couple, I started to pull a head and then after the baby issues, fell back again. It is always something. Because of this, it is little steps at a time forward, rather than little slices backward.
Yep, I just delay the happiness a little. What I do know already is that going without and having no potential to do otherwise in the future, sucks. At least now, there is a chance :)
!ENGAGE 25
ENGAGEtokens.Sources like Hive and Steem, and Blurt if it can ever get off the ground, are a good savings mechanism. Half of the rewards you receive are staked, the other liquid or semi liquid. Your account holdings can always increase, the amount you get may fluctuate, but you can use the liquid amount as the Where will you spend yours funds. You have built in disposable income with the block chains that provide rewards in a similar manner to Hive.
I spend some of mine to buy votes through community initiatives, share initiatives, and Hive engine initiatives, along with a few others. This is crypto after-all. It is used to increase holdings, One day I will use the liquid to convert and purchase wants, I hope I never have to withdraw for a Need, I know it may happen one day, and it will be fine when the time comes.
I wonder sometimes about these needs. Yes, I know people need things and life sucks hard at times - but, crypto is new and a lot of these people have had no access to this revenue stream before, so what were they doing prior?
Odd jobs, street and fair vending, after work jobs. A lot of the side jobs have been shut down from the lock down. With the crypto styles of steem and Hive, monetization has become a lot easier and more steady stream for some. Some people really enjoy the gypsy style of life of moving at will when they want and working when they want, I've met a few up here in Alaska, hired a few for odd jobs and such. Then there are the people who don't mind being on welfare in the States, it provides almost everything for them and they get to stay at home, smoke, drink and do whatever their drug of choice is.
In America the nanny state is not to bad a mistress for some. The drive and the desire for things beyond needs for a lot of people doesn't exist.
Me I still like buying toys. I know I don't need them, I know in the future I will want fewer, but for now life is pretty much still about toys and entertainment. I find that a perfectly acceptable reason/meaning for/of life.
One day, I would like the possibility to travel through Australia with the family for a couple months, blogging for petrol and food money :) Wouldn't that be awesome?
I wonder how many of them are actually happy?
I think if done intentionally and knowing the cost, there is nothing wrong with it. The problem is that many are raised so heavily into the process that they do it blindly - yet still have that itch to scratch in other areas - but they can't locate it.
I know a few, and they are no less happy than most people, like most people they kind of want a better life, but they are enjoying the freedom their choice gives them. Some of them if they want a few extra bucks, they chop wood to sell, or help clean lots, or clean fish. But mostly they just enjoy the life, they can go pick berries when they want, they can fish and hunt when they want. They are a lot like retired people, happy with where they are and free to do when they want.
There are people who do that in Australia and surf out the back of a van. There is one important difference with retired people though - a retired person has lived a life and got to that point, a younger person might not realize there are things that they might want later in life - but they no longer have the path to get there.
I can't touch mine either. I would say it is a type of hoarding and not touching it is the best option unless it is an emergency. We all feel Hive can go into double figures so if you are earning $10 a day now it could be literally worth $100's. Patience and staying true on the journey is tough and sell some if you have to as you have the know of how to grow it back. Many users don't have that knowledge and can grow only by investing.
I think all humans are collectors of something (many things usually), yet some people collect valueless, some collect values.
I enjoy the building process as there is something calming about it, perhaps the organization of it. I understand why some people get addicted to collecting.
I agree with this post.
Cryptocurrency is a risky investment. Moving some of it into something more stable, like your home won't harm you.
Are you deveisified within cryptocurrency also? That could stabilize your stake in the technology.
It also depends on how much of your Net-worth is in risky investments like Cryptocurrency. What is your risk tolerance? Have you generally made riskier chooses in the past?
Somewhat diversified - but a little thin in some areas.
I haven't really invested prior so have played it a little too safe. - Plenty of risk in the women I have chosen though ;D These days, I am bolder in my risk-seeking than earlier and I think age has something to do with it too - Eventually I will die, may as well live a little. I don't see living as satisfying all of my desires, but rather than building something more valuable in the future for those who are to live there. This is part of that process.
Wow beats my imagination that you haven't touched your investment for four years...despite your involvement. I hope the process are fair to you when you do decide to pull some...also hoping it won't have to be an emergency pull... Heaven knows I know that feeling
I am really trying to avoid any kind of emergency pull scenario - they are never timed well.
So many things on my mind... I need to organize some ideas before the next steps.
It is always good to take a little space each day and see if what we are doing is headed toward where we want to be. Sometimes it might be, but we might end up deciding we want to be somewhere else.
Yoo I really related to a lot of the sentiments that you stated in your post. I think every individual (especially if they are young) should be working to create themselves at least a second source of income and make lots of investments. This pandemic is showing how easy it is for people to go out of work and be dependent on unemployment so in order to avoid that, it's wise to expand your income sources honestly 💪.
You are right about the young. The "job for life" era is long gone - and the "many jobs in life" is ending - we are entering the "multiple simultaneous jobs" phase...
Interesting approach towards spending. I believe that the right life philosophy will bring the right results. In time. Nothing happens overnight and a lot of people experience frustration because of that. Consumerism will never bring financial safety and few see this. Consume spend consume spend and pay it with time. We only live that much so time is very valuable in order to make the right plans. It is very good that you are able to tap into your crypto, it gives you a mental sweet limonade in sour times.
I believe the right approach implies making a plan of spending /investing/saving. With the right proportions.
I think they are looking for emotional safety, but only on the upside. Buy happiness and keep buying until there is nothing left - but sadness.
Exactly. It shows a certain inner void for sure to be a compulsive buyer.
I'm withdrawing the maximum amount i can free of tax free from my small private pension, keeping enough for living expenses (which are very low for me, because i want to live frugally, and because i chose to live in a country with a very low cost of living) and house renovations, and putting the rest into crypto (mostly BTC and HIVE) and HODLing.
Plus growing food. So many zucchini's for the last couple of months that i'm giving lots away (and lettuce and beetroot).
Sounds like a good plan and a very good way to go with the growing of food too. Living in a lower-cost country can be a huge advantage if one is able to earn more than the local average.
I like zucchinis sliced down the middle, stuffed with a meat sauce, covered with cheese and baked :)
Fortunately I don't need to earn, but if I did I'm pretty sure I could make enough without having to work more than a few hours a day.
I'm virtually vegan (a little cheese sometimes) and know the nutritional and medicinal value of raw food is so much higher, so I've been slicing thinly the zuchinis (like cucumber) and putting on my peanut butter on toast (my favourite food 😀), and using a food processor making a hummus like spread. Also making soup. This is my zuchini harvest for today:
I just made a post about it if u wanna see more: https://peakd.com/hive-114308/@atma.love/ihaveonehugezuchiniplant-upyrdif8udggwgiwqfunsu70mlwti2si
Peace, Love and Abundance,
Atma
I also have some financial problem in this pandemic but thankfully I have bought some cryptocurrency way back in 2019 which I bought in 250 to 30 USD dollar and exchange them around 1000 USD dollar in 2020 and pay my bills and do house repairs
Well the goal is usually not to go into debt, since that is harder to get rid of then earning back what you "cashed out" etc. Also debt is almost always more expensive than taking care of the bill on time.
I think "savings" is a much better word than "disposable income", saving a little extra whenever possible to remove future problems. Seriously, the fact that you saved enough for your kid's needs when they arose is a huge thing, not a loss. Glad you pulled through :)