There Is NO Free Money in Crypto! What??
Today I want to debunk a popular misconception, almost a myth, that there is free money in crypto. Wrong! There is no such thing as free money in crypto, or anywhere else.
I expanded this post from a comment I made yesterday on Jon Olson's very good post:
What crypto offers is not free money (for example, airdrops), but plenty of opportunities to be in the right place at the right time, especially for those that keep taking action regularly over time.
No track record, no activity, no effort, no investment (in time and / or money) means no rewards, including no airdrop.
The opportunities in crypto are exceptional at this time, and given the times we live in they can be life-changing or even life-saving, but one has to learn, take action and stay committed to keep reaping the rewards.
Up until recently we saw the life-changing effects crypto has on poor areas of the globe. Now we see what it can mean in case of war and immigration. But with the ripples of the economic crisis throughout the world extending, many of us will feel its support. Governments should not try to control crypto, they should be thankful it exists, otherwise I believe many heads among them would've started to roll already.
Passive income is built actively, not by staying on the sidelines and admiring (or envying) those who succeed.
And there is one more thing to consider in the crypto verse.
When it all started, nobody knew anything about it. So, everyone had to learn.
Sure, some got in earlier than others, some are more technically inclined than others, but there are other factors to consider too.
The crypto verse in 2012 was vastly different than it is now, a decade later. I'd say most of the knowledge acquired back then about crypto is now obsolete. Not the wealth amassed, obviously, if one was inspired enough to hold on to it by now. But the knowledge, that needs to be continuously updated, because crypto is a rapidly developing universe. So, the gap in knowledge can be recouped if one keeps learning. Otherwise it keeps widening.
Plus, in the early days, crypto was really complicated to understand, because everything was super-geeky. Not anymore, even though some things are not as easy as pushing a button.
One can wait till everything is as simple as pushing a button, but then crypto will be more mature, mass adoption will be here and the window for great opportunities for early-ish adopters would have passed.
Choose wisely!
Posted Using LeoFinance Beta
It's the same mentality on the off-chain with online marketers. We get lulled into Free this and Free that and ultimately - NOTHING is truly ever free.
At it's most basic - your time will be necessary (valuable) or to make money you have to spend money (a concept that folks just refuse to comprehend)
It's interesting that that mentality carries over to the crypto universe as well.
Happy Friday @gadrian
Yes, I remember that was a problem in online marketing as well. The issue in crypto is a bit different, because in many cases you are airdropped free tokens, but those only came your way because you did something to deserve them (even if the only thing was to be active in a community). So, they are not really free, you paid for them with your time, activity or previous investments.
Your content has been voted as a part of Encouragement program. Keep up the good work!
Use Ecency daily to boost your growth on platform!
Support Ecency
Vote for new Proposal
Delegate HP and earn more
Completely agreed on everything. You're right, there is no such thing as free money in crypto. You have to work for it or buy it. Either way, it's not free!
Once you're in, you can expand and grow. And that is the golden opportunity crypto offers you right here and right now!
This is the important message that needs to go through, as you remarked: you either work or pay for your "free" crypto. Then, they tend to compound the more involved you get and as time passes, if you make the right choices.
Completely agree with you! One of my favorite sayings is, "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch." All of us that have reaped gains in crypto have put in the work. Inquisitive early adopters often trailblaze and put in the effort when other people would rather wait until it's easier and then criticize because they missed out.
Excellent preaching good sir! Wandered over from Listnerds😊
Thank you, it means a lot coming from you! I saw one of the other days you've been in this ecosystem since its first year, on the other chain.
That's the tradeoff early adopters make. They often make efforts understanding and using a new technology, and they are rewarded better for that. If one prefers to wait for the easy option, it might be too late because by then rewards will be shared with masses not with a small number of people.
Yes, I started on the chain that shall not be named, lol! And then left that platform with our community and never looked back. It's been quite an adventure that I am so happy I dove in and took. Every day I learn something new, and the old adage no risk, no reward often floats through my brain. I value my time a lot, and spend a lot of it here on Hive, or researching some new de-fi project, and as of late in the Listnerds realm, but so far all that time currency has been minutes beyond well spent.
And I have to thank you, it really means a lot to me that you appreciate my ramblings and enthusiasm! I'm honestly not an expert at anything, rather just someone who is super excited about learning. Okay, and I love crypto and Hive (and now Listnerds!) and could spout off for days about the awesomeness and all the cool content creators therein.
I will quit babbling now lol, hope you have a fantastic weekend!
Sometimes I wish ramblings would come easier for me! :D So here's a quality I don't have as much and which I learned to appreciate when I see in others well assorted with the desire to create something beautiful/pleasant!
Good post @gadrian, this is really helpful to a crypto newbie like myself. Thanks for the explanation.
This is more of an universal truth. And it holds true in crypto as well, we are not special in this way. We either put in the work or the money (or both) to see results. Time is also a factor. The longer you are actively involved in crypto, the more doors you leave opened for future gains (like these airdrops).
"you were lucky to get in on that airdrop"
"you were lucky to buy bitcoin under $100"
Lucky = opportunity + preparedness
Plus action! Being prepared without taking action still gets one nowhere (maybe next time).
It's all in the marketing! The word "airdrop" already signifies "free" in the minds of many people.
Given that cryptocurrencies have become an asset class in the investment sense of the word it is time we clarify the issues rather than cloud them further.
Thanks for taking a step in that direction, @gadrian!
Don't get me wrong, I love airdrops! They are often a recognition of the past work you've put in or your investments or usage of a product.
This is just like that joke with the praying to win the lottery, but not buying a single ticket. People won't get airdrops if they don't qualify.
Congratulations @gadrian! You have completed the following achievement on the Hive blockchain and have been rewarded with new badge(s):
Your next payout target is 6000 HP.
The unit is Hive Power equivalent because post and comment rewards can be split into HP and HBD
You can view your badges on your board and compare yourself to others in the Ranking
If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word
STOPTo support your work, I also upvoted your post!
Check out the last post from @hivebuzz:
Support the HiveBuzz project. Vote for our proposal!
Great post, I agree it is technically not free since you do work like posting and commenting. But Hive tokens are probably as close as I'll come to free. Personally, I always tell people it is "$0 Investment, 0 Risk Crypto".
Yep, blogging on Hive is a good way to put in some effort instead of money to earn rewards. One could say that curation can be automated so that would be a way to earn free rewards in crypto. But you only earn from curation if you have a stake, and that you either bought or earned, so not even that is free.
Is it easier to earn rewards through blogging on Hive than many other activities you get paid to do? At some point, yes. But let's remember that the start is difficult on Hive too. Even more so if you don't know anyone before you join.
Like always, money is usually earned through time or money. Nobody will send you free stuff if you don't even sign up for it. It could be anything from a few minutes to days or weeks of work. On Hive, we generate by using our time to be part of the community.
Posted Using LeoFinance Beta
Well, it can be a technique used in sales, to send or give away free sample hoping to get a customer to buy something expensive. And if it wouldn't work on average to boost sales, they wouldn't do it.
But normally every "free gift" comes with strings attached or they are based on your previous activity or investments which make you qualify for them.
On Hive, rewards are distributed based on our activity and stake. Even new tokens which are airdropped on Hive-Engine don't generally go to dead accounts, unless they are very poorly designed.
There's effort required in earning money, sometimes a lot sometimes a little, also sometimes worth it or not. I think signing up and genuinely trying new stuff is a great example of minimal effort that brings you good return.
If that is coupled with a little learning to understand how things work and how they can be beneficial (or not) in your case, that should have much better results.
Reading this somehow comforts me for being a latecomer in the crypto space. I actually had this feeling that I wasted those years when I took Bitcoin for granted in 2009 for listening to the advice of one economist.
We all miss opportunities! It's important to catch some of them though, every once in a while. I heard about bitcoin much later than you did, mainly because I was focused on completely different things. Both of us lost some good years, but here we are in front of other opportunities. More than we can take, but we need to take action of some of them, otherwise we'll keep having the same feeling we have about early bitcoin.
You're right! Too many opportunities and for now I am just focusing on sowing and planting seeds no matter how small they are.
"Passive income is built actively" is so right!
That's the only sustainable way. Thanks for dropping by, Kimberly!