10.000

Intro: My 2021 goal

In January 2021, I made a commitment. 10.000. Nothing more. Nothing less. I spend one video on it, and got started.

The good news actually came in December. I managed to reach two of my many 10.000 oriented goals, one being a crypto portfolio to surpass USD 10.000. Now here is the funny thing. Having USD 10.000 worth of crypto is really not that much. As a teenager yes, but as a grown man with monthly bills, a family, paying monthly rent and other expenses, it could evaporate rather quickly. In some parts of the world, it's just a couple of months of salary. However, in other parts of the world. USD 10.000 is a hefty savings account that people spend years to built.

From 1.500 to 250

10 years ago, a monthly salary of SRD 5.000 (Five Thousand Surinamese Dollars a month) would be considered a great salary for a young professional in Suriname, South America. You'd most likely need a senior position in a firm, have an academic background (preferable with titles) and have several years of experience. That SRD 5.000 in 2012 was the equivalent of USD 1.500, which again would be a nice pay for someone in what often is being referred to as a 'developing country'.

That same SRD 5.000, is only worth a little under USD 250 in 2022. That's right, due to inflation, that same amount of SRD is now worth 1/6 of what it was worth ten years ago. Of course, salaries have since gone up. But most people that were earning SRD 5.000 in 2012 are not earning SRD 30.000 a month in 2022, not even taking into account your usual 8% annual salary raise.

As you can imagine, a lot of people have gotten poorer. And I'm not talking about the 1% who know all to well have to benefit from economic fluctuation. But the actual majority, including young and upcoming middle class. The worst part is that aside from getting poorer in the amount of USD earned a month, the USD itself is also depreciating.

Investing

I'm not a financial expert, nor is this financial advice. But if you had spend SRD 5.000 on Bitcoin in 2012, that would be worth SRD 250.000.000 right now. No, that is not a typo. And yes, that is in hindsight.

Yes, the market is volatile, yes, a lot of Crypto/NFT related projects are going to 0. Much like we've experienced market crashes in the past, we will have the same in the future. Investing isn't a magic infinite money making loop. Real people lose real money.

But, there is more to it than we think. There has never been a time with so much available options to invest into something you actually like. The threshold is lower than it ever was before. You can start off small. I started with 160 Euro's. That's it.

The biggest difference between now and the past? For quite a long time, the idea has been 'you need money to make money'. That is no longer always the case. You can also make money by being proactive, learning and reading, becoming involved and investing time and effort into projects, people, system and organizations that reward you for it. Things you actually feel connected to. Authentic and relatable.

Scam much?

The biggest problem with presenting an option the provides value over time is: How do you recognize scams?

The reason I don't like to talk about money and I'm most of the time not interested in the financial side of things, is because I'm terrible with money. I prefer doing things that bring me joy over doing things that earn me a lot. Secondly, what often happens is that projects and ideas surrounding financial opportunities often attract a lot of scam activity. As once talked about in Social Confoes, we haven't even discussed what cryptocurrency is and what blockchain technology is in Suriname. Largely due to the fact that it have been primarily crypto MLMs that have dictated the mainstream media headlines so far.

Back to the 10.000

As the value of our local currency continues to depreciate (even without inflation, it still loses value at a much larger pace than established fiat such as the USD and EUR), I'm looking for an option to help out my country with its development, outside the already existing/traditional route. The main issue that we face whenever this happens is a consistent brain drain. A lot of people with the opportunity to go and work abroad leave. Which is logical. Why would you turn down on an opportunity to earn more and have a much more stable financial life? The thing is, most Surinamese who leave Suriname for more financial stability often don't want to leave. They love their country. But they don't want to be a martyr for nothing. And those that stay also don't want to continuously compromise on living conditions (even though we often do).

So, what if we could change that. Find a way to be financially independent without having to migrate to the Western world. What if you could earn USD 10.000 extra a year and continue living the most forested country in the world? In many countries USD 10.000 isn't that much. In Suriname, it can easily be 2 years worth of salary for a young professional. What if we can help 10.000 locals to earn USD 10.000. How awesome would that be?

10.000 just got a different meaning.

#lobi
@jeanlucsr