Before You Do This...
My last video on Raiblocks was a PR disaster (well to me at least). I've done plenty of controversial videos, but this one stands out because even I agree the video sounds questionable when I listen back to it. Naturally I know my own intentions, but I understand everyone's perspective.
This brief update is to inform you that:
I have read almost all responses on YouTube, Twitter, Reddit (yes, both the thread in /r/Raiblocks and /r/Cryptocurrency) and Steemit against my better judgment (trust me, you can only handle so much) and am aware of the various criticisms.
At some point in the near future, I'll make a video revisiting the topic and clarify my position (which hasn't changed, but I'll at least present it better and more respectfully)
Basically, I'm just here doing some damage control and trying to convince you I'm a good guy, pinky promise. For those of you who honestly don't care, no worries - Just needed to do this because it's the first time I've had a situation like this happen and I'd rather NOT commit PR suicide and poke the internet bear. If you usually only read these descriptions, I would listen to this particular video as obviously you can only portray so much in text.
Take care all and happy speculating / investing.
As a fellow blogger here on one of the most awesome social networking platforms I've ever had the chance to use, something remarkable occurred to me when I was looking over you're blog here on Steemit, I noticed a trend that had emerged.
As everyone knows you have so many videos that are a genuine perspective for crypto Traders who are trying to gauge or hedge bets, the Kind of traders that do not necessarily know everything about crypto markets who find it helpful to have a second opinion.
The trend I've seen in your post so far is that the post that you are apologizing for which is the post you called a PR disaster is actually the post that got the most upvotes in the Steemit system on you're blog.
In other words if the object of the game is to post information that people like then theoretically no post you have that came before or after has hit that mark as the one you are essentially apologizing for in this post.
I'm not here to say whether or not your apology is necessary or you owe these people an apology or not, that's your prerogative and although you're sentiment does seem genuine I just want to point out that technically speaking the post you had the most engagement with for Steemit users should not be a post you have to apologize for and if anything that's the kind of outspoken defiant opinion, whatever it maybe, is always genuine and valid and will always be respected even if there's a handful of people that have their finger on the unlike button and you perceive their comments are somehow worth acknowledging.
In summary I think you will find if you were view your blog you will notice that the post with the most upvotes is the post you are apologizing for, as Alanis Morissette would say isn't that ironic? I think you're post was a Steemit PR dream!
Go Crypto, Go BTC, Go CryptoVestor!
Let's go...
I have given this a 100% upvote again. I really appreciate your frankness. and honesty. I rate you as one of the BEST commentators in this market, by far. I really hope you NEVER feel you have to be apologetic or cow tow to your audience ever again. I think you should always be welcome on the steem blockchain and this is why i gave you 100% upvote. you should aim to piss your audience off, push the boundaries, DO NOT let your audience control your views or videos, as this is what will end you. I love your independence and ability to speak your mind. I DO NOT LIKE a content creator when they hold their views back due to their audiences' position in the market. The last video was not a PR disaster, however this video almost was. Chin up, your audience loves you, they love what you do. I look forward to the next frank, honest video. Appreciate your work, steem on!
starkerz,
Thank you for the continued support. It's a hard line to walk - I wouldn't have said anything if I didn't feel something was wrong with the video myself. The delivery was poor, plain and simple. Most people took issue with the content, which I think is fine and still stick to. I'm not apologizing for what I said or for what I think - That's one of my few entitlements and this channel provides me an avenue to share that opinion. I won't ever hold back my views. However, it is frustrating even for me when I don't deliver those views well which is how I feel about the Raiblocks video.
I second @starkerz
You seem like a genuine voice out there in the cryptocurrency YouTube world.
I only found out about your channel a few months ago, but I'm liking the content.
Glad to see you here on Steemit too. Have you tried out posting some of your material on Dtube too? Worth testing out!
Keep on mentioning Steemit at the end of your videos, I'm sure it's appreciated. :)
It is VERY much appreciated especially in the #promo-steem initiative and tag
You said right, Dtube can give lot more exposure.
Its clear Thanks for the reply!! Still nice if you can piss your audience off once in a while tho ;) Best of luck! As a side note, we have put together a promo-steem initiative that is really comming together on steemit. It would be great if you tag your videos to the tag #promo-steem whenever you mention steemit in them. I will certainly be supporting this going forwards and it will be well appreciated in the community.
I fully agree, and he is one of the most blunt and realist voices in the crypto space, which is a good thing since most of the space is in an echo chamber, something which can be very dangerous if you aren't willing to listen to ALL the various sides of the discussion to make better educated decisions.
You dont need to change your attitude to please the audience. We watch you in the first place because we value YOUR opinion. I would not like it , if you changed your viewpoint to please the masses. But also I would you to understand the sentiment of the people. Thats whats driving the market in the first place. The need for profits and a promise for a better future. We all know 99 percent of the projects will fail at one point on the other. The projects that will succeed eventually may not have been even created yet. So the "gold rush" of finding that one thing that will take over everything else will take precedent over everything else. And you cant deny, RaiBlocks does fuel that promise to some extent. But so does IOTA and cardano. if talking about scalability XRP can handle 1500 transactions per second, I'd say thats pretty fast, but has it been adopted. You are so right about the adoption part. Scalability has nothing to do with adoption, otherwise we'd see XRP accepted everywhere. Bitcoin is more adopted than everything else and probably is the most unscaled right now, but its still being used. Adoption comes with trust.
People will be more willing to trust bitcoin than raiblocks in the future because it has proven itself time and time again, security uncompromised. I hope you get what i am rambling about.
Adoption comes from a lot of things, and one reality I hate to say is that having a free-floating market value for a currency with this much volatility will be very difficult as it will never be a unit of account. In reality, it will likely be about attempting to create a decentralized solution for:
For that to happen, businesses have to accept XYZ cryptocurrency. The general populace has to be aware of said cryptocurrency and be comfortable owning it (even if for short periods of time) and transacting with it. The user interface has to be friendly and inviting. There must be enough protections in place that if a mistake is made, there are ways to not suddenly lose thousands of dollars. I call this idiot proofing, and it is much more important in fintech than usual tech (given that money is on the line).
Scalability is overrated and I will standby that until the day I die. Not because it is irrelevant, but because all the "tech nerds" will figure it out as they always do. We have control over scalability. We have limited control over how long it takes for everyone to WANT to use and feel COMFORTABLE with using cryptocurrencies. That will take far longer than most early adopters realize.
Scalabilty is important because lack of it stands in the way of adoption. I believe scalability has to come first or we will never get to mass adoption. Simple.
Exactly. Paypal isn't Paypal solely because of its transaction capacity. It had to do everything else right first.
Good points
I understand that you're worried about the development of a "friendly and inviting" user interface and that you're confident that it's only a matter of time for scalability issues to be solved. I would like to suggest the idea that maybe there is reason to be just as confident about the innovation and implementation of "idiot-proofing" solutions for the cryptocurrency user interface as for the resolving of possible scalability issues! Andreas Antonopulos has mentioned that that bitcoin does face "some very significant security problems related to the ownership and control of bitcoin keys[...]for the end user", the implication being that the technology may not be user-friendly enough for mainstream adoption (43:15-43:24, video linked below). He does however go on to say that he DOES BELIEVE that "over time, we are going to see the development of more secure mechanisms" and that "for every problem [he] sees in bitcoin, as an entrepreneur, [he] simultaneously sees a tremendous opportunity" (43:53-43:59, video linked below). There IS a strong business incentive for the innovation of idiot-proofing solutions to cater to the requirements of the mainstream adoption of cryptocurrency. The market introduction of the Trezor hardware wallet is representative of this commercial push towards the simplification of the use of cryptocurrencies. Today, the innovation carries on with products such as Javvy with the "support of the multi-signature authentication" for even more approachable user interface (https://javvy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/javvy_prospectus.pdf). :)
1- You are the most genuine crypto youtuber I know. And THAT's why I follow you.
I will always listen to people that know more than me in Crypto and that I feel aren't fooling me or using their influence to pump their stocks.
Want to know what video really made me subscribe to you and get notifications on my phone? The one were you talked about emotions.
It seems like every other youtuber is faking emotions and anxiety they might have when the price action isnt going their way.
2- Your arguments on the RaiBlocks video were pretty valid. For that, you have my sincere thank you. You're more informed and experienced than me and I always look to learn more from people like you, because, in the end, it'll make me more money and give me more peace of mind in crypto trading, plain and simple.
3- After hearing your argument about how really adoption comes before any scaling issue I too agree with that. We aren't using cryptos in day to day because we feel like we can't transact enough, its because there's really no use case right now.
4- Thanks for caring about your comunity.
Nate and idea,
I appreciate the kind words. I won't change - I'll always say what I mean. Sometimes it may not be communicated in the best way, but it'll come around. I'm happy to hear I could help you in a meaningful way and hope you stay tuned!
I'm really new to trading and will definately stay tuned, as a matter of fact, i'm pretty hyped to watch your new video series "investers guide to X". There is a lot of things I don't know about each cryptocurrency and knowing what I'm investing in is a great way to not get burned or help make better calls on price action prediction.
I want to add to what @natecordova said. Mainly because they wrote what I was about to write. AND That video about emotional investing was a service to this community and was what got me interested in your perspective as well. No doubt you rustled some jimmies on that last video but it's how you see the situation is what people want. Also despite the down votes and the comment thrashing people are still going to look to you as one of the critical thinking voices in the CC investment jungle. Keep up the good work man.
We live in a digital era. We also, more and more, think digital. Or binary, to be more precise. 1 and 0. Good and bad. Optimistic and pessimistic. Positive and negative. And there are people who describe you as pessimistic or on the more negative side. Kindly put, that is.
It took me two videos to subscribe to your channel. Why? Well, because I found it refreshing that somebody was able to break out of this binary thinking (crypto-is-from-god vs. crypto-is-devil's-work) , trying to be realistic about it. And without hidden agenda. And not being disrespectful. And presenting ideas and opinions worth listen to, but not in any case to automatically agree with.
#end of ass-kissing
I agree with the concepts in the previous video. I see everything in three steps: innovation - implementation - adoption. In crypto world we made first two steps. But it will take a little more time for the real adoption. That's how my mammalian brain thinks. Now, my reptilian part thinks just: f##k it all, I'm in it only for the money.
For conclusion. May I add a small suggestion.
STOP being so f##king apologetic. As long as you do not trash others and you are not being disrespectful, state your opinion/idea and stick to it. In terms of PR stunts, I think it's your kind of "so sorry if ..." behaviour that really turns people off.
Maybe this scene (H. Stern: Private parts) should give you some insight how things work:
Disclaimer: I'm not a PR expert nor is this a PR advice.
If I don't say anything, I appear aloof and an asshole to a number of people (and in this case, a few people I highly respect). If I say too much, I seem defensive and apologetic. If I say too little, it serves no purpose. I'm trying to find a happy medium and I'm new at this. It'll get better - and hopefully such events will happen with less frequency in the future (or zero).
Pig Vomit!...that was a great movie.
True, true ... :)
I liked your video because you make an intelligent argument and you are not afraid to speak your mind even though you know your opinion will not be popular. Please don't change.
Having said that I don't agree with everything in the video. I think you argued that scalability is not as important as other factors, particularly adoption, and that UI is holding back adoption of crypto in general. I agree with that. You gave examples of Bitshares and Steem as cryptos that can scale as well as RaiBlocks which makes XRB essentially pointless. I think that was the basis of your argument (correct me if I misunderstood) but if so I don't agree with it. I only heard of RaiBlocks for the first time when DataDash did his YouTube video a few days ago. I bought a few XRB to try it out for myself, and honestly I wonder if you actually did the same before passing judgement. What blew me away was how easy and quick it was to open and use the web wallet. If you haven't done it please try it. In fact if you send me your receive address I will gladly send you a little XRB to play with. You talk about the importance of UI and that is a strong argument in favor of RaiBlocks right there. I am not saying that it is a finished product, and there is certainly room for improvement, but it works.
RaiBlocks is about transfer of value. I opened the web wallet and created an account in a couple of minutes (raiwallet.com). I opened a second wallet and transferred a small amount of XRB between them, and sent it back again in a few seconds. No fees. Extremely fast. No waiting for transactions to confirm, so the value is immediately spendable. Dead easy to do. It just works. Now try and to that with Bitshares - it makes my head hurt just to look at the UI. No idea if you can do that with Steem but I doubt it. So for me your argument about UI should be a vote in favor of RaiBlocks and I would not be so quick to rule out the possibility that there is a valid use case for it. I don't believe Bitshares and Steem are RaiBlocks killers. I am not saying that RaiBlocks is a Bitcoin killer (or anything else killer) but I do think it should be taken seriously.
You remind me of my Investment Advisor who is a smart yet cautious stock picker. He researches the company and makes a suggestion if he thinks the stock has a bright future for the long term. He never suggests stocks to get in quickly and then get out quickly. He is building me a strong, diversified portfolio for that will appreciate over the long haul. I'm of retirement age and I need to have a substantial portfolio of stocks and other investment vehicles that hold their value and increase in value over time because I'm no longer employed and am relying on my portfolio to fund the rest of my life. So the risks inherent in crypto-currencies makes them a poor choice for my portfolio. I view them as a speculative bet and would be very cautious before choosing which coins to invest in. I think what you're saying is that while prices are pumping up for different coins now , they could tank tomorrow or the next day. That is a ton of risk. But of course lots of the people putting money into crypt-currencies are after quick bucks by buying and selling to take advantage of pumps regardless of what is behind the pump of the currency itself. They don' t care. Buy it when it's low and take a profit when it can give you some profit and then move on to the next pumper. That is ok to do if you are not risking everything in the process. Put some of the profits aside and build up your crypto portfolio responsibly and intelligently. Go deeper in your analysis if you want , and if you do want deeper analysis Crypto Investor is the guy. He provides intelligence and common sense as well as solid expertise in reading trends and interpreting charts. Like my IA, Crypto Investor is smart and cautious and I do just what he tells me to do and his track record is excellent. Even looking at Crypto-currencies goes against his investment strategies. But here I am looking. I haven't invested anything yet and may never do so. For one thing I live in Canada and I haven't been able to find an easy and reliable way to even make my first purchase. Coinbase wouldn't verify my ID and that is where I'm at now. But I've watched a lot of Youtube videos on the subject and Crypto Investor is the wisest guy to listen to of all advisors out there. My problem is, as a person living in Canada and having only Canadian banks and bank cards to use, I am so far stumped as to how to get into this market in even a small, very cautious way. Any advice in this regard would be appreciated .
keep sharing your thoughts, sometimes there's backlash when people don't agree no biggie.
I don't have to agree with every word that comes out of someone's mouth to find value in their thoughts, that would be assinine.
If dissenting opinions upset people so much they have a hissyfit, then they are are on their own when it comes to investing and they're going to get burned sooner or later.
You are, by far, one of the best cryptocurrency content creators out there, whether you realize it or not.
I posted a video (
People may think I'm dumb for that, but I have to trust my intuitions and convictions, and I choose to shares those with others in hopes that we may learn from each other. They can learn from what I have to say and everyone can learn from the discussions it creates...most people are toxic and not interested in discussion...only finding content that validates their emotional state they experience in a market as euphoric as this one.
Keep doing what you do brother, I'll always support you, where I agree with what you have to say or not, because you're logical and have valid reasoning. And for the record, I find your arguments against rai blocks to be compelling.
No idea why you have to defend yourself. You make quallity content and i think its good to hear some one who has different opinions. If people just ride the hype we will get an echo chamber and people will just join every pump and dump making crypto a pyramid scheme...
What I've found about addressing the public after a misstep is that there is a Goldilocks way to go about it, and who knows maybe I'll get better in the future. The balance is:
Some people deal with this everyday. You know, I felt a lot better after seeing Trump's tweet yesterday about his nuclear button being bigger than Kim's. Put my little PR incident into perspective.
I think the main problem is some people take your word as law instead of listening what they have to say and using that to make their decisions most just hear "raiblocks sucks". Like i said before its very good to hear different opinnions because they might show you things in a way you never tought of.
Credit to you for putting out fires! you do not need to do this. Your supporters, like myself: a long-time follower of you on YT, Twitter, & now Steemit; we enjoy your candor & straight-forward-ness!
Personally, I think you make very valid points in your video, stating what is on (some) of our minds. I believe that anyone who has been a part of the crypto market/industry for a long time can relate to the fact that the current investing mindset of the newest entrants to the space is very hype-based, with decisions being made, by the greater part on an emotional response to Likes and roaring upvotes, etc in popular forums.
Keep up your pragmatic approach to these topics. Your voice is a much-needed counter-balance to the hype. Appreciate your efforts!
Agreed - there is far too much hype. Normally this type of controversy doesn't matter much, but people I respect criticized my last video for reasons I prefer not to be criticized for. Difference of opinion is always fine - My opinion on matters is generally controversial in crypto. But I prefer not to have my opinion be expressed poorly, which based on the feedback I received from more intelligent individuals illustrated to me that I did not express myself well.
Want to say im a big fan of your videos because your tell the cold truth and the reality of how it is. Sometimes some of the hardcore fan boys see a one way view when it comes to certain cryptos. The same thing happened on reddit when I got bashed for calling out Charlie Lee for selling, and the use case that LTC is not what its cracked out to be anymore in the new day of Crypto. It's almost like a cult following.
Anyways Thanks for the Video, but I don't you need to apologize to the public.
It is important to be very clear in this kind of topic area.