Targeting the future early

In the not too distant future, I am going to hit one of those retarded milestone ages and I am definitely not prepared for retirement. Oh, I am not that old but if I am going to be able to ever kick up my heels (never gonna happen) and have a chance of taking a day or two off, my retirement funds need to look a hell of a lot better than the current near zero I am wielding. Obviously, due to my very, very poor position, I am hoping that crypto assets are going to do what I think they are going to do and fill in large gaps and holes in my poorly funded position.

Digital assets are going to change the way we all operate in numerous ways, even if most people don't really see the change happen. At some point, there are going to be tokenized interactions happen that look and feel much like what we are accustomed to now except, blockchained. This is not only going to makes us more traceable, it is also going to free up resources in various ways, provide some ability to limit middlemen and give more capabilities for small businesses and entrepreneurs to compete with larger as it somewhat evens a little of the financial by scale advantage playing field.

Will it save me from becoming a pauper begging for scraps of food though?

I don't know but I am taking a pretty big gamble on it doing just that and while I am a little diversified, I am aiming for Steem itself to do well enough that it will provide a steady stream of income that I can somewhat rely on in the future. I do think it can be much ore than it is today and, much more than many people envisage for tomorrow too, so in my head the chances are good.

I asked a student the other day what he would invest in if he could invest 40 years ago and he said, Nokia. You see the possibility here? Yes, Nokia did very, very well once upon a time considering it once made rubber boots but, the thing that comes to mind for him is what he knows being a Finn. What about Microsoft, Apple? What about building up over time, skimming profits and then going into Amazon and Google 20 years later?

This is the thing for active investments though, you can't really invest unless you know about them. However, by the time they are well-known, most of the benefits and especially the parabolic benefits of investing are all but gone. The real advantage is having the chance to invest into high uncertainty early and be prepared to lose it all, something most aren't willing to do, which is why it is such a lucrative move. It is pretty simple really.

What return are you willing to lose 100 dollars for, what return for 1000 and what return for 10,000 invested?

Let's use Bitcoin as the example.

Losing a hundred dollars isn't the end of the world for most people in western countries but losing 10,000 would suck for just about anyone anywhere.

100 in bitcoin at "first hearing" of 1 dollar would be worth 400,000 today.
1000 in bitcoin when it was 100 dollars would be worth 40,000 today.
10,000 in at the all time high would be worth 2000 today.

I wonder what would happen if someone put 100 dollars into the 2102 listed crypto assets listed on coinmarketcap today and held. That would cost 210,200 - most don't have that much. What about 1 dollar on each? What would be your estimate for the total earning or loss 1,5, 10 years from today? Impossible to say but for some assets there would be a tiny amount (like Bitcoin) and others there would be quite a number of tokens as they are in single digit satoshis.

Most people of course don't want to lose anything which means they won't throw that 100 dollars away on such a risky purchase but once the bandwagon is rolling, they might be more willing to put in 1000 or even 10,000 even though at that point the rate of gain is heavily diminished. Why not throw a little in (if one can afford it) at the start and if it starts to take off, ladder up?

As said though, no one likes to lose anything of anything which means that no matter the potential upside, most aren't willing to put anything in unless there is a high chance of return. People are happy to put their 10,000 into the bank and earn what is close to a plat interest rate once the rate of inflation is factored in but, they aren't willing to take 100 dollars (1%) of that and buy a little BTC, Steem, Eth or similar because... too risky. Better to keep it in the bank where 100% of it does very little of anything useful for years.

My student worked out that his money in the bank is making him 30€ a year once the inflation rate is factored in which is, not enough to take his wife to the cinemas. If he wants popcorn, candy and a drink to share, it'll take 2 years of interest earnings. What percentage do you think the bank is making on that sum using their marginal reserve lending potential, which is around a 10% reserve requirement?

Yeah, there is a lot of risk and perhaps it is all to end in tears but I think that having digital assets is going to be vital in my own future and more so than having money in the bank. While I am not going to go 'all in' on anything financially as I still have a family to provide for, I am also not going to rely on any government to look after me in my old age.

Perhaps I will die a pauper however, maybe my daughter will live a life of opportunity. I can live with that dream and if it becomes a reality, I am more than happy to die never seeing it myself. For me, I am looking for things to invest early into and of course the most important investment I will ever make for my daughter is, investing into her as a skilled and unique individual with an unknown ceiling on her potential.

Invest early, before the potential is lost to the mainstream is my parenting strategy and, it should be my asset management process too. Even small amounts add up over time, just like it is the little things that make up a life.

Taraz
[ a Steem original ]