Easing into Crypto

Important update from late 2024: I last wrote about crypto in 2022, and since then my interest has dwindled substantially.

I still believe that crypto has a lot of potential value to the world (and I still own a good amount of Bitcoin), but I no longer actively follow the crypto world.

My interests have simply shifted elsewhere (for example, to making YouTube videos at the intersection of psychology, existential questioning / rational spirituality, typology, and deep personal growth).

Many of these crypto posts / podcast episodes might still be relevant and valuable (especially the more foundational and philosophical ones). But please recognize that much of the info (especially on specific coins/blockchains/strategies) is 2+ years out of date, and the crypto world changes quickly.

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Cryptocurrency is about a lot more than just making money.

We'll get there in later posts in the series. But first, I want to help you understand how crypto actually works, including:

• How it will transform society—becoming the foundation of the next iteration of the Internet, decentralizing power structures, and creating futuristic online worlds (the "metaverse")
• Why it's already making a big impact on the art world—promoting new forms of creativity and allowing digital artists and creators to be financially compensated in ways that had been impossible before
• How it can support social justice and protect personal autonomy—offering resistance to oppressive governments and access to financial multipliers for marginalized communities

You might be wondering:

• Did El Salvador really make Bitcoin an official currency you can pay taxes with? Does cryptocurrency have real value? Yes.
• Did an NFT (i.e., a piece of art that lives inside cryptocurrency) really sell for $69 million? Are NFT's more than just silly memes? Yes.
• Is cryptocurrency actually useful for anything, or is it just creating a lot of needless pollution? Yes (and I'll explain some important facts you might be missing regarding the environmental impact).

There's a lot to unpack here, and most educational resources I've come across are either way too simplistic or way too advanced.

I'll start at the very beginning and gently guide you through all the concepts you need to understand to feel comfortable with cryptocurrency. There's so much potential here, but I want to do what I can to protect you from getting scammed or making costly mistakes.

I certainly won't claim to be an expert, but I've spent many hundreds of hours studying all this, and I'm continuing to learn and make mistakes every day.

My goal with this series is to get you excited about what's possible here, and then to help you out by sharing what I wish I'd known back when I got started.

This is for you whether you're brand new to crypto (maybe even brand new to investing in general), a seasoned investor wanting to dive deep for potentially huge returns, or a non-techie passionate about social justice, personal freedom, or moving toward a more utopian future for humanity.

Scroll down to begin reading. Or, if you'd prefer to listen to this series instead:

I've been recording each post audiobook-style on my crypto podcast, Easing Into Crypto. It's the exact same content and you can listen on Spotify or Apple: