I know a bunch of you are feeling the fallout of crypto right now as we are going through a 15 month drought in the market.
Since we are in the midst of the longest bear run in crypto history it is understandable that you can’t help it but feel down and completely rekt.
Unless you are a skilled day trader and take advantage of the volatility of the market chances are you got burned badly.
Bitcoin, for example, has fallen close to 85% from peak to valley and it is considered one of the better performing cryptocurrencies.
It is no wonder people doubt the long term viability of cryptos and question whether most of these coins will still exist a few years from now.
Let’s look to history to find out if cryptocurrency stands a chance of surviving.
Many people compare the recent bubble of cryptocurrency to that of the Internet.
During the Internet Dot-com era of 1995-2000 there were a lot of companies that raised tons of money by just having a “.com” or an “e-something” in the business plan.
The fervor to invest in these startups was at an all time high and investors didn’t care about the soundness or the fundamentals and provided the funds when needed.
This sent the valuations of some of these unprofitable startups to elevated market caps. Because these companies weren’t making any money and were quickly burning through the capital a lot of them failed.
As a result, tons of companies went bust such as Pets.com, InfoSpace, TheGlobe.com, Boo.com, and many more!
While there were quite a number of failed companies those that survived thrived.
The likes of Yahoo, Ebay, and Amazon eventually became part of the ecosystem of the Internet that we use and know today.
While the Internet has changed how information is relayed and communicated, cryptocurrency is changing the rules of money.
Cryptos are often referred to as the Internet of money.
Bitcoin, for example, is revolutionizing the way money is distributed. Funds are being transferred with lower fees and quicker speed, without a middle man or third-party institution.
As a result, we are heading towards the inevitable decentralization of money and democratization of finances.
Will Cryptos Have the Same Fate As The Internet?
In recent months we saw many ICOs and scam projects like Centra Tech, PinCoin, and BitConnect shut down.
Many more will close their doors in the coming months as a lot of these projects took funds from investors without having a solid business plan or a realistic road map.
This is actually a good thing as we have been inundated with so many fraudulent and ill-intentioned projects the whole ecosystem really needs a good cleanse. It is not until we weed out all the bad actors that the space as a whole can continue to innovate and grow.
Just like the era of Internet there will need to be mass casualties in the form of loss of investors funds and companies going out of business before the rising stars of the industry reveal themselves.
Therefore, the bear market that we are experiencing right now is a necessary part of a healthy ecosystem.
Remember, cryptocurrency is still very new and you and I are considered early adapters. Crypto at the present is the equivalent of the Internet in the mid 1990’s or the 2nd or 3rd inning to a baseball game.
There are still a long way to go and even though we are in the midst of this bear market you should feel excited of what the future holds for cryptocurrency.
Asset Class
In any investment it is a good idea to take a long term view of the asset class.
Take a look at that sentence again. Cryptocurrency is a new asset class, I repeat, it is a new asset class.
When was the last time that a completely new category of investment was created? This in itself should be enough to get you excited about the potential of an early investment in cryptocurrency.
Blockchain Technology
Cryptocurrency’s underlying technology is blockchain. Blockchain technology has the potential to disrupt a myriad of industries like real estate, banking, healthcare, and many, many others.
It is not a matter of if the technology will replace the current way of doing things but is more a question of when.
The biggest corporations in the world are leveraging the blockchain to streamline and fool proof private data and secure important information.
More innovation will certainly take place in the coming months and years.
Cryptos Are Here To Stay
Cryptocurrency is certainly not going away because there simply is a strong need for it globally.
For example, it solves a huge problem with remittance where sending money via Western Union or MoneyGram can equate to exorbitant fees and slow transaction time.
Cryptocurrency can also replace inflationary fiat currencies. It may not be as evident in western countries but in countries like Venezuela and Sudan inflation is a real issue. It is not uncommon to see people push a barrel of cash to a local supermarket just to buy a loaf of bread.
The current price of Bitcoin hovers around $5,200 from just under $0.10 in 2010 so it is easy to see why it can be beneficial for some countries to adopt Bitcoin rather than use their own fiat currency which just devalues overtime.
Short-Term Failures Long-Term Success
Amazon’s Jeff Bezos said, “I wanted to project myself forward to age 80 and say, ‘OK, I’m looking back on my life. I want to minimize the number of regrets I have.’ And I knew that when I was 80, I was not going to regret having tried this. I was not going to regret trying to participate in this thing called the Internet that I thought was going to be a really big deal. I knew that if I failed, I wouldn’t regret that. But I knew the one thing I might regret is not ever having tried. I knew that that would haunt me every day.”
Similarly, I know that being a pioneer in crypto will not be a major regret for me when I’m at an old age and reminiscing back.
I know that being an early investor of Bitcoin and cryptocurrency would be something I would be proud of.
Joining a revolution and being part of a technology that is disruptive and regaining control of government oversight would be meaningful and important to me.
Sometimes, being early to the game means there will be trials and tribulations.
Remember, pioneers are the ones with the arrows in their back.
Today’s prices might make you look like a failure and you would like to kick yourself in the head every time you check CoinMarketCap.
Know that this is only temporary, just as the Phoenix will rise again, so will cryptos.
Being one of the early few also means that the reward will be that much sweeter when we get to mainstream adoption.
Be excited and glad that you are part of a revolution and the technology you are participating in today will better the world tomorrow.
If you keep the end goal in mind the setbacks and failures in the near term are meaningless.
I’m often reminded of a clear example of short-term failures leading to a long-term success is the story of our 16th President, Abe Lincoln.
| Year | Events in Abraham Lincoln’s Life |
| 1832 | Lost job and Defeated for state legislature |
| 1833 | Failed in business |
| 1835 | Sweetheart died |
| 1836 | Had nervous breakdown |
| 1838 | Defeated for Speaker |
| 1843 | Defeated for nomination for Congress |
| 1848 | Lost renomination |
| 1849 | Rejected for Land Officer |
| 1854 | Defeated for US Senate |
| 1856 | Defeated for nomination of Vice President |
| 1858 | Defeated for US Senate Again |
| 1860 | Elected President |
Remember that with any huge success there will be failures along the way. The important thing is to not give up and keep on moving and persist in the face of obstacles and roadblocks, just like Abraham Lincoln.
Keep the end in sight and you will be excited with everything that is going on in the cryptocurrency space in spite of the price.
Conclusion
If you were old enough to live through the birth, bust, and then the eventually boom of the Internet you know that history is simply repeating itself, in the form of cryptocurrency.
Focus on the long-term goal rather the short-term price action and you will certainly feel the excitement that is happening in the new asset class that is cryptocurrency .
What are you most excited about in this bear market? Will cryptocurrency be around in the future, why or why not? Please let us know by commenting below.
