Bitcoin Is Anti-Consumerism
Lessons in the Time Value of Money
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Nothing begs the question of “Do I really need this?” like knowing that the money you might spend on an item can potentially turn into a lot more money in the near future if invested. Let’s contextualize this with last year’s stimmy check:
That’s right. Had you converted your $1200 stimulus check directly into Bitcoin 11 months ago, that $1200 would now be $11,102. No wonder Americans are ready to put $40 billion into Bitcoin and stocks as their stimulus checks arrive.
Now, this obviously only holds true while Bitcoin is its bull market phase, but since we are in the middle of a Bitcoin supercycle, it currently holds super true. However, please do not expect the same jump in value that occurred in the last 11 months. We will likely be back in a Bitcoin bear market in 11 months. Be careful.
I began experiencing my “Do I really need this?” pangs just about a year ago. I would think to myself, “If the Bitcoin thesis continues to prove true, am I willing to to essentially pay 10x the price of the item that I am considering buying?” For some items, the answer was “yes”, and for many others, the answer was “no”. One of hardest “yeses” was my road bike (Beautiful, eh?), which I purchased in April of 2020. I rode it every other day before the weather turned and am back to riding it every other day now that the weather is nice again. It brings me great joy, hence, it was worth the what would now be the $10,000.00 that I spent on it. And on the topic of items bringing us joy, the work that we must all do when considering whether to spend or not to spend in this market, is channel our inner Marie Kondo.
If you haven’t watched Tidying Up with Marie Kondo on Netflix, there is no possible way that you are currently living your best life. Marie Kondo, sometimes referred to as KonMari, teaches us to declutter our living spaces and, therefore, our minds. She teaches us to only hold onto the objects that “spark joy” in our lives. I went through my own decluttering (more like “purging”) about three years ago, and what I learned is that I am not willing to reclutter. The timing couldn’t have been more perfect. I’d broken my bonds with the things that no longer served me, which just so happened to coincide with the time period during which I began to study finance. And what I have derived from these processes intertwining is a rather simple, yet elegant formula:
Running the Bitcoin numbers + KonMari = The ultimate satisfaction for Frank’s OCD-rattled brain
So, next time you think to yourself, “Do I really need that (insert name of highly-disposable sweatshop-made item here) from (insert name of big box store or online retailer here)?” take a second to ask a follow-up question: “Or would I rather my money turn into more money?” And if regret is your thing, you can always use the “How much is your dumb shit worth in Bitcoin?” calculator to find out how much your previous purchases are now worth in Bitcoin.
As always, I’m not a financial advisor, and I don’t play one in online world. It’s always important to understand the cycles of the asset in which you are investing, so to better understand when to buy and sell said asset. (For example, see a previous piece that I wrote on Bitcoin’s cycles and its price trajectory.) Make sure to do your own due diligence.
Keep It Tidy,
Frank
Twitter: @frankcorva
Podcast That I’m Currently Absorbing: The Rich Roll Podcast: Kevin Rose - “How to Remain Human in the Age of Automation”
What I’m Currently Re-Reading: The Fire Next Time, by James Baldwin
Nice one Frank - until the bull run finishes, I want (maybe not need) lots of black coffee - other than that, a park bench to sit on would be nice