Dive right in - getting started with Bitcoin
A man without a heroic bent starts dying at the age of thirty.
Nassim Taleb
My last post led with a quote from Isaac Newton . Probably one of the most important figures in the scientific revolution - a rationalist who discovered gravity, researched the solar system and rejected church doctrine.
Few people know that Isaac Newton was also a mystic - completely obsessed with Alchemy (turning base metals into gold). They estimate at least 10% of everything he wrote (~1 million words) related to Alchemy. Great people usually have a bit of crazy in them.
I selected Taleb's quote because it resonates with me and hints at a bit of truth in my life. As I get older the rational and sensible side of me increasingly grays out my motivation to discover new and "bigger" things.
Perhaps Isaac Newton's open mind helped him to imagine and investigate the concept of gravity and the solar system? It may have also underpinned his passion for science. I can think of many other examples of heroes with goals or expectations others would consider foolish (i.e. Alexander the Great, Ghandi or even Elon Musk today).
I'm not advocating that we take reckless risks. I'm just suggesting we actively explore things we don't understand. Without getting too philosophical, there's a part of us that learns and grows by exploring and doing things that are bigger than our day to day.
How does this relate to Bitcoin?
Basically be curious, give it a go, however silly it may seem. You might learn something and have fun.
The people who really back Bitcoin believe in it for bigger reasons than an investment case. You might be able to experience some of this passion and enthusiasm yourself (this is the "living" I think Taleb was referring to).
If you don't get excited after using it - that's cool too - at least you will be more informed about a technology that's pretty topical these days.
So how to get started
I'm not going to give you a step by step guide - the thrill is in the learning.
I will point you in some good directions
Step one - get a wallet: This is effectively your online/internet banking app for Bitcoin. I used Airbitz. With Bitcoin, you have a private key that's yours to keep and a public key that the network uses to identify you and verify that you signed a transaction. Many wallets won't give you access to your private key (i.e. Coinbase), so if they go bankrupt they take your Bitcoin with them. While it's a remote risk with a reputable, regulated company like Coinbase, it can happen. We saw it when Mt. Gox "lost" 850,000 of its customers Bitcoins. Anyway, the whole point of Bitcoin is to disintermediate financial institutions - so go direct and control your private key.
Swap a small amount of cash to Bitcoin: If you live in a major city you can try finding a Bitcoin ATM. In New York I went to Coinsource and bought $100. Then I found out that they took more than 6% ($6) in fees. So I decided never to do that again! If you are in the US, Gdax and Gemini are among the cheapest exchanges at the moment and I found them to be the best way to buy Bitcoin. Google cheapest Bitcoin exchange for comparison sites to help your own research.
Send money to someone: Now comes the fun part. Send some Bitcoin to a friend overseas. Tell them to download Airbitz - it takes a second because they don't need any ID and won't be asked to fill out a form! All they need to do is to provide you with their QR code or wallet address (under the Request tab). You send them the Bitcoin and it pretty much happens instantly (well it'll show up in their wallet as pending and will settle about 15 minutes later - speeding up the settlement is driving a big debate on Bitcon's future).
So I did this and concluded that Bitcoin was super exciting. Nonetheless, despite its power it still has a way to go. The transaction fees were high and the settlement wasn't instant like I expected. The fact that it's hard and expensive to swap cash to Bitcoin is a bit of a hassle. Nevertheless, the potential is huge and it was pretty fun.
I'm fairly comfortable using Bitcoin now and it feels slicker than money or cards. I can see how it might catch on. Am I done exploring? No way, there's heaps more to learn.
This was part 3 of a series I'm writing on cryptocurrency. Check out part 1 and part 2 here. Part 4 is on the way (history of money) 😉
Upvotes are appreciated for motivation. Comments/questions/corrections are welcomed.