Had an unusual situation in some ways (but not so in others) with an associate who was looking to get into crypto. It kind of reminded me of when I was 10-years-old and tutoring students at home. There were always two kinds of learners.

The first, were the ones with a genuine interest in not only knowing the answer, but how to work out and arrive at the solution themselves. These people were willing to put in the work by reading and studying themselves. Then we arrive at the other kinds, you know, the ones who just want you to give them the answer with no idea on how to get there on their own.

I'm Not A Guru

Since I was good at reading and writing, I would tutor other students at the local community center every Sunday. It was surprising to find out just how many kids only wanted the answer without understanding the problem. I'd always tell them that it wouldn't help them, and insisted they they actually follow the study plan in order to learn and become independent over time. The ones that did so, learned and grew in knowledge, and the ones that refused, got booted from my tutoring sessions.

That's what this guy is like with crypto.

When I first got interested in finance, I would speak to people with experience in the subject, and they'd point me to books like The Richest Man in Babylon which I think should be required reading in schools. They also suggested some of the "Dummies" books on investing and the stock market. I gobbled up every single one of them, then began six months of casual research, followed by another six months of heavy research before getting into the market myself.

There are no shortcuts when it comes to due diligence.

I read Barron’s and The Wall Street Journal. Scoured every article on the subject that I could. In the beginning, I didn’t understand all of the lingo (short selling?) but that knowledge came over time. In 2009 when crypto entered the world, I was among the few who read Satoshi Nakamoto’s early posts about Bitcoin, and quickly realized that crypto would change everything. And it has.

(BTW, I think “Satoshi” is a group of people or even an agency, and not just one guy).

Teach A Man To Fish

However, the guy I'm talking about is one of these who's looking for a crypto guru to just tell him what to buy, how long to hodl, and when to sell. He doesn't want to put any work in himself. Even after I suggested some materials for him to learn from, he refused to do so, insisting that I should just tell him what to do. But it doesn't work that way with me.

I tell family members the same thing. If you're not willing to put the work in and learn, I'm not going to waste my time with you. People like this don't want to be responsible for their own investing decisions. Instead seeking for someone else to take the helm and steer the ship for them. People need to learn to become the Captain of their own financial ship so that they can gain the wisdom to navigate the sometimes treacherous waters of the vast investing seas.

What is truly rewarding is when you encounter an individual who has a genuine interest in enriching their own minds and willing to put in the work. When it comes to crypto and investing, that old saying could never be truer:

"Give a Man a Fish, and You Feed Him for a Day. Teach a Man To Fish, and You Feed Him for a Lifetime."