When I first heard the term "newbie," I felt embarrassed, and there is discrimination when it is mentioned or a person is labeled with it.
When I first entered the space (the crypto space) in 2017, many people were perplexed and unsure of what to do.
Nowadays, one stupid meme coin will promise you financial freedom, and that is how they will onboard, use, and then dump you heavily and into the trenches, but thank goodness memes did not exist in 2017.
We had to learn through the confusion and chaos, and no one was willing to spoon-feed anyone; either you wise up or you don't. Unfortunately, many have remained newbies even though they joined in 2017.
If you leave the space for a year or two and then return, you will have missed out on a lot of innovations and cool stuff, and you will need to catch up on the old while staying up to date on the new.
For example, the concept of RC and smart contracts were not available on Hive in 2017. It can be confusing at times, and the only option is to give up.
If you ask me how long it should take for someone to progress from newbie, intermediate, moderate, pro, boss, or god, I will probably say from day one to 16 years.
Now, there is no such thing as the levels I mentioned; I just rated based on my intuition. Now, 16 years is a long time, but I was thinking about the time it takes to understand the metrics of the crypto market rather than the numerous projects in crypto.
Now you can actually learn how everything works together, and when you combine all of that information, including newer knowledge, I believe that 16 years of involvement in crypto is enough to make you a god.
For example, I have been in the space for just over 7 years and still consider myself to be at the moderate level; apparently, I discovered that I did not know much, and 2025 has served as a wake-up call.
Most people who identify as BTC Maxis and take advantage of every opportunity to criticize alternative projects, as well as those who despise BTC because it steals all the attention, have only seen two cycles.
They argue like snotty-nosed children on CT, which is probably because they have only seen two cycles and maye half.
You will be surprised to learn that two cycles are only 8 years long, but I believe you will need a third and fourth cycle to progress from that delusional, arguing human to an emotionless guru with experience.
From 2009 to 2025, when crypto became a thing, that is exactly 16 years, and I doubt anyone bought BTC in 2009, and even if they did, it would have taken them nearly two years to figure out what they were getting themselves into.
So, basically, 80% are still in the moderate to pro level, which is fine as long as they have progressed from being a newbie.
It happened(s) on Hive too
I recall some specific individuals on the Blockchain in 2017, who established newbie initiatives on Steem Hive, gathered a few people in onboarding schemes, held a few meetups with them, took pictures and videos, collected a lot of money from the chain for these so-called expeditions and cashed out, left during the bear market, and abandoned the newbies to their fate without truly onboarding them.
Some of these people struggled to figure out what to do and, unfortunately, left as well, after the people who brought them had left.
It's why I see onboarding schemes as a plot to farm newbies for gains. It does not only happen here. On CT, you can see influencers farming newbies, using them for referrals, and asking them to invest in scams and bad projects.
It is a call to those who consider themselves as newbies to learn on the go. Sure, you will be farmed, taken advantage of, and ridden like a donkey, but it is most likely one of those things. It is up to you to watch videos, conduct research, dedicate time, try and fail, but fail on your own terms.
The lesson is to keep growing and drop the "newbie" tag. You will remain a newbie if you allow others to spoon-feed you, rely on others to always show you the rope when you can actually try, put in the effort, and demonstrate your proof of work.
Interested in some more of my works
Interested in some more of my works
