ETH to STX

A trader's journey

I jumped into crypto in 2017. Back then I didn't know the difference between the 3 coins you could choose from on Coinbase. Much has changed since then, most of it will serve as fodder for future post. The one thing that hasn't changed since that initial immersion into this fascinating new world is this: I have always been searching for that one project that is going to help change the world. Sure, betting on the price action of whatever ERC-20 that everyone is hype about can be fun, but is it really moving the needle? This entry isn't really about that though, it is about how I discovered Stacks, and why I feel like my search for real world use is over.

Real Estate and Cartoons

I remember when I first learned what Mel wanted to do with Theopetra labs, I was intrigued. In the early days of the Discord I saw a lot of people talking about building on Stacks. Even then I didn't conceptualize of anything being an actual competitor to Ethereum. I even said something to the effect of "Ethereum isn't going anywhere". So I really didn't pay it any mind. As far as I could tell the market looked pretty toppy, and I wasn't going to buy anything anyway.

Through Theopetra I found myself becoming acquainted with quite a few of these various BowTied fellows. Some of these guys were really impressive in terms of knowledge and intelligence, and again lots of these folks were bullish on Stacks. So I started following a lot more BowTied fellows on Twitter, and still I am hearing about this Stacks coin. At no point during this time did I actually look to see what Stacks was about, I figured at best it was just another side chain. I did however start to follow its price action, as this is a habit that I have been into for quite a while. The only trading I was doing at this time was in the traditional markets, specifically looking for shorts.

Networking makes a difference

By late March 2022 I am looking at some crypto charts and realized that it is time to start paying attention to this market again. It wasn't up only anymore, and the time to start buying was coming. At this point due to mutual followers and the networking that happens on Twitter I started following some of the Stacks projects. I recall seeing what Ryder is working on, and having my mind blown, so then I checked out the Stacks NFT market https://gamma.io/ and liked what I saw. This was a time to make some quality buys I reckoned. I did some research into several projects, and it finally hit me: Stacks is smart contracts for Bitcoin. That was it, everything clicked. I made it my mission to prepare for the next bull, and this would happen by betting big on STX.

Once I made that decision I started getting to know the members and leaders of the Stacks community. It became immediately apparent that there were some some really great people involved with this ecosystem. Not just the scope of what these folks are working on, but the actual human qualities of the folks involved. So many kind, supportive, smart, hardworking people, and they are everywhere here. That really sealed the deal.

The takeaways

I think the most important thing to note is that my introduction to Stacks would not have occurred if I had not saw the potential in Theopetra, seeing people try to fix a serious problem interested me. So I guess our people are first and foremost going to be people who realize that things need to change. Same thing with the BowTieds, this is a group of folks who are using every tool at their disposal to try to help make a better life for themselves and others. We have to seek out people who recognize that there are massive problems that need to be solved.

Education: What made me bullish on Stacks is that I understand what Bitcoin is, and I know what smart contracts are. In order for normies to understand why Stacks they have to understand why Bitcoin, and even why ETH. A mentor/CEO i worked directly under for a while taught me to always know the "why". The education coming out of our community has to address the why. Recent events in the crypto market, definitely can make this task a bit easier. I talk to normies about crypto as often as I can, and most people are completely clueless about Bitcoin/Web3/ETH etc. They can tell you the newest Disney movie coming out, but no idea how the money in their bank works, or why everything is more expensive than it was a year ago. The Stacks community has to figure out how to find people where they are, and make them see the need for change and how Stacks can effect said change.

Disillusion: I have owned more rugs than a Persian Prince. I didn't initially enter this space to gamble, I entered it to make some investments into projects that would shape the future. I think many people in crypto originally shared this sentiment. The people who have been in this space for a while and had similar experiences, they need to be reached. They are typically going to be people who understand what makes Bitcoin better than fiat, they will understand what makes Stacks better than Ethereum or any side chain.

Keep Building: I know the market is hard right now. It is difficult to get people excited about what is coming when their portfolio is depressing to look at. That's ok, keep building, once the work is complete the projects will speak for themselves and the hype will come. Many of the normies and the degens will come when the price action gets too juicy to ignore.

Continue to be awesome people: The world is divided, people are fearful and angry, and many are losing hope. When people come to this community they will see that there are good people trying to change things. In my opinion this is priceless, and nearly as compelling as the case for Bitcoin. Thank you so much for reading, I hope you enjoyed my thoughts. Until next time, Jack.

*The easiest way to DCA your Stacks here