I am a blockchain speculator. I buy and sell digital blockchain assets for gain. A single trade cycle may last minutes, hours, days or months. This, outside of the Bitcoin bubble, is called speculation.
My job is 90% preparation and 10% execution. And preparation means reading. Reading everything, starting with white papers, market updates and news, and ending with blogs, adds and email scams. This has always been the way, also when I traded gold, stock and exotic options. My friends who worked in the dealing room were FX speculators. We were young, loud and proud, our partners wore flashy dresses, brought by UPS from Paris.
Fast forward twenty years. I am no longer young and loud. I am trading Ether & Tether, and - although I basically do what I did before - according to my fellow digital traders I am no longer a speculator. No way! I am now an investor.
How come?
I often wonder how much of a stumbling block the lingo of the blockchain universe is to its existing users and to their potential clients. Or is it just something that most of us take for granted and consider a local lore? And why is it that most pseudo-coin speculators will call themselves (and consider themselves) investors? Does a pig run faster when it lives in a stable?
Why will brokers and dealers of big international banks call themselves speculators and be proud of their jobs while blockchain speculators will snow themselves, and the ignorant readers, with words like investing, investment and digital gold? Is there perhaps some inferiority complex going on in our small community?
Clearly, some of the vocabulary is due to utter ignorance of the crypto crowds. But as we traders stick to the blockchain specific jargon, we are only adding to the general perception of the segment as scammers, crooks and Ponzi buddies.
And while it may sound OK to use a local jargon locally, as soon as you step out of your bubble and start interacting with the real world, you will discover that you are, in fact, pretenders. And if you insist on being investors then you will loose your credibility.
So, this is my call to my fellow blockchain traders - Girls and guys: choose your vocabulary wisely, call a HODL a hold and do not call digital assets a digital gold.
Speculate proudly. Invest in your education. Gain from price moves, not from snowing your readers.
