How to get rich in Crypto Without being Lucky?

Whether you’re a founder, investor, trader, operator, developer — most people in crypto get rich by the same thing: owning assets that appreciate in value over time..

Do not confuse owning with trading. While some get rich by trading, know that you are still renting out your time for money

Be careful with confusing narratives with traction. The faster unearned value is accrued, the faster it will disappear..

Never dismiss anything right away. Let young people change your mind.

If you explore what people complain consistently about enough times you will stumble across a billion dollar opportunity.

If you are helpful to enough people over time, you will have access to wealth creation opportunities. You don’t need to be a coder to add value: content, network, thoughtful feedback are some other ways.

People can always tell if you’re in crypto to “get rich quick”. That will determine the people you get to work with and how far you go in the industry.

The earlier you go, the more upside you will find, but the more knowledge will be required to find the right opportunities (e.g. joining 10B protocol vs. pre-token)

If you seek a stable salary, work in a stable industry. If you take on the legal and financial risk of crypto, seek to be rewarded with exponential upside for being right.

Don’t get in the way of compounding. Hopping between projects every 6 months is bad and will destroy your reputation. Treat your job opps as investments, because they are.

Crypto is the greatest test for integrity due to the allure of quick money. Don’t work with people who fail the test.

You may make money in the short term, but you will lose everything else.

Reputation is every founder and investor’s top of funnel for hiring and deal flow. No amount of money is worth that if your goal is continual wealth creation.

Don’t avoid volatility. Volatility is the price you pay for outsized, compounded returns.

When it comes to opportunities with low costs, “what if it works” thinking trumps “what could go wrong” thinking.

Find your edge, double down, then scale yourself. Hire people/ join a team with people who are good at things you are not, then only do the things you are good at.

Crypto brings in the brightest, but also charlatans and scammers. Have a list of people you will always count on. Have a list of people you will never work with.

Half of getting rich is staying rich. Don’t upgrade your lifestyle to match your paper wealth after a historic bull market.

“Don’t bet what you don’t have to win what you don’t need”

Do not mistake leverage for genius. You hear stories of people brag about making 8–9 figures within a year.

They tend to be quiet when they lose it all in 1 day.

Beware of Dunning–Kruger effect. Just because someone “made it” by being early in crypto does not mean they are equipped to opine on cryptography, macroeconomics, politics etc.

Crypto runs on narratives. Narratives are crafted by people. People always have an agenda. If you can’t find the fish at the table, you are the fish.

Crypto has one of the flattest hierarchies across all industries. Take advantage of this to accelerate your wealth creation.

Crypto is overwhelming — find your tribe and rely on other people to expand your circle of expertise.

If you are generous with providing insight others will reciprocate with opportunity. If you withhold insight, others will do the same.

Learn from experienced folks, but only within their domaine expertis

Ignore traders who talk about tech and developers who talk about markets.

Pay back favors.

Crypto is rife with asymmetric opportunities. One intro to a job, a new team, an investment opportunity can make you rich. Reciprocate favors and always be grateful.

Pay it forward.

The space is young and you never know where favors can pay off. People who refused to hop on a call with me when I started out now want my advice.

If you are good at what you do, people will want things from you. Don’t give time to people who are in a position to reciprocate generosity but choose not to.

People mostly get what they deserve.

You can whine about VCs getting allocations, developers shipping low-effort forks, analysts not getting paid enough, or you can do something about it.

Finally, the wild volatility in crypto can create and destroy wealth in a very short time. Every cycle you hear stories of exuberant wealth, but also people who ended it all.

Always know what is important to you and what is enough.

(credit to jason choi)