Is it possible to become financially free within 4 years, the same amount of time it takes to complete a university degree? Maybe.

In December 2018, the crypto market is lower than it's been in 16 months. That will send many running, but for contrarians looking for an opportunity, it looks great.

Of course, to take advantage, you need to be careful with your money. Pay yourself first, tighten your purse strings, and remember your legacy. Then, glory may await you on the other side.

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Financially Free with Crypto

Now more than ever, it's possible to become financially independent within a short period, maybe 4 years, maybe even 1 year.

Many of you have heard me use the example of Peter Thiel investing in Facebook. If you had bought $10 worth of Facebook at the same time Thiel did, you could have sold at IPO for more than $900,000. Back then it was almost impossible to invest small amounts at that stage, but with ICOs and new forms of investment, it is possible.

But there's certain things you have to do first. In order to make money investing, first you have to save the money to invest.

Pay Yourself First

When I worked in a call centre, I'd get a lot of calls every week asking "Can I please delay the direct debit till next week?" In many cases, it seemed my customers had spent the last dollars in their bank accounts, without thinking through what they might soon owe.

That's the plight of the common man, a lack of financial education leaving them one paycheque away from being destitute.

The normal pattern of spending upon getting paid goes like this:

1. Buy something nice for yourself
2. Hopefully pay my dues
3. Save whatever isn't left

The pattern of the prudent goes like this:

1. Pay yourself
2. Pay your dues
3. Maybe buy yourself something nice

If you have trouble being disciplined with your money, the best thing to do is make it automatic. Set up an automatic savings plan, sending 1% or 10% your money to a different account so it's harder to access. Then you can save, invest or tithe that money.

There are also apps such as Raiz and Monzo to help you with this process, by rounding up what you spend to the nearest dollar, then saving it or investing it.

Tighten The Purse Strings

With so many modern conveniences today, everyone with smartphones and laptops, it's easy to be spoiled - to believe that you deserve luxuries. If our great grandparents could see how we live today, how flippantly we spend money, buying new things and throwing out old things, they'd be shocked.

If I lose a couple of buttons on a shirt, I might throw out the shirt and buy a new one. Yet, somewhere in the house is a sewing kit, and I can easily mend what is broken for a mere fraction of the cost.

Cheap Thrills Become Dear

One key expense for a lot of people is alcohol. In Australia I've seen people spend $50, $100 or even $200 a night going out to a club. Every dollar you spend now, is a dollar you could be putting away to improve your future.

Governments know that the common man has few pleasures, and therefore spends his money on cigarettes and alcohol. So, they tax them, a lot - sometimes as much as 100%. By buying them, you're playing their game and keeping yourself poor.

When the taxes get higher, it gets easier to buy black market tobacco. As beer prices rise, yeast prices stay low, so homebrewing is an option. Drink at home instead of a nightclub, or just cut out the habit altogether. It's a well-kept secret, but nightclubs are often more fun when you're not drinking.

Vegetarianism for Cheapskates

Meat is generally expensive compared to vegetables. If you eat meat two meals a day, in Australia and other countries that can add up to thousands of dollars a year.

At the first Anarchapulco in 2015, entrepreneur Travis Boyd got up and told his story of dreaming, sacrifice and perseverance about establishing a wireless ISP in his town, breaking down the oligopoly of service providers. He said "I did it. It took me a year, I ate beans and rice, but I did it." Everyone stood up and applauded because they heard the power in what he was saying. Mr. Boyd had made real sacrifices, and achieved something great because of it.

The other perspective is, beans and rice are delicious. Put some onion, tomato, chilli, cumin, maybe some fried plantain Cuban style, and you have a delightful meal on your hands. The lesson is, with creativity, living with less can actually be more fulfilling. In other words, money can never be a substitute for your own resourcefulness.

The Legacy You Inherited

I know what you might be thinking. "I could never give up steak for a year! That would be absolute torture!" And I have a couple of things to say to you.

The first thing is, I love you.

The second thing is: you spoiled brat. You pampered milquetoast waterling. Didn't your ancestors run across plains barefoot? Didn't they hide in caves? Didn't they forage not knowing if they would eat? Didn't they wonder if they would survive the next day? And didn't they do it with a smile on their face?

Didn't they possess that strength of body, spirit, of character? Didn't they sit through snowstorms, thunderstorms, sandstorms and icestorms, with barely a pulse to keep their hands warm?

Didn't they give that to you? Isn't that your heritage? Isn't that the legacy you've inherited? Isn't that your being? Isn't that your very name?

It's easy to throw around words like "I cannot" and "I could never", but if you really respected the sacrifices that your ancestors had gone through to get you here, maybe you wouldn't use those words so flippantly. Maybe if you remembered that, you would make the effort to say "I can try" or "I can", or even "I will no matter what."

It's December 2018. For those few who find a way to save some $1000s over the next four years, things could be crazy.

Bitcoin has tumbled to $3500, and there's blood on the streets. People are uncertain and many will put aside their dreams they had of speculating on crypto projects, finding a genuine investment that improves the world, serves humanity, and makes them some silver.

Do you have what it takes to make a few sacrifices, put the chips down, take a punt for your future? If you do, there might well be glory waiting for you on the other side.

Thank you

Thanks for reading, watching and listening to Cryptonomics. Thank you to all those people who share this post with your friends. I love it when you do that.

A quick shout out to the gentleman Martin Dillon, who has been following me for years, comments on so many of my videos and always says something positive. Thanks Martin.

Have a great day, and remember to stay grateful!

The Episode

You can listen to the episode on Anchor and other podcasting services here: Cryptonomics - Financially Free in 4 Years?. Or watch on YouTube below:

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Cryptonomics - principles of cryptocurrency and investing can help you learn about personal finance, the disruptive power of this emerging industry, and how it might change your life in more ways than one.
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