I first heard about Bitcoin around 2016, but I wasn't paying much attention; all I remember was you can propose in blockchain, which is quite romantic - I was in my early 20s and still learning how the matrix works.

A Little Background About Me

I quit my "fancy" but soul-crushing financial consulting job in 2018 and left where I was born, adventuring to see what the real world could offer.

After going through many restrictions in a communist country, I thought the Western world have more individual freedom. However, during my exploration, I discovered that other countries also have their own set of rules, so part of me still keep searching for more freedom in this increasingly unfree world.

One of the coolest things I learned is that diversifying your life in different countries can bypass many restrictions and minimize nation-states' interference. ( wait, this was me before finding out about natural law.) I even helped others to solve their banking problems by banking in other countries, which led me to realize that banks are also part of the system—it is not solving the real problem.

Ran into Crypto Scams in 2022

I started to run an Umbrel node in 2021, and I knew the basics about Bitcoin, but unfortunately, I didn't dig deeper; I got distracted by the crypto hype. It was quite fun at first, but then I realized:

1. It's not Solving My Problems

As a content creator, I thought NFT could be a useful tool to replace the current apps; I even gifted an NFT to my existing audience, which helped me understand this isn't a sustainable way to grow long-term but a model for dump and pump.

For anyone truly passionate about sharing, all you want is to focus on learning and creating, NOT wasting time on tokens.

2. There Isn't any Privacy

I started to wake up when they arrested the Tornado cash dev in the Netherlands, because of no privacy = no freedom.

3. Full of Noise and Ego-driven Actors

I found that many so-called Web3 builders are inexperienced yet acting like a know-it-all, maybe this is only an ego game for many folks.

To conclude, the so-called crypto thing isn't solving my problem but keeps draining time and energy, so I gradually stay away from all the crypto, web 3.0, and metaverse.

Lurking around Bitcoin Maxis

I refocused on Bitcoin and started to check out the so-called toxic maxis to see how toxic they are 👀  But surprisingly, I found myself reading not only great content about Bitcoin but also health, privacy, and many topics I genuinely care about, and I really enjoy it! I feel like I stumbled across a hidden treasure - so many people are willing to share their first-hand experience and knowledge, isn't this exactly what the internet is for?

I then started to write content to share what I have learned and even built a site ( BTCis.fun ) to test out the fun tools - as you learn more by sharing.

More Time to Focus on Myself

Now that I stopped caring about all the shitcoin projects, I got more time for myself, which means more time to learn what I am curious about instead of wasting time on all the current things.

Actually, all I want is to be left alone and live my life instead of dealing with constant harassment, and I knew I had already found the tool I needed: Bitcoin - having 12 words in my head that no one can touch is so liberating!

Here is what happened afterwards:

1. I am Staying Away from Big Cities.

I started to read many books about health last year, and to my understanding, all illnesses come from the mind; Being a peaceful and positive person is a good way to avoid getting sick.

And polluted air is one of the most ignored factors to cause health issues, so I moved to a small town closer to nature. Now, I am grateful to be surrounded by kind people, real food, flowers, and singing birds.

2. I am Living a more Organic Life.

I threw out all the chemical household products and stopped using Fiat skincare, and guess what? My skin couldn't get any better. And I eat organic food only, directly purchased from local farmers.

I also started to ditch phones and work on my laptop only. Recently, I have been experimenting with going out without phones, which made me wonder why we all voluntarily carry a tracker 24/7?

3. Bitcoin is Changing my Spending Habits.

Since most of my money is stored in Bitcoin, I don't want to waste my precious Bitcoin on stupid things anymore, so I buy necessary things only.

I realized that the best products come from craftsmen, not some fancy marketing brands, so I started to find quiet masters. I even took some courses to learn some crafts; the feeling of making beautiful products with bare hands from raw materials is indescribable.

My Biggest Takeaways

1. We are Born Free.

I learned about Flag Theory when I was nomading around, which lays out some formulas for being free. I followed it and did some trial and error, but it turned out that flag theory does only great in theory and comes with its problems.

But as I kept digging, I realized that we are actually born free and do not need anything but the TRUTH.

2. Real Freedom Comes from Self-responsibility.

Democracy or communism are essentially the same; if you truly want freedom, you want to be left alone and deal with things yourself, which includes consequences for bad decisions.

But freedom is not the end goal; the real goal is to have free time and mind to explore our potentialities, and Bitcoin enables us to do that.

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I thought I'd use a new pseudonym to share these, but all my past experiences convinced me more about Bitcoin.

Bitcoin changed me a lot, but whom I met during the journey of learning Bitcoin changed me the most. I hope my story can encourage more people to share and learn.