What I’d Tell My 2020 Self About Crypto (And Why I Still Believe)

Hey WA fam 👋

This one’s personal.

I’ve been reflecting on my crypto journey — the highs, the heartbreaks, and the wild what-ifs. If I could sit down with myself back in 2020, right at the edge of the bull run, I’d have a few things to say. Not just about missed opportunities… but about wisdom earned the hard way.

Let’s go back.

🚀 DOGE — The One That Got Away

In 2018, I bought 150,000 DOGE. It was dirt cheap and honestly just felt like a fun token to hold. But after two years of doing absolutely nothing, I sold it for around $300.

I’d read that they could mint DOGE at will, so I moved it into Bitcoin, thinking I was being smart.
Fast-forward to 2021… and yeah, that DOGE could’ve changed our lives.

Would I have known? No.
But man, I wish I had held.

🧠 What I’d Tell Myself Now:

Just because a token is cheap or quiet doesn’t mean it’s worthless. Some of the loudest coins today were practically invisible before they exploded.

I sold DOGE because of what I thought I understood. But partial knowledge is dangerous. Before making a big move, take time to study: tokenomics, community, real-world use.

This one’s hard. When life gets tight, it's tempting to tap into your portfolio. But I learned the hard way:

If you sell your future to survive the present, it’ll cost you double later.

Do whatever you can to separate long-term holdings from daily expenses.

💥 The Other Misses

It wasn’t just DOGE.
I also missed out on BNB and ETH in their early days. I bought early, but never held long enough. Sold small, made some wins… but nothing compared to what could’ve been.

⚠️ And Then Came the Scams

I got hit hard.

• Connected my wallet to a shady site. Didn’t change the spend limit. Drained.
• Got involved in MTI — thankfully got out, but saw too many others lose everything.
• Fell for the hype a few times. If it sounded too good to be true… it was.

🧯 What I’d Tell My 2020 Self About Scams:

• If it’s urgent, it’s suspect. Real projects don’t pressure you.
• Don’t connect your wallet to anything you haven’t researched.
• Avoid leverage like the plague. If you’re not 100% fine losing everything in a single trade, you shouldn’t be touching leverage at all.

🧱 The Long Game: Stay In the Water

Crypto is brutal. It’ll test your faith, your patience, and your wallet.

But here’s what I’ve learned:

You don’t win because you time it perfectly.
You win because you stayed in the game long enough to catch the wave.

It’s not about luck — it’s about longevity.

✅ Final Lessons I’ll Keep With Me:

• Take profits slowly — don’t go all-in or all-out.
• Don’t chase every pump.
• Learn the difference between hype and substance.
• Don’t sell your best assets in a bear market. Stack, save, and wait.
• If you get gains too quickly, they usually disappear just as fast.

🙌 Why I Still Believe

I’ve seen the dark side of crypto — and I’m still here.
Because the tech matters. The mission matters. The freedom matters.

And because I know now:

Wealth isn’t built overnight. It’s built over cycles.
With patience, discernment, and a few scars, we get stronger.

Thanks for reading, WA friends. If you’ve had your own “I should’ve held” moments or hard lessons from the crypto wild west — I’d love to hear them.

Let’s build smarter. Let’s rise steady.
The next wave is coming.

– Jared 🚀