A couple of weeks ago I saw a post on X, that made me smile. It wasn't funny, on the contrary, it was a very serious one. The poster said:
Never take financial advice from broke people.
It's common sense if you think of it, no need to have an exceptionally high IQ to realize this is very true, and yet so many don't get it.
As I mentioned previously, I'm spending time on X every day, as that's the most commonly used platform by traders and also, to get the news. Now that I'm back to fully focusing on trading, I started sharing TA on assets that I'm interested in and am trading. These are not calls and it says in my profile: "Sharing my view and understanding of the markets. Not financial advice.", but even so, I'm getting questions all the time, like where do we buy, what do you think the ATH of the asset will be and so on.
This is a brutal world for many reasons and even though trading has been here for ages, available for anyone for years, if not decades, there are still so many willing to risk their little, hard earned money on what others say. I'm always careful with my words and never make any predictions as this is a game of probability, never certainty and no one knows what's going to happen.
X is not the only platform where you see this thing. I've spent more than seven years on Hive, have seen a lot and can tell you, we have both categories here, those who can't live without constantly preaching and looking down on everyone thinking they are the smartest of all and those who are stupid enough to fall for this.
It's mind blowing how some people are playing the same record for years, criticizing everyone and everything, giving the impression they know everything better than anyone else, yet they are at the same level they were 7 years ago. Why? Because they are walking the same path and expecting different outcome. It's a cliche, but it is true.
Different Culture, Different Mindset
Back in the day, when Musing was still a thing, I remember there was a guy from an African country (don't want to name it), who was lecturing everyone all day every day. No matter what the question or the answer was, he came in and lectured the poster we have to do this and that style. When he did that on my posts, I tried to tell him *we don't have to do anything, I do what I think it's right and not what you tell me". Then I asked him why does he feel the need to lecture everyone? He told me he was a community leader and his role was to teach people. Obviously he was a community leader in his small, God forsaken village and thought his role is valid globally. I was sorry to disappoint him (not really), but someone had to tell him the world doesn't work that way.
What I'm trying to say here is, people from some cultures get brainwashed from a very young age, they are raised to listen to older community members, because they say they know best. You are basically raised to not think, but blindly obey others. This is the worst thing you can do to children, as it kills any individual thinking and creativity as well. This is why evolution in these cultures is slow at best, or non existent. Some cultures are even going backwards.
They then march into the real world, full of slogans and reality slaps them in the face as they realize the world doesn't work like that, and that they were sold lies.
Best Herd Ever
We live in a digital era and a good part of the world is participating in the advanced financial world, individually. This means middleman eliminated and all the attribution banks or financial institutions have been handling so far are taken over by the user. You do your banking, manage your investments, insurance, pension fund and so on. This means a huge step towards freedom, in a certain way of course, because centralization is not eliminated yet, but it means a huge responsibility as well and requires a high level of knowledge.
I said a good part of the world, because the other part is still decades behind normality, some even centuries behind. Yes, sounds brutal, but having a debit card alone doesn't mean you're managing your finances, it means only that you have the opportunity to pay with digital currency.
Those with very limited knowledge and raised to listen to others are the best candidates to be manipulated. Lack of knowledge creates insecurity and in such a case anyone who looks like knowing more than you, may seem like a smart person. This is what the so called influecers are using to manipulate the masses and succeeding too. Sometimes who has the biggest mouth seems the smartest, especially to those who don't know anything about the matter.
Painful Wake-Up Call
The road to financial freedom is paved with hard work, sacrifices, attempts, failures and occasional losses. There are no shortcuts. It's 2025 and the more knowledgeable you are, the better your chances to have a better life. Those who understand this will have an easier road, the rest most likely is going to pay a higher price, unfortunately, and start from scratch several times.
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