Okay, this whole bitcoin crypto thing has got out of control. I’m completely sick of it.

Yes, there’s a need for blockchain and some sort of virtual currency, but until someone cracks the code and comes up with something that is scalable, secure, easy to use and performs some value-creating function, I’m telling you to run for the hills like the Wizard of Oz and not take your bitcoin with you!

This is what is making me dump all of my bitcoin:

Every day there is a new crypto.

First, it was bitcoin. Then it was Ethereum. Then it was NEO. That last one made me think I was in the Matrix. Geez, it’s now become like the stock market; there are so many options and so simply following the next new company will not work. You actually have to do research, and that requires passion.

People are coming up to me in the lobby with ICO pitches.

This bloke at work who’s in IT came up to me several times in the last week whispering things in my ear. It was like some secret society that was going to make us all rich.

He said to me: “My brother who is also in IT told me this ICO (Initial Coin offering) is the next big thing. You should buy some.”

When the IT guy and all of his mates started telling me to buy, I knew it was time to exit from bitcoin.

It feels like the dot com bubble all over again.

I’m ancient enough to have been around (all be it a kid) when the dot com bubble burst. I can remember everyone betting like crazy on companies that were making no money. Everything at the time defied logic. No one knew why and people would say “Just trust me, it’s the future!”

I’m hearing these same sentences again. You shouldn’t trust anyone with your money. Know what you’re buying and do the research. If it doesn’t make any sense, then revert to something you do understand.

“This bitcoin party doesn’t make sense. Time to take off the party hat and be smart”

Bitcoin doesn’t really perform any valuable function.

It’s not like anyone uses bitcoin to perform any valuable business function. The price rise has been driven by speculation. Speculation is a great way to lose money – if you like that sort of thing then go for it, otherwise, wise up my friend!

If you’re regularly buying, you’re gambling, not investing.

There’s heaps of day trading going on with all of these cryptos including bitcoin. This is not a good sign. Day trading is for people who know their stuff. Even in the long term, most day traders don’t win so you’re better off investing for the long run.

Day trading with no experience = gambling.

Don’t be stupid. Your life is not a casino and neither is your financial future.

What goes up, must come down Freddy.

People keep telling me bitcoin will go up forever. The truth is what goes up, must come down Freddy. Nothing goes up forever and that’s perfectly fine. What’s fuelling bitcoin is greed, not logic. It will come down. Trust me.

It goes against all investment philosophy.

Bitcoin and crypto go against every bit of investment philosophy for the last 100 years.

“Either the philosophy of investing and making a return is wrong, or bitcoin is pulling the wool over our eyes, and leading us down a dark and unknown path that leads to Jack The Rippers Basement”

It’s the same as buying a stock.

Price goes up; price goes down. Price is high today and price can be low tomorrow.

What’s new again about the bitcoin price going into the thousands?

It’s taken me away from my goals (using up valuable headspace).

The time I spend thinking about bitcoin takes up space in my mind that could be used for creative endeavors or things that give me purpose in life.

“My goals are more important than bitcoin. Life is more important than bitcoin”

Spam emails selling crypto trading advice.

Yes, that’s right. You can buy and sell bitcoin and never have to work a day in your life again. Seriously, who believes these stupid emails?

The moment you see lots of this type of spam is the moment to run. It’s starting to remind me of that stock people bought called Enron all over again.

I don’t know enough about how it works.

Good investment theory teaches you that if you don’t know enough about an asset, then you shouldn’t buy it, or hold onto it. That’s why I’m running a million miles from bitcoin.

So if you’re like me and don’t know enough, what do you buy then? Simple, if you don’t know squat then buy index funds. I personally like Vanguards Index funds and I spread the risk across multiple markets like the USA, Australia and the UK.

Index funds in layman’s terms are a low-cost way to buy entire countries top companies. Instead of picking stocks, you buy the 100 largest companies in that country as an example. That way growth is much simpler and you get to own companies rather than thin air like bitcoin.

That’s a much better strategy than buying something you don’t know jack about.

Index funds are zero maintenance.

Checking the price of bitcoin is addictive. Index funds don’t make me do this and that’s why I’m going back to them. Index funds are where the greats like Warren Buffet and Tony Robbins put a lot of their money. They’ve been proven over many decades, so there’s no guessing involved.

That’s why you should consider index funds instead of bitcoin. The whole maintenance side of bitcoin and the mental anxiety it gives you is not worth it.

Read these books instead.

These books taught me never to be short-term with investing, diversify my risk and ignore people’s investing opinions. Base what you invest in on the fundamentals of the asset. You can’t beat 100 years of investment history and the fact that the stock market is way better than bitcoin.

Here are the books that will teach you this:

1. Tony Robbins – Money Master The Game
2. Robert Kiyosaki – Rich Dad Poor Dad
3. Peter Lynch – One Up On Wall Street
4. Peter Lynch – Beating The Street
5. Benjamin Graham – The Intelligent Investor
6. Anything written by Warren Buffett

Cashing out is how you make money.

If you never sell, then you never actualize the profit you’ve made. Now is a good time to sell bitcoin with the price high, and a potential crash coming – it’s inevitable.

What’s all of this money going to do for you anyway?

That’s the question you need to ask. So what if bitcoin went up 1000%. Is all this extra money you’ve made really the key to life? If you gambled your way to this newfound wealth, you’ll gamble your way out of it too.

If you adopted a greedy mindset so far with bitcoin, you’ll use your profits for greedy, selfish endeavors too. Is that what we really want for the human race?

Well, I certainly don’t. That’s why I’m out. No more of this craziness, fuelled by greed.

In closing, I’m telling you to pump and dump.

That is: Pump your fist in the air and scream with joy, and dump all of your bitcoins and crypto in the sewer, and let the vermin waiting at the bottom buy them from you. It’s the best decision you’ll ever make. Then, with your profit, go invest in something real.

Like, say a company that’s selling products and services that create real-world value maybe? Until this whole thing matures, run for the hills.

Here is your new investing mantra. Repeat after me:

No cryptocurrency will define me!
I will not break the basics of investing that have worked for the last hundred plus years!
I will remain mentally strong and avoid the hype that this new crypto world has bought!

I use logic not chance.
I invest, I don’t gamble.

Who am I? I am an intelligent investor.

That’s enough from me. I’m out.

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