My Bitcoin Story (console me)

[Eotnak]

I find myself wishing I had found bit coin much earlier. Other times I realize that if i had I would be posting threads like this one because I undoubtedly would have been one of those that sold at a nice profit and spent the money a long time ago. I also would have been one of those that had a lot of holdings in MT GOX. Instead I spent a lot of time reading this forum and learning from others mistakes before I bought a single satoshi. These stories make bit coin safer for newer bit coiners and I appreciate them. 

Me too.  I'm sure there are a lot more similar stories than we know.

I just need to get this off my chest…

I found out about bitcoin in 2011 by listening to the Stefan Maleneoux (f$#% spelling) Podcast. It was just after the big crash from $30 and the price was hovering around $3. My first reaction was skepticism of course but I took the time to read the Satoshi Paper and did my research and poked around on some forums and came to the conclusion that this bitcoin thing was legit, and possibly the future of money for the world.

At some point I got a bonus at work that was rather substantial so I thought I'd use that bonus money to dabble in this Bitcoin thing. I bought 500 BTC for about $1500 bucks on TradeHill. I then used some of those bitcoins to purchase some Casascius coins. I bought 10 1 BTC casascius coins and one 25 BTC Casascius coin. (all of which were the 2011 with the error) I made an offline wallet with encryption in a flash drive made 3 copies of it and bought a safe to store the coins and the flash drive in and gave the other two encrypted flash drives to two trusted people with safes as well and I was done and happy.

Some time passed and I was watching the price religiously. Almost an entire year passed and it was only hovering around about $5, and my best friend bought a motor cycle, and he needed someone to ride with, and I wanted a motorcycle. So I cracked open the safe, put in my password, and since TradeHill was out of business created an account on MtGox and sold all of my coins in my wallet at $6 a piece, and I went and bought a motorcycle for $3000. (which I still have, Ninja 250r)

A while later I moved out of state and the price of bitcoin was around $200, I was so sick with myself for what I had done that I was kind of delirious and so as a going away gift I gave all 10 of my 1 BTC Casascius coins to the 10 closest people to me in my life. And so I was left with only the 25 BTC casascius coin.

I owned 500 BTC and 11 of the most valuable collectable items that will ever exist, and I was left with just the one 25 coin. It is safe to say I will never own 500 BTC ever again in my life for as long as live.

AFter the climb to $1200 and crash, and with a new job, I started buying again. I have not even recovered the 10 BTC I gave away yet but it's cool. The experience taught me a valuable lesson. Don't underestimate Bitcoin and what it can do. In the moment it seems silly to invest so much in what seems like such a crazy dream, but do it anyway. And I also learned the secret investment strategy for Bitcoin which is this: Buy low, Buy high, and keep buying and buying and buying. Just keep converting worthless fiat into Bitcoin at every step of the game, ignore the price, and convert fiat into bitcoin at a steady and consistent rate. Never sell. Never convert bitcoin into fiat, it is always a bad move in all circumstances, especially considering you can buy anything you need with bitcoin now.

Sometimes when I think about it, or I do the math in my head, I feel like I just got kicked in the stomach and I need to throw up. But I keep buying more bitcoin every check I get, and I won't stop until I'm getting paid in Bitcoin directly. Hopefully my story is interesting to you. Cheers.

That's called learning from your mistakes.  2 of the 3 biggest threats to your investing strategy (whatever it may be) are fear and greed.  In this case, greed got you.  Don't let it happen again, stick to your plan.

I learned how to tackle fear and greed, but in Bitcoin, I got nailed by #1.  Misinformation/little research.  If I just bought BTC instead of throwing it away to Butterfly Labs.  I would be doing much much better today.

Hey, don't worry about it. Bitcoin will crash back down to $1 eventually and you can buy back those 500 coins and get ready for the next jump to $1000.

99% would not do that. thats the reason why he sold his 500BTC. most people are not patient enough.

when bitcoin drops 30%, they sell.

if they see Bitcoin as nothing more than part of their portfolio, then that's a smart move.  Even smarter is to sell at 10% drop.

[jbrnt]

Don't look back OP, look forward. He peak/plateau is yet to come. Everyone here wished they had bought more when they had the chance. We cannot change the past, seize the opportunity now and don't loose sight this time round.

[yayayo]

If you still can enjoy ridin' your motorcycle then fine.

25 Bitcoin is still a whole cake. So to say I'd be very happy to own your Casascius piece...

Look forward and if another person tries to convince you to spend your coins... HODL...

ya.ya.yo!

[BitProdigy]

With all due respect, why would anyone want to take YOUR advise?  By your own admission you failed as an investor.  Wouldn't we be better off listening to someone who was actually successful?

I wouldn't say i "failed as an investor", I just missed a huge opportunity. I doubled my investment when I cashed out and the Casascius coins are worth many times the bitcoins they hold. I didn't lose anything, I gained more than double what I invested, I just could have gained much much more. I wouldn't say I "failed" unless I had lost money. My advise is based on 20/20 hindsight and it is this:

Buy low, buy high, never sell. Always convert fiat into Bitcoin, and never the other way around. If you must use your Bitcoin holdings, then purchase what you need with those Bitcoins, don't convert them back into fiat to make your purchases.

That is my advice, take it or leave it.

[allthingsluxury]

Unfortunately you are not alone in this story, there are very many with similar outcomes. It  is unfortunate, but don't give up. Life has a way of surprising you if you stick to your guns and do the right thing. BTC is here to stay.

[Timmmaahh]

I just need to get this off my chest…

I found out about bitcoin in 2011 by listening to the Stefan Maleneoux (f$#% spelling) Podcast. It was just after the big crash from $30 and the price was hovering around $3. My first reaction was skepticism of course but I took the time to read the Satoshi Paper and did my research and poked around on some forums and came to the conclusion that this bitcoin thing was legit, and possibly the future of money for the world.

At some point I got a bonus at work that was rather substantial so I thought I'd use that bonus money to dabble in this Bitcoin thing. I bought 500 BTC for about $1500 bucks on TradeHill. I then used some of those bitcoins to purchase some Casascius coins. I bought 10 1 BTC casascius coins and one 25 BTC Casascius coin. (all of which were the 2011 with the error) I made an offline wallet with encryption in a flash drive made 3 copies of it and bought a safe to store the coins and the flash drive in and gave the other two encrypted flash drives to two trusted people with safes as well and I was done and happy.

Some time passed and I was watching the price religiously. Almost an entire year passed and it was only hovering around about $5, and my best friend bought a motor cycle, and he needed someone to ride with, and I wanted a motorcycle. So I cracked open the safe, put in my password, and since TradeHill was out of business created an account on MtGox and sold all of my coins in my wallet at $6 a piece, and I went and bought a motorcycle for $3000. (which I still have, Ninja 250r)

A while later I moved out of state and the price of bitcoin was around $200, I was so sick with myself for what I had done that I was kind of delirious and so as a going away gift I gave all 10 of my 1 BTC Casascius coins to the 10 closest people to me in my life. And so I was left with only the 25 BTC casascius coin.

I owned 500 BTC and 11 of the most valuable collectable items that will ever exist, and I was left with just the one 25 coin. It is safe to say I will never own 500 BTC ever again in my life for as long as live.

AFter the climb to $1200 and crash, and with a new job, I started buying again. I have not even recovered the 10 BTC I gave away yet but it's cool. The experience taught me a valuable lesson. Don't underestimate Bitcoin and what it can do. In the moment it seems silly to invest so much in what seems like such a crazy dream, but do it anyway. And I also learned the secret investment strategy for Bitcoin which is this: Buy low, Buy high, and keep buying and buying and buying. Just keep converting worthless fiat into Bitcoin at every step of the game, ignore the price, and convert fiat into bitcoin at a steady and consistent rate. Never sell. Never convert bitcoin into fiat, it is always a bad move in all circumstances, especially considering you can buy anything you need with bitcoin now.

Sometimes when I think about it, or I do the math in my head, I feel like I just got kicked in the stomach and I need to throw up. But I keep buying more bitcoin every check I get, and I won't stop until I'm getting paid in Bitcoin directly. Hopefully my story is interesting to you. Cheers.

Well mate.. you did a good job, you made 100% out of your investment which is pretty good... surely it could be much more comparing to the chart... but it could also made the other way round to a 100% loss..

;-)

[Bit_Happy]

Unfortunately you are not alone in this story, there are very many with similar outcomes. It  is unfortunate, but don't give up. Life has a way of surprising you if you stick to your guns and do the right thing. BTC is here to stay.

Some cliches have value because they contain wisdom, and here is one:
You cannot change the past, but you can create a better future.

[dennydotco]

I had spent a lot of time worrying about when to sell or if I would. When I finally sat down and read rpietila's "(SSS) - A Sane and Simple bitcoin Savings plan plan" thread (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=345065.0) I felt like I could move forward confidently.

With a plan like that I feel like I can reward myself with smaller rewards along the way, and still experience exponential growth through the end.

[Ektra]

If bitcoin meets the expectations of a lot of people in this community (>>100K usd/the end of fiat/crypto ruling the world) you will still be considered a rich jammy bastard early adopter. Really, how rich do you need to be? Just stick with it this time.

[beetcoin]

damn, it seems like some bitcoiners will proect it with their lives.

[Joe_Bauers]

The only way that 99.999% of people who were involved in Bitcoin back then, still have all of their BTC's is if they were (luckily) in a coma since then    

It's moronic to buy something at $1 and not sell at least SOME at $10. Unless of course you wait till $1000!

I was involved in Bitcoin in early 2011, and while I wanted to buy many thousands of them, there was no reliable way to do so back then. I would have definitely sold some along the way, but would have at least 25% of them now.

So, if we're looking for a charity case, I say boo hoo to the OP, send some to me instead

[mike25]

Just one word: Tragedy!!

But then do remember, the loss you feel is all in hindsight. If Bitcoin was to be outlawed earlier on and had gone to $0.05, you would have been in a greater mourning.

Going forward, I guess, Bitcoin will work exactly like a Bluechip Stock on Stock Market. Presently very few retail investors are aware of Bitcoin, once they get on the bandwagon, BTC will skyrocket.

In my opinion, it's still quite cheap to lap it up. So, there, Cheers!

[pirsquared]

In the early days of any new tech, scammers and thieves will abound. I'm almost done with all exchanges and am looking to circumvent this type of thing happening in the future. The immediate future will involve p2p with escrow. The longer term will entail very regulated businesses (in the US).

I'm sorry for your loss. The best thing you can do is learn from this. Ask yourself what attitudes you had at the time that facilitated your actions that led to your loss. Recognize these attitudes in the future and act accordingly. It may work out that your decision making was not flawed and the mistake could not have been avoided. Proceed with new knowledge and without fear.

[keithers]

It sucks that you could have made so much more money, but if you look at it from a strictly numbers perspective...You bought at $3, and then sold at $5...which is still around 67% profit. That is huge profit for an investment, when you are lucky to get 10% on most successful investments.

[QuestionAuthority]

Hey, don't worry about it. Bitcoin will crash back down to $1 eventually and you can buy back those 500 coins and get ready for the next jump to $1000.

99% would not do that. thats the reason why he sold his 500BTC. most people are not patient enough.

when bitcoin drops 30%, they sell.

Yeah, I know. Bitcoin will never be $1 again. I was just trying to make him feel better.

[ajareselde]

It sucks that you could have made so much more money, but if you look at it from a strictly numbers perspective...You bought at $3, and then sold at $5...which is still around 67% profit. That is huge profit for an investment, when you are lucky to get 10% on most successful investments.

It sure does, but hes not the only one, there are great number of us that went the same path.
Most i had is about 400 btc, and 24 600 LTC, sad thing is that i sold everything for so low that its not worth mentioning.
Never going to do the same mistake, but also wont gamble too much.
Maybe it helps hearing that you are not the only one.

[Ilsk]

Anyway you have made a good investment buying at 3 and selling at 6, for most people 100% it's just a dream.

[dserrano5]

I used to have 200 BTC. Unfortunately I was hit by a car and spent some months on a medical leave, with a reduced income, which forced me to sell a bunch at $5. At least I can say that I had to sell, not that I did it willingly.

[A Bit at a Time]

I'm a retired engineer and recently found out about bitcoins.

I think this is the exchange currency of the future and have invested a small sum to acquire just under 20 BTC.

It's a start.  I can see huge advantages using this as travelling currency, no exchange rates, no coins in your pockets, can't get stolen.

We just need to get more acceptance by the tourist industry.

Hope to use BTC on my next trip.



 

[BitProdigy]

I'm a retired engineer and recently found out about bitcoins.

I think this is the exchange currency of the future and have invested a small sum to acquire just under 20 BTC.

It's a start.  I can see huge advantages using this as travelling currency, no exchange rates, no coins in your pockets, can't get stolen.

We just need to get more acceptance by the tourist industry.

Hope to use BTC on my next trip.

Expedia!! Welcome to the Bitcoin community. It's fairly probable that it will not only be the exchange currency of the future, but THE currency of the future. One day you will tell the story of when you bought 20 BTC back when the going rate was a meager $600 just I am telling the story of buying bitcoin when it was meager $3. $3 didn't seem meager then, just as $600 doesn't seem meager now, but the day you trade $600 for 0.1 BTC you'll remember the good ol' days that is now our present. Welcome aboard the gravy train! And happy travels!