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It’s that time again — time to sit around the Thanksgiving table and catch up with loved ones while you have Bitcoin on the mind thanks to its recent price action.
Some see this time as an opportunity to convince said loved ones that they should get on the Bitcoin rocket ship because it’s headed towards the moon.
My humble advice: Don’t be that person.
As you’ve probably learned if you’ve been in the Bitcoin space for some time now, bitcoin’s volatility can be quite unsettling, and, therefore, it isn’t for everyone. In other words, convincing sweet Auntie Jane to ape into bitcoin probably isn’t going to end well.
While you may have personally benefitted from holding bitcoin for some period of time, it doesn’t mean others will have the same experience. Without some understanding of bitcoin’s cycles, most will panic sell when bitcoin’s price inevitably drops again.
With that said, if Uncle Bob asks you about Bitcoin because he's heard that its price has gone up recently and he knows that you’re familiar with it, you can still point him in the right direction as far as onboarding resources (a far better strategy than becoming his personal Bitcoin advisor).
Below are some examples of such resources:
- Simple Bitcoin — This Bitcoin education app presents you with information on Bitcoin via digestible learning modules, and it rewards you with sats when you get a passing grade on the post-module quizzes. Uncle Bob will be grateful that you made learning Bitcoin so easy for him.
- Yzer — Yzer, another Bitcoin education app, goes much deeper into the technology and economic philosophy that underpins Bitcoin. Its curriculum is more extensive than Simple Bitcoin’s, but it also rewards you with sats for completing quizzes with passing scores the same way Simple Bitcoin does. Nerdy Cousin Linda will be pumped to learn who Friedrich Hayek and Ludwig Von Mises were thanks to this app.
- THNDR Games — With THNDR, you can earn bitcoin just for playing games. Whether it’s Solitaire, Snake or Tetro Tiles (a play on Sodoku), THNDR can help Auntie Katrina stack sats for doing little more than playing video games on her phone. Plus, THNDR teaches her how to use a Lightning wallet.
- Gemini Credit Card — If you have a family member that’s into credit card rewards, tell them that with the Gemini rewards card they can earn bitcoin for everyday purchases, including 4% back on EV charging and gas at the pump, 3% back on dining out and 2% back on groceries. The kicker here is that there’s no membership free. This is great for cheap Uncle Bruce who showed up to Thanksgiving dinner empty-handed yet again this year.
- Fold — Fold offers you a checking account through which you can make your monthly payments and earn bitcoin rewards in the process. Imagine doing nothing more than paying your electric bill and earning some bitcoin in the process. Fold’s annual membership fee is $100, or users can pay $10 per month to use the service. Sign up now and get three months free. Great for Black-Friday-deal-searching Aunt Crystal.
So, best of luck tomorrow, and remember to think twice before launching into philosophical diatribe on how Bitcoin is going to change the world or offering some ill-suited bitcoin-related financial advice based on little more than tidbits of information you’ve picked up while scrolling X.
Your family and loved ones likely don’t care about your magic internet money. If they do ask about it, they probably only care about using bitcoin to speculate so to get more U.S. dollars.
If your intentions are to get them to understand Bitcoin better and to slowly accumulate some without having to spend their hard-earned money on it, suggest the resources above and trust that some will find their way down the rabbit hole on their own.
Happy Thanksgiving!
This article is a Take. Opinions expressed are entirely the author's and do not necessarily reflect those of BTC Inc or Bitcoin Magazine.