• Konstantin Rabin is a finance and technology writer who learned about Bitcoin more than a decade ago.
• He was interested in it but didn’t invest due to his financial situation at that time.
• After hearing about it from a colleague, he eventually gave in and became a HODLer.

Introduction

This is an opinion editorial by Konstantin Rabin, a finance and technology writer.I am one of those who was fortunate enough to find out about Bitcoin more than a decade ago before it gained mainstream attention. Sadly, I am also one of the morons who saw this opportunity, didn’t think too much of it at first and let it fly by. In this little story, I’d like to share the path that led me to pass on investing in bitcoin three different times before eventually giving in and becoming a HODLer. So, here are the key lessons I learned along this journey that are worth sharing with anyone who is still doubting BTC.

The Inception

Given that I started my first full-time job in an online brokerage back in 2011, it should come as no surprise that I had a bunch of colleagues who were really into trading and super passionate about everything related to investments, technology and the progress of the financial world. It wasn’t long before I made a friend named Edgar. We shared some interests, predominantly gaming and our long-standing nicotine addictions. Even though we worked in different departments and rarely had to collaborate for our jobs, we would still ping each other whenever it was time to head out and smoke a ciggy, gleefully chatting about life, the universe and everything else, as we dosed on nicotine and fresh air. One day, sometime during 2012, I popped through one of these “smoke?” messages to Edgar when I noticed that his Skype status was some sort of gibberish that looked like a cat had been walking over his keyboard. It looked something like this: “1BvBMSEYstWetqTFn5Au4m4GFg7xJaNVN2.” During our smoke session, I asked him what happened – was it a cat or did his account get hacked? He denied both possibilities then went into an explanation about Bitcoin addresses and blockchains which sparked my interest on the topic even more due to being aware of many online scams at surface level but believing this seemed better than them all put together..

Financial Constraints

My biggest problem however was that 2012 was my worst year financially speaking so investing wasn’t much an option; however 3 million public keys already existed on Bitcoin’s network so its longevity suggested something legitimate behind all this hype… While intrigued by the idea there wasn’t much room left for risk taking so unfortunately decided not invest anything just yet…

Realization That Time Is Running Out

Skip forward 3 years later (2015) when suddenly became aware how much potential there is within cryptocurrencies after seeing market cap sky rocketing way beyond what initially thought possible…. This time around finances weren’t nearly as bad therefore decided take chance & invest small amount… Unfortunately again procrastinated too long & once finally got round doing research found out prices have gone up significantly since heard from colleague making investment less attractive… Thought myself ‘this won’t happen third time around’ & promised take action next opportunity arises….

Decision To Invest

Fast forward another year later (2016) when saw bitcoin mentioned numerous times within media outlets such BBC & CNBC … Prices had gone up even further & realised if don’t act soon might miss boat completely… Through various resources gathered basic knowledge regarding blockchain & cryptocurrency fundamentals plus researched how buy bitcoins safely…. After having done due diligence invested small portion my wealth & become proud owner 0f few bitcoins!

Conclusion

Despite missing investment opportunities multiple times eventually took leap faith & bought bitcoins successfully… Moral story here be patient with yourself because you never know when right moment gonna arrive – always stay informed & vigilant so don’t miss your chance cash big!