Welcome everyone, this is an entirely different type of post to my usual content but I think it's extremely important especially in this turbulent (though hopefully now improving?) market of ours. Initially intended for the Bitcointalk forum but I thought it would be as easy to share with my Steemit family also.
Specifically, this is a response to address the overwhelmingly negative sentiment by many in our community- especially from those who entered the space at its height. The amount of 'Bitcoin's dead' or 'the bubble's burst' posts I've seen is disappointing. In this market, especially if you plan to HODL, it is extremely important to keep a broad perspective and long-term mindset. Basing your overall perspective of Bitcoin/ crypto solely on the limited snapshot that you personally have been in the market is a close-minded mistake.
The story of Bitcoin (and by extension the crypto market and blockchain technology) is by this point close to a 10-year journey, filled with highs and lows, which ultimately began from absolutely ZERO. Even after its unprecedented 10-year progression, the market cap of Bitcoin itself is still MINISCULE relative to other assets or stores of wealth.
I saw a few infographics a while ago which really helped me to contextualise and understand the market much better, but I haven't seen an updated one made in the last couple of years so I decided to make these two to help people get a more rounded perspective on the space.
Note: This was created a few days ago, and it has since been reported by Forbes that Jeff Bezos' worth has hit a whopping $151 Billion. Now Bezos on his own is worth more than the entire Bitcoin market. Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/kathleenchaykowski/2018/07/17/jeff-bezos-net-worth-hits-record-151-billion-after-strong-amazon-prime-day/#10cbc3b02e80
Note: This is merely a snapshot of Bitcoin's rich history of course. Please zoom in or right click and 'View Image' to see it full sized.
Ground-breaking technology does not get developed or adopted overnight. This specific moment in Bitcoin's path is temporary; it's important to keep Bitcoin's overall journey and direction in mind.
I hope to have shown that Bitcoin has a rich and solid history, which has already shown incredible growth and progression- and more importantly that it is strong enough to be immune to any amount negative cycles of news and/ or sentiment.
Bitcoin, blockchain and cryptocurrencies are without doubt bringing about the next technological revolution; let's not let a relatively small period of price decline let us forget that.
Just my two Satoshis.
Crypto Spartan