This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
[Music]
Hey friends, welcome to a new month. It is in fact the final month of the year. This is episode 2,526. We've got a fun topic today. We're going to talk about board apes, board ape NFTs.
If that means nothing to you, stay tuned because the story is pretty good. And I want to encourage you as we began this month, a couple of episodes ago, we talked about quick wins. We had a question from a listener with an e-commerce site and she was wondering like, hey, I don't have my whole strategy together. I should have done more to be ready for this season, but what can I do now, unlimited time? And in that situation, or many situations, I think it's always smart to be like, what's my quick win?
What is the easy thing I can do that's going to achieve some significant results? And there usually is an answer to that. So think about that in your business, your side hustle, think about it in your life. As we go into this really busy season, there's all kinds of stuff going on. Just ask yourself, what do I want to accomplish or achieve?
Or how do I want to feel at the end of this season, this month, and what do I need to do to achieve that? So just focus on a quick win. I encourage you to do that. I'll be doing that myself. And of course, today's episode on side hustle school is in the segment known as failure Friday.
So it's things that don't go so well. And we might as well kick off the month by looking at an example of something that didn't work. Because I like this story here. He ends up being quite positive about it, even though he spent a lot of money on a digital work of art that is now worth a lot less money. Okay, so we'll just let Casey tell the story.
Casey from Long Island, New York, he bought a board ape, a board ape NFT non-fungible token. And well, yeah, you know how that turned out. You've heard of NFTs, or maybe you haven't, but whatever the case may be, let's hear how this one developed Casey from Long Island. I'll be back with a quick wrap up. [Music]
I remember the exact moment I decided to buy a board ape.
Those quirky digital avatars that were taking the internet by storm. It was after reading about yet another overnight millionaire story. I was swept up by the gold rush, believing I was just one purchased away from joining the ranks of the NFT elite. The NFT market was on fire and board ape yacht club was the community everyone wanted to be a part of. I did my research, or at least I thought I did, and I poured every disposable dollar into Ethereum to make my big play.
When I finally got my hands on my very own ape, I felt like I'd secured my digital status symbol. But then, almost as quickly as it had exploded, the market turned. The buzz quieted, values tumbled, and my ape, which I purchased close to the top of the market, plummeted in value. I was shell shocked. There I was, holding what I thought would be my golden ticket.
Now, just seemingly worthless. The fall was brutal. I'd invested a significant portion of my savings into what I believed was a transformative digital asset, only to watch it dissolve into a series of pixels with questionable worth. The vibrant community I'd imagined was there, but my dreams of quick financial wins through it were not. In the aftermath, I felt a mix of embarrassment and disbelief.
How could I have been swept up in the hype? But as I looked deeper, I realized that the allure wasn't just about money. It was about being part of something new and groundbreaking. I'd always been fascinated by technology and the future it promised. And that was still true, even if this one investment hadn't worked out.
This is where the turn came. Instead of wallowing, I started channeling my passion for tech into learning more about blockchain technology itself beyond the speculative frenzy. I dove into the principles of decentralization, the mechanics of smart contracts, and the burgeoning space of DeFi. That's decentralized finance. The more I learned, the more I realized that my mistake was not in embracing a new technology, but in how I'd done it without sufficient strategy or understanding of the risks.
Eventually, I began sharing my story and my newfound knowledge with others, cautioning them against making the same mistakes. My experience, as costly as it was, had given me a platform and a voice of reason in a space known for its hyperbole. Today, I'm working on an outline course that demystifies digital assets for the everyday person, teaching them how to approach these investments with a critical eye. It's fulfilling work, empowering others to navigate this new digital frontier with more wisdom than I had. As for the board ape, it still sits in my digital wallet, a reminder of a wild time and the valuable lessons learned.
My ape might never fetch the price I paid, but the journey it set me on, that's proved to be priceless. Or at least that's what I believed. [Music]
Never confuse a single defeat with a final defeat. That's the theme of Failure Friday. As we kick off a new month, I want to say a big thanks to Casey for sharing this story.
Indeed, assets go up, assets go down, but you got to keep a positive mindset. You got to think about what you want to accomplish for yourself. Maybe take a bit of a different kind of risk next time. But of course, lessons learned, you know? Lessons learned, that's what's most important.
Really appreciate the vulnerability and transparency of everybody sharing these kinds of stories. And I appreciate you, our listeners. Thank you for being out there. You're awesome. sidehustleschool.com/questions.
There's also some resources on the website. Today's note specifically, sidehustleschool.com/2526. And of course, new episode coming out tomorrow. Focus on those quick wins, okay? Think about how you can have a quick win for December.
Maybe I'll say more about that as we go. For now, my name's Chris Guillebeau. This is Side Hustle School. [Music]
From the Onward Project.
