There is a battle being waged between two systems.

One is an unnatural and human-driven force. It clings to the way things have been and refuses to release its stranglehold on its people. It devalues its citizens’ hard-earned political currency units (thanks to Luke Broyles) and benefits a small number of people who have their ears close to the source of information.

The emerging alternate system, although originated by an individual or group of people (the pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto), runs without any small group of people making decisions. It is global, decentralized, and available to anyone on the planet. Unlike our credit-based system which is unnatural and where energy is created out of nothing, this closed thermodynamically sound system will continue to appreciate forever as the rest of the world’s financial systems are sucked into it like a black hole that engulfs all light that dares pass within its reach.

These differences demonstrate the separation of not only the facts of these systems but the incentives that are in play. There are two different mindsets that manifest themselves when we look at these two systems.

But first, let’s talk about a real-life example, demonstrating the difficulty of delaying gratification.

There was a famous study conducted by Walter Mischel in the early 1970’s where a preschool-age child was placed at a table with one marshmallow in front of them. They were given two options.

One of the main results from this study was tracking the children as they grew and comparing their life outcomes and experiences, measuring the differences between those who had learned the skill of delayed gratification and those who had not.

Overall, the children who waited for the reward of two marshmallows had surprisingly better general life outcomes.

Essentially, having a mindset of delayed gratification is a critical skill for success in life.

There is another set of terms that Bitcoiners use to apply to instant and delayed gratification.

High and Low Time Preference.

When you have a high time preference, you are concerned about the here and now. The cost-benefit analysis of delayed gratification is too costly in the individual’s mind and they are unwilling to absorb that cost. They are more inclined to make decisions that affect them in the short term, regardless of the long-term consequences.

When someone has a low time preference, they are willing to sacrifice short-term gratification for something greater in the future. If you remember, there was a reward for the children who waited to enjoy that tasty sugary morsel.

There is a problem though…

Our current monetary system is set up in a way that makes having a low-time preference incredibly difficult for the average citizen.

To achieve a low time preference, you inherently need to believe that your future will be better than your present. There needs to be a payoff for the cost of delaying gratification. That is what is missing in our financial system. People do not see an option for their future that would change their financial situation.

Our fiat money is being inflated away. Essentially this means if you were to keep dollars under your mattress for any extended amount of time, when you decided to inevitably use it for consumption, your purchasing power would be greatly reduced.

Many of us in the United States have it difficult. Never able to make ends meet, savings have been reduced to zero, having to borrow with credit cards just to get through the weeks and months. That is the reality for many families these days.

In other places in the world, the situation is more dire. Massive inflation numbers into the hundreds of percent are not uncommon in a growing number of countries. The grocery stores are crowded immediately after people receive their weekly paycheck, as they know the same groceries will cost them significantly more the longer they wait. There is no time or mental free space to worry or plan for the long term. When you have a family to feed and the capital you accrue needs to be used immediately, there is just no room for margin. No opportunity for higher levels of thinking, planning, or goal setting.

In Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, I would argue that inflationary fiat currencies have forced people into a terrible cycle at the base of the Hierarchy.

A revolving door that takes people through Physiological Needs, Safety Needs, and then drops them unceremoniously back down to the base once again.

When your entire focus and energy is geared towards your physiological needs and safety needs, your whole life revolves around these two areas. You become stuck in a proverbial loop where you have no opportunity to escape these lower bounds of the hierarchy.

It is in the areas of Esteem and Self-actualization where people become more free. They can focus on long-term goals, plan for their future, and adopt a low-time preference mindset.

Anything that is worth pursuing is not going to be easy. It will take time and determination.

The prerequisite for these pursuits is having your basic needs met. There is no shortcut to these higher levels of thinking and self-actualization. They require a low-time preference mindset. Fiat steals this from people.

When people do not have a goal that requires them to have a low time preference, they inherently do not have hope for a more prosperous future. Either, “because of my circumstances, I am unable to spend the capital or mind space to think towards the future” (which is a valid and concerning situation that fiat perpetrates), or “I am resigned to the fact that this is just my situation and I will just accept it.”

Our entire monetary system is set up for people to fail at delaying gratification. Maintaining and/or growing the money that you have already earned requires dedicated research and learning skills. You have been forced to buy assets to grow the value of your money. You can no longer put money under your mattress for a rainy day. Read HERE about the loss of purchasing power of the dollar over time.

It is a constant song and dance, trying to stay ahead of inflation. It is so hard to remove yourself from the system and view it objectively. On the surface, it feels like a losing battle, but then you are resigned to the fact that this is what everyone else has to deal with as well so what are you supposed to do?

In our monetary system, the dollar is not a store of value, so some people with the means have looked to monetize real estate as a way to stay ahead of inflation. This has been touted as a viable solution.

Bitcoin is a better solution.

Let’s briefly break that down.

When you go to the bank to get a mortgage for your home purchase, the money you receive from the bank is not someone else’s money being rehypothecated, which is commonly misunderstood.

Often times the “printing of new money” is in fact the creation of new money on a ledger in the form of a loan. So when you receive that mortgage from the bank, that is brand new information that is printed on the bank’s ledger. New money creation. And what do you get for that mortgage?

A physical property, that is exposed to the elements and wears down naturally over time as it is lived in, damaged, fixed, and damaged again. The house is not portable. You can’t pick that house up and relocate across the world. You still have to pay the mortgage and don’t forget all the costs associated with the natural wear and tear. Of course, the property taxes have to be paid, and maybe some home association dues as well.

If down the road, you do decide to sell and because of inflation your home is now worth more in “that day’s dollars.” Congrats. Except….. where are you going to move? Because there is a good chance that the new home you are going to purchase has also risen in value over time.

Bitcoin is purely digital property.

You can always build more properties, Bitcoin is finite.

Properties degrade over time. Bitcoin being a closed thermodynamically sound system will rise in value forever.

Physical property cannot be moved, Bitcoin is digital property that can be moved around the world at the speed of light with full settlement.

If you have the time, this overview of Bitcoin as a perfect digital property by MicroStrategy Founder Michael Saylor is worth the watch.

Maybe real estate isn’t for you, and you decide to buy equities because you have been told that the S&P predictably over time rises 11% per year on average since 1957.

But, when you overlay the performance of the S&P in relation to the M2 money supply (free-flowing money that can easily be converted into cash) and what do we see?

Since 1970, the S&P for all intensive purposes has broken even. The illusion of 11% percent growth is manufactured by the increase in monetary supply. Yes your assets will increase, but your real purchasing power with that money is not increasing by 11%.

Inflation is a by-product of our manipulated monetary system. This human-created manipulation is battling with the natural order which should be deflation. Advances in technology should be lowering the price of goods to their marginal cost of production.

Jeff Booth’s The Price of Tomorrow is an incredible deep dive into the natural order of things and how technology should be driving prices down. I cannot recommend his book enough.

As an apolitical, borderless, non-discriminatory technology, Bitcoin aligns everyone’s incentives, worldwide. Bitcoin is a gift to the world.

Imagine the peace of mind it would provide you for you and your family’s future as your nation’s currency is hyperinflating, and you hold the key to the most secure, fixed supply digital asset in the world in your head within those 12 to 24 words.

For those of you with a high-time preference. Those of you have resigned yourself to the fact that there is no way out of this system we are all trapped in.

You are alive during an incredible time. Bitcoin is that way out. There is an escape hatch! Grab it and take the steps to secure a more hopeful future for you and your loved ones.

My goal in writing about Bitcoin is really to document my thoughts on the vast areas of interest that Bitcoin’s light touches. I hope that by reading some of my musings, it will pique your interest and lead you to discover the truth of Bitcoin for yourself.

I am not a professional financial advisor, and you should continue to do your own research before you commit to any financial obligations.

If you are ready to “Get Off Zero” Bitcoin, please consider using this link to make your first Bitcoin purchase while also supporting my work.

Swan is a Bitcoin-only company that has stayed the course through the ebbs and flows of Bitcoin’s growth. They offer many services, but also rightfully so, advocate for self-custody.