“On the day I made my first million, I just felt panic.”
You probably haven’t heard of Erica Stanford, but she’s a bitcoin millionaire. And I find her story fascinating. See, Stanford only started investing in cryptocurrencies last year.
She first put about $2,600 into the market, just to test the waters. And in a few months, she had $39,000 … about a 1,400% gain.
It’s not an incredibly rare story. You’ve likely heard about the absurd, sky-high gains made in 2017 during the crypto market’s massive end-of year rally.
But I admit, I assumed it was the experts … the people with their ears to the ground, their feet in the door and their fingers on the pulse of trending markets, who profited from that lightning-quick surge last year.
And yes, that’s true. Crypto experts made a pretty penny (or bitcoin) then. But normal, everyday people were profiting too — particularly millennials.
Her First Million
See, Stanford is just 30 years old. And in September 2017, she quit her job in marketing to trade the crypto markets full time.
Co-workers declared it a stupid move. Her boss said he’d keep her job open for when she “eventually failed.” Her dad even told her she was on the road to homelessness.
They didn’t get why she would take such a risk in an unknown, volatile market. But that just made Stanford push herself to succeed.
When she lost $6,500 in a day because her wallet was offline and she couldn’t cash out in time, she didn’t quit. Instead, she dove in.
As she said:
It’s very easy to lose money in crypto, and I didn’t realize that if a currency goes up very fast, it’s probably also going to rapidly go down a lot, too. I threw myself into more research to try and understand the market, find patterns and work out the next big project to invest in.
And a few months after she quit her job, she made her first million.
You’ve got to love a story like that. By being on the cutting edge of trending markets, you could make a million in months. Not too shabby.
Perhaps that’s why other millennials are ready to take the leap too…
Follow the Millennial Money
It’s always wise to pay attention to millennial trends.
A recent survey revealed that even though cryptocurrency prices have tumbled, 48% of millennials insisted they would have no problem switching to crypto as a primary currency. Almost half.
And as crypto trader Ian King recently wrote:
Even though bitcoin is in the doldrums — down 70% from its late 2017 highs — college students are still eager to invest in and learn about the sector.
In a survey of 675 U.S. college students, nearly 20% of them own a cryptocurrency. Moreover, 9% of students have taken a cryptocurrency course, and 26% want to take a cryptocurrency course.
That’s important. It’s precisely this openness to cryptocurrencies by millennials (and Generation Z) that will go a long way toward ensuring global adoption.
After all, in a Blockchain Capital study earlier this year, 30% of those in the 18 to 34 age range said they’d rather invest $1,000 in bitcoin than $1,000 in government bonds or stocks.
There is clear interest in cryptos, and those getting in on the ground floor stand to make enormous sums, just like Erica Stanford.
Just don’t get scared by this momentary bear market. Remember: Crypto projects raised an astounding $6.6 billion last year, and that’s on pace to double this year.
So I urge you to investigate this market if you haven’t already. It pays to be ahead of the curve.
Regards,
Jessica Cohn-Kleinberg
Managing Editor, Banyan Hill Publishing