I've been contemplating this CT schtick we all do a lot lately. I absolutely enjoy interacting with people on here, but find that to grow you need to provide a certain type of content. There's no other way. A rant thread... /1

People on here decidedly like bullish content more. It doesn't matter if we're on the verge of an enormous dip, bullish content gets more interaction. And I get it. It’s a human psyche thing most likely. /2

We associate bullish with making more money, hence more people like it, even though shorting can make you equal amounts in a sense. However, most people are probably not comfortable doing that as it’s a bit more complicated. /3

So what’s the problem then? The thing is, to be part of the CT Cool Kid Squad and grow you need to sell a dream. A dream, unattainable by many, but tempting enough. So much so that caution and responsibility are to be thrown in the wind. Which is where I’m drawing the line. /4

I cannot willfully act this way (people who know me know I’m more of a perma-bear anyway) just to lure people into a pipe dream to gain a following. The ethics of these approaches are starting to really annoy me. /5

Especially because there is no accountability on here. Let’s say someone with a 40k following tweets some lame-ass bullish thing. To them, it’s only like-farming, but people actually follow that shit. And they know it. /6

The number of people vocal on here might seem like the majority, but it couldn't be further from the truth. I'm estimating the number of lurkers vs. actively engaging people about an 80/20 ratio. So there's a LOT of people you might reach out there. /7

BUT, is any resulting rektage people make going to be compensated by the "influencer" though? Of course not. And sure, you shouldn’t blindly follow other people’s tweets, that’s always a nice defense to put up. Right? Shifts the blame nicely onto you instead of them. /8

But where’s the accountability on the side of the ones riling up the crowd? Nowhere, because they’re already making money while you can only lose. And still, there are people falling for this. Repeatedly even. /9

Here’s the thing. You think you are getting free advice (“this is not financial advice but plz buy dis”) but in reality, you’re the product being peddled around here. Why? Because being an account with a crowd opens up doors in this space. /10

For example, it opens up things like pre-sales. If you seriously thought your favorite "influencer" is buying that hot new Uniswap gem he “just found” at the time you are, you’re fucking naive. /11

He or she is selling it to you then and there while they’re already up multiple x's due to having a fancy pre-sale price. A toxic system gladly kept alive by projects looking to get some promotion to even stand out. /12

99% of these projects end up slowly bleeding out because they printed money out of their ass, you got told it has value by an "influencer", but in the end, its still money printed from an ass. And that typically ain't worth jack shit. /13

I firmly believe a lot of these higher-profile accounts are making more money off this kind of stuff than they make actually trading. All the while you're thinking they are trading their way to financial freedom. /14

As I said, you are the commodity traded on CT. This is also evidenced by the infamous circlejerk that is the #FF And yes, I’m well aware that I’ve done these too. But they’re an ideal mechanism for people to band together and prop up one another’s follower count. /15

I’m convinced some of the people on here dear to you may seem like they’re great traders. They nail all the moves, spot all the good plays. The thing is, that's exactly the dream they're selling you. You don’t really know what it is they do. Do you? /16

So, here’s the CT cheat sheet for you:
- Pick today’s hot coins
- Chart them
- If they did well, update often with vague statements like “up 15% since the last tweet”.
- If they did horrible, never mention it again.

/17

See the vagueness of that statement? That’s not even saying they’re in a trade here. It’s just enough to lead you to believe it has value, but it’s mainly meant to paint a pretty picture. Take a closer look next time you see something like it. /18

Other statements that reek of like-farming as I’m calling it for now: “if you didn’t buy ... here, do you even crypto?” or something similar starting with “if you didn’t...” /19

Notice the wording there. It's directly putting blame on you for being a schmuck while suggesting they are awesome and infallible. Giving you a feeling of insecurity and making you more susceptive to buying into the dream. /20

Obviously, the price targets for the EOY tweets always do well. People like it if you tell them their heavy bags will be worth 10x by the end of the year with no further basis in reality. Read them their tarot cards while you’re at it why don’t you. /21

And of course, the interaction classic: shill me your bags. What coin do YOU think will be huge in X amount of time. People don’t know how quickly they have to post the cashtags of all their bags. Net worth valuable information gained: 0. /22

However, it works, which is why it just keeps on being done to grow a base and get rich off it. Even the promise of possible gains (not a given) is more alluring than getting in and getting your hands dirty while doing the hard work yourself. And how many actually succeed? /23

I cannot imagine that number being high. I recently put out the tweet below and the DMs I received scared me. People gambling it away, powered by the dream being fed to them by the average shit shoveler on here. /24 https://twitter.com/Crypto_C00kie/status/1350196161026662401

I’m 100% convinced that with some commitment to posting regularly and in a specific fashion you can gather a large following on CT without EVER opening up an exchange to do a trade even ONCE. Game well played. /25

So what’s my end goal with this thread you’re probably wondering at this point? One goal would be to serve as a tale of caution. Do some due diligence on who you follow. Snake oil is always at a discount around here. Some of the red flags I mentioned are easy to spot. /26

There's a reason I'm only following less than 10 people and have half of CT on mute. The amount of noise is enormous and I wish I could turn off even more things on here. Gathering your own thoughts with this constant echo chamber of noise is undoable. /27

So, instead of being the product and making others a lot of money while losing your own, think about how YOU can succeed in this space. Teach yourself instead of following others. And yes, there are useful accounts out there that actually teach you things. /28

Someone recently told me to be the change you’d like to see. And I’d love to see these malpractices end. Especially the blatant lack of accountability that I cannot brush aside myself, but seems to come so easy to others. But can it even be changed? /29

I don’t think it can, because where there’s money to be made over the back of some poor saps, there are people bending them over and making them their bitch. But we can surely try, right? So what can we be doing to contribute to a bit more realism in the space? /30

There's a few things that can go a long way towards a more realistic vision of CT. You already know that I always aim to be realistic in my tweets. When things look like shit; say they look like shit. People may not want to hear it but if it's the truth... /31

The sooner you can get people out of the impression that the bulltard dream is sustainable the better. Furthermore, an important part is disclosure. And that goes a few ways. E.g. disclosure when you got in on a pre-sale and at what price. /32

Disclosure whether or not you're shilling someone into something on behalf of someone else. Disclosure if you even have a position in the thing you're charting. Just a few simple things to at least have a bit more accountability towards the following you're serving. /33

I've even considered doing a monthly portfolio roundup. Like a good Cookie, I journal all my trades. That way I can share exact numbers on W/L ratio, profit factors etc. if that is of interest. Just to show a more realistic view than the advertised 100% W/L ratio. /34

Discuss topics like risk management often; before making your followers take out a second mortgage, sell their car and 100x ape into $BTC. Or maybe just don't do that last bit to begin with. /35

Either way, I could keep going forever, but I think the gist of it is clear. Most importantly you should surround yourself with like-minded individuals. They're harder to find as they typically don't have the 100K+ following, but once you do it's well worth it. /36

I'm sure I will be losing followers over this, but if I do I know I will have at least weeded out some of the people who are either too stubborn to see the truth or want to keep the status quo alive. Either way, goodbye. /37

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I even forgot about the "cover all scenario's so you're never wrong" tweet! Also a classic.