The difference between entrepreneurs and investors.

Since the birth of the world's favorite crypto-currency, Bitcoin, I've had the pleasure of making some new friends in the digital currency realm.

What strikes me the most is how quickly that magic internet money has pulled in a diverse group of people from around the planet; awakened new passion in their lives as they leave parts of the real world behind, and seek their digital fortunes. Everybody has different skills and objectives, but they all meet on the blockchain.

Two of my favorite types of bitcoiner are the investor and the entrepreneur. Both are equally ambitious, capable, and risk tolerant, but there is one particular character trait that they do not have in common: patience.

Admittedly, my experience is anecdotal, but intuitively it makes sense. The role of an entrepreneur is to make things happen, and now. If starting a company were easy, everybody would do it, so successful entrepreneurs tend to benefit from a healthy dose of impatience. Bitcoin entrepreneurs are no different. They operate as quickly as possible to accomplish their goals, whether inspired by the enticement of a large payout at the end of it all, or fear that somebody will eat their lunch if they dilly dally.

Bitcoin investors, at least the ones who write big checks, seem to shun Sun Tsu in favor of Zen Buddhism. Less affected in general, investors tend to be more stoic about the world. They care, but they can wait. If entrepreneurs are the builders, then investors are the gardeners - planting seeds for the future, tending to them from time to time, but not all the time.

If you are animated by Bitcoin and the crazy alternate universe that it offers, it is probably worth taking some time to examine your own strengths. Do you want to get involved, or are you happy to just observe? Are you a builder, or a seed sower? One disadvantage to discovering that you might have the requisite mental acuity and personality composition to be the next Warren Buffet, is that you still need capital before you can invest.

The advantage that the Bitcoin domain has over, say, the railroad industry, is that the success of Bitcoin is so heavily discounted around the world, that investments of $10,000, $1,000, or even $30 can deliver eye-popping returns. The default view is that Bitcoin is some sort of weird fringe fake internet money with lots of scammers (well, that last part isn't necessarily false).

To Bitcoin devotees, this is a siren's call of opportunity. Because if the world is wrong, then the people who take the time to embed themselves in the Bitcoin ecosystem - whether as investors, speculators, entrepreneurs, subject matter experts, developers, or just users - will have a large impact on where humanity is headed over the next few decades.

To close, remember that conventional investing is more tailored to preserve than accumulate wealth. Consider the notion that "no hospital wings or college dormitories have ever been named by an indexer." If you want to seek your fortune, you might enjoy the exciting, yet unpredictable, opportunities that Bitcoin presents.

Whether patient or impatient, if you have the talent and the drive, you'd be a fool to ignore the potential that Bitcoin has to change your life.