One of the things I find beautiful about being human is our ability to change our minds. It’s rare, but it happens, and it can lead to the most amazing and unexpected outcomes. It can mean the difference between a couple staying together or breaking up; it can end wars, change laws, and even the course of history.
I’ve actually changed my own mind several times about whether or not I should even write this article. After all, the split was nearly two years ago. Everyone’s moved on, they’ve already made up their minds, and I know as well as anyone that one of the hardest things to do is to change someone else’s mind.
But that doesn’t mean I think it isn’t worth trying. Because I want to believe in the kind of world where we have the ability to persuade people whenever we see a better way, not through coercion, but through the power of words.
This is exactly what I’m aiming to do with this article, but how? What does it take to change someone’s mind and have them see things from a perspective that’s different from their own?
Unfortunately, changing someone’s mind isn’t as easy as changing a line of code in a program. As humans, we aren’t always logical, or follow the right incentives. We can easily become confused, or let our emotions take us down the wrong path, because sometimes going down the wrong path is the only way we are able to learn from our mistakes.
I remember when a friend once asked me if he should stop gambling. I tried to convince him he should by listing all the reasons why, but I didn’t do a very good job. I also knew that no matter what I said, he probably wouldn’t change his behavior unless something dramatic happened to change his perspective.
Maybe that’s why I’ve chosen this moment to try one last time to see if I can change the minds of any Bitcoin Cash supporters who might still be reading my articles. While I’m no longer a part of the BCH community, it’s impossible not to have noticed all the problems that have recently surfaced in that ecosystem, and I couldn’t help but wonder if this was finally what was needed to change their perspective.
Please don’t misunderstand. I’m not here to gloat. I’m not writing this article to say I told you so. I’m writing this article because as I said, I want to believe in a world where each and every one of us always has the freedom to change our minds, as well as the freedom to peacefully try and change the mind of someone else.
Isn’t that what reaching consensus is all about?
Recently I’ve been thinking about our thoughts versus our actions. We usually tell ourselves that our thoughts drive how we act, not the other way around. But I don’t know if that’s necessarily true. I believe that in life there are plenty of moments when no matter how hard we think about something, it’s impossible to be sure what the right decision is, and it’s only after we’ve acted that we can discover the real truth. This was certainly the case for me when deciding whether or not to become a father. I was full of uncertainty and doubt, and only after I became a father did I realize what a great decision it was.
I remember when I made the decision to sell my Bitcoin Cash. It wasn’t an easy decision, either. No matter how much I thought about it, there was no way for me to know how things would turn out. It was possible that Bitcoin ABC’s new fork would fail, and BCH would finally succeed without Amaury leading the project. But in the end, I made my choice and acted accordingly. Now that almost two years have passed, I’m not only glad I made the choice that I did, but more importantly, I’m glad I finally decided to act.
I know how hard it can be to let go of something you’ve held onto for such a long time. It wasn’t easy for me to sell my BCH after so many years of supporting the project and getting to know the people in the community. But in the end, I had to do what I believed was in my best interest rather than doing nothing but continue to hope that the likes of Roger, or Jihan, or anyone else was going to save me.
Of course I could spend the rest of this article listing all the reasons why I think the BCH project is in trouble. I could rehash all the history, the drama, and all the times certain BCH leaders demonstrated a failure to deliver on their promises. But that’s not what I’m here to do. I’m only here to nudge you to ask yourself if continuing to support BCH is the wise thing to do, and act accordingly.
I obviously can’t see the future. I have no idea if BCH will bounce back from its recent problems, or if it still has one last exit pump left. But what I do know is that changing one’s mind, especially about something that has only caused you years of grief and suffering, can be a beautiful thing that could lead to the most amazing and unexpected outcomes.
I’ll finish by saying I don’t expect any of the BCH thought leaders who still hold large amounts of BCH to change their minds no matter what I write. But if you’re someone who is new to crypto and just trying to find your way, feel free to reach out to me on Twitter if you’re looking for reasons to change your mind about BCH.