The Satoshi Mindset

Satoshi Nakamoto is a symbol of hope.

Not because the pseudonymous creator of

Bitcoin birthed a brand new currency, a

payment system, or even that he solved an

ages old computer science problem, no it’s

much deeper than that.

On January 03 2009, block 0 of a new

distributed system was mined. Contained

within, was a message, “The Times

03/Jan/2009 Chancellor on brink of second

bailout for banks”, revealing some of the

thinking behind its genesis.

Taking into account that this was in the midst

of the financial crisis, and combining that with

later writings, we can infer that Satoshi wasn’t

happy with the economic system he found

himself in.

What’s interesting though, is that instead of

moaning, begging, lobbying politicians, voting,

protesting, occupying wall street, or any of that — ALL which I might add, never achieved

any of their desired outcomes — he dared to

create an alternative, and asked permission

from no-one.

Even though we still live in this imperfect

world, with many of the same corrupt forces,

you could argue that Bitcoin has already

succeeded in that it:

- Created a censorship-resistant system used

by millions of people

- Created the most powerful computer

hashing network in existence

- Created a market valued at multiple billions,

all from nothing

- Has been used as a safe haven by citizens in

failed states around the world

- Spawned a whole raft of other important

software innovations

As Peter Thiel would say, that is a 0 to 1

development. Satoshi started all of this when

he sat down and figured out how to solve a

seemingly unsolvable problem.

He’s quoted as once saying “I’m better with

code than with words”, and this is the core of the mindset: creating new technological

alternatives, instead of just complaining.

Echoing this sentiment back in 1993 with the

Cypherpunk Manifesto, Eric Hughes famously

declared, “Cypherpunks write code.”

This amalgam of recognizing problems, having

technical skills to potentially fix them, and then

taking personal ownership for trying to do so

is probably one of, if not the most important

qualities our species has.

Human history is littered with these

feats — monumental forces of will which flip

the script, change reality, and reveal new

pathways for being.

Another example is Linux. Do you think the

operating system would be used on the

majority of phones, tablets, and servers today

if not for Linus Torvalds deciding one day to

create and release his own kernel, even when

it seemed like a insane undertaking?

It’s not about idolizing Satoshi or others. The

point is that in order to solve big problems, we

must first look inwards and take responsibility.

Think: “What can I create to solve this?”, and “What can I build that will be so good that

others will voluntarily abandon their old ways

for this new thing?”

Our civilization’s heavy reliance on electronic

technology means that now more than ever,

you have a chance to come up with real

technological solutions and nudge our species

in a better direction.

So in closing, I just want to get across that it is

down to YOU, and no one else. Stop shaking

your fist at the sky, and shift your mindset.

Satoshi took on the responsibility of an

impossible task, and succeeded. You can too.

Pick a difficult problem, and go after it. If you

need help, find like-minded people, and if you

have gaps in your knowledge, learn.

This is how we improve things — everything

else is a distraction.