The following is a guest post. Enjoy!ย
Cryptocurrency was invented almost a decade ago yet it didn’t make it to the mainstream until the recent media craze. In a year, it basically went from “zero to hero” thanks to the countless people trying to get rich quick on its back. There’s no way to tell exactly what went on in their minds when jumping on the cryptocurrency bandwagon in such large numbers but some think the reason might have been similar to those behind people falling for “get rich quick” schemes.
It’s a trend
There are many who get involved with “get rich quick” schemes simply because it’s a trend. When all they hear about is Forex, binary options, and MLM from their friends and relatives – let alone when hearing about them in the media, like in the case of cryptocurrencies – they feel the need to fit in. All the hype about these – and whatever else might emerge – pushes some people to embrace them out of the sheer need to follow a trend.
A lack of knowledge
Some people get involved with such schemes because they lack the knowledge they need to realize that they are nothing but schemes. For somebody with little to no experience in finances, investing, and other forms of making money, a “get rich quick” scheme may look way too similar to a genuine opportunity.
Knowledge is power, they say – and this is especially true for the world of finance.
Desperation
When the times are tough, people tend to go to great lengths to be able to make it from paycheck to paycheck – perhaps even to put food on the table. And when the ends seem not to meet, people become easier to convince – trick? – to enroll in a scheme that comes with the promise of a steady income stream and perhaps even long-term financial stability. This is hardly the case for many MLMs and “get rich quick” schemes but these can still seem a lifebelt in desperate times.
Many so-called “experts” are known to take advantage of this desperation to lure people into their scheme – and make good money in the process.
Greed
Last but not least, let’s take a look at one of the widespread reasons why people fall for get rich quick schemes: greed. While the cool, analytical part of our the brain may send signals that something is off about the scheme a particularly convincing personal finance guru is trying to sell us, the mental image of spending the rest of our lives on a beach with cold drinks in hand, without having to worry about anything but what to spend the next fat check on is often too strong to resist.
Promises of a dream life can be very alluring but, as usual, if it looks too good to be true, it usually is.
***Photo courtesy ofย https://www.flickr.com/photos/damianmorysfotos/3862801353/in/
