Dropping In (Skiing, crypto, urban ag, and more) ~7 minute read (and some good photos)

Apologies for posting this multiple times. I kept getting an error from the site.

Hello fellow Steemians! My name is Mason and I write to you from the windy city of Chicago (but if I’m being honest it’s more rainy than anything right now).
By Mason Vollum @crypto-mason

Picture I took this spring at Arapahoe Basin

While I’ve now lived in chicago for a little more than 4 years full time I originally hail from Minnesota, about 45 minutes southwest of the Twin Cities. I spent my entire life until moving to Chicago living in one house, I always joke that I live on the edge of the middle of nowhere.

For the purpose of being more descriptive I grew up right on the edge of the Minnesota River Valley.

Here I fostered a love of nature and a sense of self reliance that I don’t know if I would have gotten anywhere else. My parents helped me develop a strong sense of imagination and a can do attitude. I grew up designing and building as many contraptions, gizmos, doo-hickeys, and thingamabobs as I could, only limited by what I could dream up. I spent many hours helping maintain the property we live on, maintaining our 200 plus year old house, building onto and remodeling the buildings we have, and mowing (oh my so many hours of mowing).

A recent picture of me trying to look cool at the Bahai Temple.

My most formative job growing up was as a ski instructor at a local mountain (hill) called Hyland Ski and Snowboard area. I spent 5 or more days a week on the 175 foot vertical slopes teaching people from ages 3 to “I shouldn’t ask this person how old they are”. I even taught the on-hill portion of a park skiing class lead by the University of Minnesota (a very fun experience as a highschooler to be teaching college students).

When I neared completion of high school I was very set on choices for school. I knew I either wanted to be in Chicago or I wanted to be somewhere I could ski as much, or close to as much, as I did growing up. Ultimately I ended up in Chicago, a place my family and I had spent every spring break since middle school visiting. DePaul University was to be my place for the next four years.

My first year in Chicago had its ups and downs, I nearly transferred away after my first winter. I just couldn’t understand what the point to winter was if I couldn’t ski and nearly made the move out to a community college in California just to escape the cold. The friendships and sense of community I built my freshman year, however, kept me here.

A Picture I took last year in Chicago

Around this time I started focusing heavily on my chosen degree, finance. I didn’t really know if finance was what I wanted to do but I did know one thing for certain: the crash of 2008 had made life more difficult for my family and many people I knew, and I wanted to do whatever I could to stop something like that from happening again.

Up until this point I had always hated school, it was too easy and I wasn’t at all interested in the topics being taught. In highschool I went through the motions, got all my homework done in the class previous to the one it was due in, didn’t really go above and beyond.

Paddle boarding in South Haven, MI.

Having Found Something to Focus on Changed My Work Ethic.

I started taking the most difficult classes I could within my focus, investing and trading. I liked what I was doing, it was fun using math and psychology to try and ‘figure out’ a market. I was also the youngest person in most of my classes, my peers were often seniors or grad students. I felt that in order to stand out I had to put in more work than anyone else. That hard work paid off and I built some good connections, got some internships, and built some cool projects both by myself and with friends.

My first major internship was working within a certain options exchange located here in the city. I worked within the education division and was responsible for putting together a weekly report on potential options plays based on company earnings. While I liked my coworkers I realized quickly that working in a large financial institution was not for me. I’m very grateful to have had the opportunity to do this work, it was when I realized that the ultimate goal in my life was to work for myself.

And through my work for myself do as much as I could for the people around me.

Me and one of my best friends taken during a photo shoot
Please check out his music at Samo-G on Soundcloud.

Having wrapped up my internship before I had expected to I dedicated myself to school, taking extra classes and packing my schedule. I had previously decided I wanted to finish a quarter early in order to travel but that became more difficult after I realized I needed to change my path.

I had been aware of bitcoin and cryptocurrencies for a couple years before I finally started actually paying attention in fall of 2016. Even though I had been paying attention I never really took a full dive into the space until I graduated in April when I finally started putting money in. I knew that making a real investment in the space was the only way I would really commit.

I got into ether right before it popped up to 50. Seeing the market be so volatile really kickstarted my interest and I started learning about blockchain like it was my full time job.

During school I’d learned a number of different trading disciplines: Forex, Options, Equities, Managed Futures, and more. All of these helped contribute to my understanding of the blockchain space but still left a considerable amount to be learned. Looking back from where I am now it's amazing how much I’ve been able to learn about the space. Much of my thanks is directed towards the amazing community of people that are involved in the blockchain space. Without some of the readily available resources that are available there is no way I’d be where I am right now.

I first started using Steemit in June of this year, I liked the concept but the platform was difficult to use. The announcement of SMT’s (Smart Media Tokens) is what brought me back to the site with a desire to contribute and curate meaningful and helpful content.

A Lot Has Changed Since I Was Last Really Active on Tteemit. Not Much for the the Platform But For Me.

I now have a blockchain consulting business working with a number of clients to ensure that they are preparing themselves well for the blockchain revolution. I found a good partner for the business who helps keep me accountable for my deadlines, and makes up for my weaknesses. Together we are (carefully) building the foundations for what we hope will be a business able to sustain us for the rest of our lives.

What Have I Learned Throughout All of This?

I’ve learned that the right mix of patience and drive will always pay off. I’ve learned that creativity without some constraint will lead to endless procrastination. I’ve learned how to leverage the faith I have in others, and they in me, in order to achieve good outcomes for every party involved.

So Where Do I Go From Here?

I’ve now been developing a number of business models, using currently existing blockchain infrastructure, that will allow for further development over time. I’ve started working on pet projects from years ago again, the one I’m most excited about is in the ever-growing urban farming space. I’ve been designing and creating more art and clothing than I ever have in the past.

A shirt I recently designed and printed

Blockchain has allowed me to be genuine. This market has so much room for growth in so many different areas it has given me a lens with which to look upon all of my interests and execute upon my ideas for greater personal growth.

My Biggest Takeaway.

Sticking to my guns and believing in myself have gotten me further than any amount of school ever did. A conscious desire to foster care and understanding of this new ecosystem have lead me to healthier beliefs about how business and humanity can coexist.

Sacrifice will always be required but sacrificing your beliefs and morals will always do more harm than good.