Bringing Blockchain into Real Life: Practical Applications for Disruptive Technology
Just like the Bitcoin boom of late 2017, Dogecoin, Ethereum, and other forms of cryptocurrency are starting to gain constant notoriety in the media. At this point, those who do understand what cryptocurrency is realize the disruptive nature of the concept and how it can upend the banking and financial industry.
I recently wrote an article about how governments around the world are starting to adopt the concept of a digital currency that would replace cash, the United States being one of them, as cryptocurrency like Bitcoin is created by a private entity, extremely volatile, and is similar to gold.
But the disruption from the concept of a digital wallet and cryptocurrency runs far deeper than just money. The technology that powers Bitcoin, other cryptocurrencies, and eventually the federally issued digital currency, called blockchain, is far more disruptive to many different industries, and yet no one is really paying a lot of attention to it.
Because of this, it is prime time to use the principles of my Anticipatory Leader System to leverage blockchain technology and become the positive disruptor of your industry. Blockchain itself is a Hard Trend; its obvious benefit to cut out the middleman present in the financial industry is not going away, and it is a future certainty that will disrupt more than just banking.
Let's take a look at a few industries that should start being anticipatory in their understanding and implementation of blockchain.
Disrupting the Real Estate Industry
Outside of currency, which is essentially a big ledger system made not-hackable by blockchain technology, a medium known as "smart contracts" is a dominating factor that makes this disruptive digital development so powerful, especially in real estate.
Smart contracts are a concept that facilitates an incredibly transparent system of exchange, whether it be a legally binding agreement or outlining the rules that govern said agreement. Essentially, smart contracts are a secure chain of command, where each part of the process must be fulfilled.
But let's not forget that blockchain technology and the concept of smart contracts has a goal of eliminating intermediaries in processes, as seen with cryptocurrency and the banking industry. There are dozens of job titles in real estate that function merely as middle people and nothing more.
In the case of closing on a home, the smart contract would act as the connection between the buyer, the seller, the lender, the home inspector, and so forth. Returning to the concept of money for a moment, once the down payment or security deposit is sent, everyone involved is notified in a transparent fashion.
So as a Realtor, it would behoove you to pay meticulous attention to this disruptive force, as it in many ways displaces the bulk of what you currently do. Shifting your mindset to an Anticipatory one, how can you pre-solve this glaringly obvious problem that the Hard Trend of blockchain technology will eventually bring to your front door?
Buying and Selling Automobiles
Real estate is just one large-item transaction industry that blockchain technology can and will disrupt. One that has already experienced a taste of blockchain disruption and has even more heading its way is the automotive sales industry.
DocuSign is a transaction management company that utilizes the concept of smart contracts on the blockchain, which, when it emerged in the car leasing world, coined the now-popular phrase "click, sign, and drive." As soon as a customer creates an entry on the blockchain of the automobile they want to lease, insurance policies and lease agreements are signed by said customer and instantly updated on the blockchain.
This example illustrates an even more simplified example of what a smart contract essentially does. Whereas leasing a car often had tons of paperwork that needed to be notarized, copied, and filed, the blockchain is essentially a real-time, completely transparent filing system for everything and anything you can imagine, with an app like DocuSign facilitating the physical ability for the customer to generate this information.
DocuSign already breaking into the automotive sales industry should have been enough of a red flag for those with an Anticipatory mindset, as now blockchain is quickly facilitating a transparent history of every car for those looking to purchase a used vehicle in the future. What about this Hard Trend can you use to transform your career in used car sales?
Proof of Concept
Still not convinced that blockchain technology has Hard Trend staying power? Let's finish by bringing this back full circle to Bitcoin.
Following the coronavirus pandemic of 2020, it has been reported that about 60% of Bitcoin's "stock" (keep in mind there is a limited number of Bitcoins built into its programming) had not moved throughout the year, even prior to the pandemic lockdowns in March of 2020.
What this represents is a long-term investment in the concept of digital currency and, more important, the fact that if blockchain were a passing fad, it would likely already be forgotten by now, like a once-viral TikTok video. It is quite clearly a Hard Trend based on those statistics and, in our automotive sales example, already incorporated in many simple ways, such as the company DocuSign.
With the existence of blockchain technology prominent in a multitude of industries, the key to avoid being completely disrupted by this Hard Trend is to implement the principles of my Anticipatory Leader System as a way to pre-solve the problems heading towards your industry. Then, leverage these future certainties to your advantage, becoming a positive disruptor that helps transform the world in productive ways.