How a Bitcoin ATM Gave Me a Wake-up Call

“Disruption” is one of those incredibly overused words. It seems like every new thing these days is being touted as being a “disruption”.

Last week I encountered what felt like a real disruption,  but managed to turn it into – here comes another timeworn phrase – “a teachable moment” for myself.

As I walked by an automated teller machine (ATM), something about it made me do a double-take: it accepted the use of Bitcoin. As most people know, Bitcoin is the most recognizable cryptocurrency on the market but I was still taken by surprise by this type of ATM. I was “disrupted”, as it were.

However, seeing this ATM also gave me the chance to reflect on how disruptions can be seen as wake-up calls to changes that go on in our everyday lives. Little disruptions like the ATM give us an opportunity to practice being open to new ideas, information, and technology.

We only have two options when we encounter change: we can be open to it, or we can be closed.

Being open to change doesn’t mean you have to embrace it 100%. You can start with stepping in at just 5 or 10%, and moving in further as you learn more about it. While a type of change like Bitcoin may seem distanced from many of our lives, doing just a little bit of research will allow you to step into this change and increase your knowledge and awareness of it, even if you never have the use for Bitcoin.

Practice stepping into changes you don’t fully understand or agree with. Research and discussion doesn’t mean embracing the change right away (or using the Bitcoin ATM tomorrow) but it does mean you can be more open to new information, ideas, and innovation that initially might seem overwhelming.   

“Wake-up calls” take a variety of forms. Notice what shows up in your world and what you can be just a little more open to. You might be surprised at how easy it is to accept and appreciate change.

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