Useless Interview — Lance Badger aka lynxbadger
Give us a brief introduction about yourself. I’m Lance, a dedicated husband, father and enthusiast for technology. Born in the mid 80’s and growing up in Utah. I’ve always loved to figure out how things work. As a child I was obsessed with batteries and tinkering with electronics. I took apart everything which drove my parents crazy. Seeing things work was amazing as a child. Understanding how things work thrilled me. However when I tried to put things back together I always had left over parts. Sorry mom and dad.
Tell us a little bit about your background & expertise (Computer programming, marketing, graphic design, etc). I’ve always dabbled around on computers. I started young like many with video games. As time went on I started to learn HTML and CSS, I then progressed to PHP. I was working for a container store at the time and was given the opportunity to build out a basic simple website.
I went to SLCC (Salt Lake Community College) for a couple years then progressed to BYU, Idaho (Brigham Young University) but soon realized that college wasn’t really for me. Personally I felt like I learned more on the job than I ever did in the classroom.
I got a job working for a broadcasting company building out a digital signage platform over satellite. After working for several years I grew a huge interest in infrastructure. My career ultimately pivoted me to DevOps. I fell in love with AWS (Amazon Web Services) and the amount of technology at my fingertips.
When did you first start getting interested in cryptocurrency? Like many, Bitcoin was my first introduction to cryptocurrency. I remember back in the earlier days around 2010, I thought I would give mining a try. Unfortunately I didn’t stick with it. I also had a terrible GFX card. I got married and just bought my first house with no left over budget (house poor). I couldn’t justify spending money on equipment or extra power bills. I focused on my career during this time until 2017 when Bitcoin took off again. The excitement returned, but I never did go back to mining. Now I support a lot of project’s like Bitcoin, Etherum, Cardano, Binance Smart Chain, Surge, and of course my main priority is Useless!
Why do you want to innovate in the cryptocurrency space? Government, regulations and freedom of money is very appealing to me. I really love the idea of not one central entity controlling my money. Banks are the past while DeFi is the future.
If you could change one thing about cryptocurrency, what would it be? The crypto space is plagued with scams and get quick rich schemes. I want to make DeFi less toxic and more trusting for the average person. Isn’t everyone tired of a dog or gross named coins?
Why did you decide to join Useless Crypto? I helped establish Useless Crypto with Carc / FalseFlag (David Wyly). It started as a meme from a previous contract, but we saw the potential with the Useless Brand. It quickly became something much more. We found key community members that have brought Useless to the next level without all the stupid unrealistic hype.
What is your favorite aspect(s) of the project? The innovation and ideation coming from Useless Crypto community. DeFi Mark and Carc innovating on smart contracts is a sight to behold. Just the pure amount of passion that comes from the community to actually deliver. I also love that we are not focused on HYPE. We are focused on our goals!
Is there too much or not enough regulation in the cryptocurrency space? I won’t comment too much on this, but I tend to think everything the government touches tends to get worse.
What intrigues you the most about cryptocurrency? Smart contracts and decentralization. We’re just scratching the surface here.
Tell us what you enjoy doing in your spare time (hobbies or interests). Building computers has always been a fun part of my life. Like most males in their thirties for some reason they get obsessed with smoking meat. I fit this stereotype. I love cooking ribs or making a delicious brisket.
What piece of advice would you give to someone who is new to cryptocurrency? The first mistake I made was trying to day trade. I learned quickly that time in the market is more important than trying to time the market. Had I left my investments alone I would have had a lot more success.
Investing in a project like Useless and then contributing is the way to go. Build your own success, don’t just gamble your money.
