By Steve Conley | Academy of Life Planning | October 2025
A Sparkle in the Corner of the Room
BlackRock’s new iShares Bitcoin ETP has the financial world buzzing.
Commentators call it “historic” — a milestone for retail investors, an institutional validation of crypto, a bridge between DeFi and TradFi.
But let’s pause.
In reality, this “historic” event affects perhaps 1–2% of the 1% of total household wealth represented by retail investments.
That’s 0.001–0.002 of our real wealth — a statistical whisper.
And yet, look at the headlines. Look at the LinkedIn feeds. Look at the noise.
We’re watching grown adults argue over a decimal point, while the rest of their lives — the 99.999% that actually matters — goes unattended.
The Great Inversion
Our wealth conversation has been turned upside down.
The Office for National Statistics tells us that financial assets make up only 20% of total wealth, and retail investments (the stuff we buy and sell through platforms) are just 5% of that.
Meanwhile, the World Bank reminds us that human capital — our skills, energy, relationships, and capacity to create value — accounts for over 80% of total wealth.
So why is our public discourse obsessed with the smallest, most volatile corner of the room?
Because sparkle sells.
And the sellers of sparkle — whether DeFi promoters or traditional asset managers — have learned that attention is more profitable than truth.
Don’t Mistake Sparkle for Substance
Yes, Bitcoin is fascinating technology. Yes, it raises vital questions about sovereignty, trust, and the nature of money.
But for most people, a 1–2% allocation to Bitcoin represents no more than an intellectual experiment in a portfolio.
The danger isn’t the investment itself.
The danger is the distraction — the collective delusion that salvation lies in a trade rather than a transformation.
When people spend hours debating crypto on social media but never an hour designing their life plan, that’s not empowerment — that’s hypnosis.
The Real Wealth That’s Being Ignored
True wealth is not held in markets; it’s held in minds, hearts, and hands.
- The skill you’ve yet to learn that could double your income.
- The friend you’ve yet to call who could change your perspective.
- The health habit you’ve postponed that determines your longevity.
- The purpose project you keep deferring that would make your life meaningful.
That’s the 80%. That’s the compounding capital of life.
And it’s free from volatility, untaxed by intermediaries, and entirely under your control.
A Message to the DeFi and TradFi Tribes
To the DeFi innovators: keep building — but remember that not every human problem is a protocol problem.
To the TradFi giants: modernisation is welcome — but not if it reintroduces extraction under a digital logo.
And to the rest of us: let’s stop being the product in someone else’s platform war.
When you chase sparkle, you pay twice — first in money, then in meaning.
Reclaiming Perspective
The Academy of Life Planning stands for the re-centring of life itself in the wealth conversation.
We teach people to plan life before planning money.
We remind professionals that guidance is sacred work, not salesmanship.
And we invite society to measure success not in transactions, but in transformation.
The BlackRock ETP may glitter like a diamond, but life is the gem.
Don’t sacrifice a life for a sparkle. Life is precious.
🌍 Final Reflection
“The miracle of wealth is not that we can multiply assets, but that we can multiply awareness.”
At AoLP, we’re here to restore that awareness — to turn your gaze from the corner of the room back to the whole of life.
That’s where true value resides. That’s where empowerment begins.
About Get SAFE
Get SAFE (Support After Financial Exploitation) was born from a simple truth: too many victims of financial abuse are left to suffer in silence.
We exist for people like Ian Davis—for the ones who did everything right, only to be failed by the systems they trusted. We know that behind every vanished pension, every ignored complaint, and every stonewalled letter is a person—frightened, exhausted, and too often alone.
Get SAFE offers more than sympathy. We offer structure, support, and solidarity.
We provide a voice where there’s been silence, and clarity where there’s been confusion.
We stand beside those who have been exploited, not just to help them recover—but to help them reclaim their story and rebuild their future.
Because financial justice is not a luxury.
It’s a human right.
If you or someone you know has been affected by financial exploitation, we are here.
You are not alone.
Learn more at: Get SAFE (Support After Financial Exploitation).
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