Today, I had a very unusual approach to orange-pilling.

I was doing my Weekend Miles workout, then an opportunity to orange-pilling came.

It all started when I met a young man who had fallen off his bicycle after the joint on its handlebars broke. He's from my community, of course not a very close friend of mine. He went to the nearest public health care centre seeking medical treatment, but he received none.

The fuel situation has disrupted the restocking of medicines in many healthcare facilities, particularly in rural areas. As I learned more about the situation, the conversation turned to the worsening fuel shortages and how they were linked to the scarcity of forex.

That opened the door to a much bigger discussion.

I was talking with members of my community: farmers, clay brick makers, and charcoal makers. One person wondered how these so-called forex issues could affect their lives so severely when they had little understanding of what forex is or how it works.

Someone shared how a relative had been prevented from buying certain items from Zambia. Another spoke about how the value of his long-term savings had been eroded within just two years.

It became clear that ordinary people were bearing the consequences of a financial system they had little understanding of and even less control over. Some faced restrictions while others appeared exempt.

So, I asked a simple question:

“What if I told you there is a form of money whose issuance, control, and rules are governed by its protocol rather than by a single person or institution? A system where everyone can participate under the same rules. No master. No slave.”

That was my introduction to Bitcoin.

But what happened next was what made this experience unusual.

Most people in that conversation use basic feature phones. Some have never owned a smartphone or accessed the internet. The traditional approach to orange-pilling, which often involves showing people apps, websites, charts, or wallet interfaces, would not work here.

So, I did something different.

I turned off my smartphone and put it away. Then I took out my wife's basic feature phone.

I wanted to meet people where they were, using technology they already understand rather than introducing something unfamiliar and expecting them to figure it out.

First, I asked whether anyone had a bank account. Nobody did.

Then I asked about mobile money.

Everyone was familiar with it. They knew how to send and receive money, buy goods and services, and carry out everyday transactions using their phones.

But then I asked another question:

“Do you know exactly what happens behind the scenes when you send money to someone using mobile money?”

Nobody knew.

That became our starting point.

We explored the basic processes behind mobile money management: what happens when someone initiates a transaction, how it is verified and recorded, and the role of the service provider in managing the system.

From there, I introduced Machankura Wallet, showing them how people can interact with Bitcoin using a basic feature phone without needing a smartphone or an internet connection on their device, simply by dialing: *384\*8333\*0265#.

As we explored Machankura, the conversation naturally moved into how Bitcoin works, how its transactions are processed, and how its network differs from the financial systems they already use.

Instead of starting with Bitcoin's price, charts, or the usual investment narratives, we started with something they already knew: mobile money.

We connected the technology to their own experiences, their own context, and the financial challenges they face every day.

I don't know how many of them will eventually use Bitcoin. Orange-pilling is not about forcing people to accept an idea. It is about giving people the opportunity to explore, and understand that there's the reality of money.

But today's experience reminded me of something important.

You don't always need a smartphone, an internet connection, or a projector to teach someone about Bitcoin. Sometimes, you just need to start with what people already have.

For me, this is what Bitcoin education should look like: meeting people where they are, using the tools they have, and helping them understand the systems that shape their lives.

Sometimes, the best way to orange-pill it is to start with a real problem, explore the system behind it, and help them discover that another way is possible.

How would you orange-pill someone who has never owned a smartphone or accessed the internet?