So my questions are:
1. Are you mining? If no, what is the main reason? I reckon financial issues will be the top factor, but let's see.
2. Are you solo mining or mining using a pool? Please elaborate on what kind of devices you use. Also, in case you use a pool, if you feel comfortable, share which ones you use.
3. Are you mining on your premises or are you using hosting facilities? If you mine on premises, how do you deal with the electricity costs and the noise?
4. (Leave every other note you have here - free text)
1. Yes. I probably mine at break even or slightly below, but I mine for non-KYC purposes and am willing to pay that "premium."
2. Pool. I use Antminers. I have used numerous pools and each have their strengths and weaknesses. I encourage you to try multiple pools to find what works best for you. Some considerations: type of payouts (PPS, FPPS, PPLNS, PPS+, etc.), KYC issues (e.g. Foundry), does the pool re-use addresses or can you use an XPUB, accounting features, etc. Because of the cost to mine where I am, I use a pool because the chances of solo mining paying off are akin to winning the lottery. If you want to consider solo mining, maybe consider something like Bitaxe a relatively low risk and low cost mining solution, although the chances of finding a block are significantly reduced.
3. Hosting facilities because the cost to mine where I am located is prohibitively expensive. I prefer self mining but the costs in time and money were too much for me.
4. Mining is not for everyone. Unless you can obtain really cheap power and really cheap machines, it's not likely to be profitable, and it is really hard to find cheap power but costs of machines have come down. The looming halvening is also a big threat to profitability for obvious reasons. New generation machines consistently come out making your current machines that much less profitable. Having said all that, I am glad I mine because I have learned so much about the network, how it works, and non-Bitcoin things like how power works, computers, and software. I feel relatively secure in my jurisdiction that the threat of seizure, sanctions, etc. are quite low. I am also glad I mine because I have a stack of non-KYC coins. I don't view mining as something I will do for years to come. I will likely mine until my machine efficiency is reduced to the point that the costs significantly outweigh the benefits.
I wish you good luck in your journey.