On my 30th birthday, after finishing the film on my newly acquired second car in the garage, I suddenly found myself lost in thought looking out at the sunlight.
The young man from Hunan who rushed into the crypto circle with an 80,000 yuan principal six years ago never thought that one day he could root himself in this city — two cars, a house, and 20 million in his account, all earned through lessons and discipline.
Some people ask me 'Is there insider information?' 'Is it just luck?' In fact, there really isn’t. The pitfalls I’ve stumbled into over these 6 years could fill an entire hard drive. Being able to go from 80,000 to today is entirely based on 10 principles ingrained in my bones. They are not metaphysics; they are survival rules validated with real money after I’ve stumbled and lost.
First, opportunities are to be waited for; patience is needed to hear the voice of wealth.
When I first entered the market, I was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan; I chased prices up when they rose and cut losses when they fell, losing my 80,000 principal down to 20,000 in half a year. At my craziest, I operated five times in one day, unable to sleep at night while watching the K-line, always feeling that 'not acting means missing the opportunity'.
Until that bear market in 2019, where mainstream coins consolidated at a low for three months, and someone in the group shouted every day 'there's no opportunity in a bear market', I recalled an elder saying 'consolidation is building energy'. Gritting my teeth, I held on without changing positions, and when Bitcoin broke through 8,000 dollars, I entered the market, which directly brought my account back to life.
I later understood: the crypto circle is never short of opportunities; what’s lacking is 'patience to wait for opportunities'. Real big opportunities are like flowers blooming in spring, needing the soil to warm up and rain to nourish them; rushing to pick will only lead to going home empty-handed.
Second, for investors, the most important thing is to seize opportunities that belong to them.
In the bull market of 2021, some made 10 times their money on altcoins, and others made hundreds of times on contracts. I watched enviously and followed the trend to buy several 'hot coins' I didn’t understand, resulting in more losses than gains.
Upon review, I realized: those opportunities where others made big money either required high-frequency monitoring or a high risk tolerance, which were simply not suitable for someone like me who works a job. Later, I only traded 'mainstream coin swings' and 'trend orders' that I understood, even if others said 'the profits are small', but they were stable.
There is no 'best opportunity' in this world, only the 'opportunity that suits you best'. Some excel in short-term trading, while others are suited for long-term holding. Finding the rhythm that you can grasp is a thousand times more reliable than chasing others' trends.
Third, it is crucial for investors to be unmoved by opportunities that do not belong to them and to remain composed about opportunities that they cannot grasp.
Last year, AI concept coins exploded in popularity, and $FET tripled in just a few days, with everyone in the group sharing their gains. I opened the K-line chart and found that I really did not understand the logic of this track and could not keep up with the high-frequency fluctuations. That day, I closed my trading software and continued to hold onto my Ethereum.
Later, when AI coins plummeted, many who chased high prices lost and cried, but I earned 20% from the stable rebound of Ethereum. This strengthened my belief: if an opportunity does not belong to you, do not rush to join even if it's lively; if you cannot grasp the market, do not act even if it's tempting. Composure is not innate; it is honed through repeated practice of 'resisting the urge'.
Fourth, it’s important to get the investment right, but it’s even more important to know how much to bet after getting it right.
In 2020, I recognized that Bitcoin below 10,000 dollars was the bottom, but I only dared to test the waters with a small position, resulting in only making some pocket money when it rose. Later, upon reviewing, I slapped my thigh: clearly, I had the right direction, but because I was too afraid to bet, I missed the opportunity to double my money.
In the bear market of 2022, when Bitcoin fell to 16,000 dollars, I used the 'pyramid adding method': first establishing a 30% base position, adding 20% if it broke below 15,000, and adding another 30% after it stabilized above 20,000. This operation allowed me to earn 40%, which was much stronger than 'seeing the direction but not daring to buy'.
Seeing the right direction is just the beginning; daring to place heavy bets after confirmation is what allows you to reap big rewards. Of course, 'heavy positions' do not mean going all in, but giving sufficient weight to opportunities you are optimistic about within the risk control range.
Fifth, very few people can rely on predicting short-term price fluctuations to make big money in the crypto circle; otherwise, they would be the world's richest. If not, it means they only report good news and not bad, even if they have good luck for a while, they will ultimately fail.
When I first entered the market, I researched 'short-term prediction techniques' every day, following so-called 'gods' to guess price movements, resulting in only getting it right three out of ten times, with earnings not enough to cover my losses. Later, I discovered that those who shout 'the price will rise/fall tomorrow' either got lucky a few times or selectively reported good news.
Short-term prices in the crypto circle are like flipping a coin; no one can guess right every time. I now rarely look at cycles below the daily chart, only focusing on weekly trends and volume, which actually gives me a higher win rate. Relying on predicting short-term price movements for profit is like relying on winning the lottery to get rich; winning occasionally is fine, but you will lose in the long run.
Sixth, losing money a lot, whose mentality can still be good? A good mindset is built on the foundation of not losing much.
In 2018, because I did not set a stop loss, I lost 30,000 in one transaction, equivalent to 40% of my then principal. During that time, nothing seemed to go right; I couldn't eat or sleep, and I felt irritated even by my family's words; my mindset completely collapsed.
Later, I established a strict rule: I would never let a single coin's stop loss exceed 5%, and if total position losses reached 10%, I would forcibly go to cash and review. Over these years, thanks to strict risk control, I rarely encountered 'big losses' again; even if I was temporarily stuck, I knew 'the loss is controllable', and my mindset naturally stabilized.
Don't believe in the nonsense that 'a good mindset can lead to big profits'; a good mindset presupposes 'not losing much'. Keeping your principal safe is the foundation for discussing mindset.
Seventh, the world is unpredictable, and the market is difficult to gauge. Studying the market mainly aims to seize consecutive opportunities and avoid consecutive risks. Unexpected and occasional rises or falls that you cannot grasp or avoid are not your fault; keep a calm mindset and do not give up on yourself.
On the day of the FTX crash in 2022, Bitcoin suddenly plunged 15%, and my holdings also fell by 8%. I was indeed panicked at the time, but I quickly calmed down: this was an unexpected risk, not a misanalysis of the trend.
I did not rush to cut my losses but checked the fundamentals of the coins I held — the mainstream coins had no issues; it was just the market's panic that caused the drop. Later, when the market stabilized and rebounded, not only did I recover my losses, but I also made a small profit.
The market always has unexpected situations, just like how there are always heavy rains. Studying the market is not about predicting 'when it will rain', but rather knowing 'to bring an umbrella when it rains continuously' and 'to dry grains when it's sunny for a long time'. If you get caught in the rain occasionally, don't blame yourself; maintaining a calm mindset is key to going far.
Eighth, you can choose not to act, but you must not completely go against the big direction.
At the peak of the bull market in 2021, while some around me were fully invested in chasing altcoins, I was watching Ethereum shrink in volume at its high of 4,000 dollars, decisively clearing 70% of my position. It wasn't that I was so great, but I understood that 'the bull market will eventually end' cannot be reversed.
In the bear market of 2022, while some were bottom-fishing 'deeply fallen coins' every day, I sat in cash waiting for bottom signals, because I understood that 'the bear market does not speak of a bottom', and increasing positions against the trend is to go against the big direction.
Making money in the crypto circle doesn't require being right every time, but the big direction must not be wrong. Don't short in a bull market, don't hold on stubbornly in a bear market, and don't chase highs and cut losses in a volatile market. If you maintain the big direction, you've already won half the battle.
Ninth, do not be rushed by the urgency to make money; do not force yourself to make hasty decisions frequently.
In the past two years, many people kept telling me 'the crypto circle moves fast, if you don’t act quickly, you will miss out', and I was also driven by this sense of urgency to operate frequently, resulting in more mistakes the more anxious I became. Later, I set a 'cooling off period' for myself: decisions involving over 100,000 must be made the next day; if I incur losses in two consecutive operations, I would forcibly stop trading for a day.
Now, even if I see the best opportunity, I will first note it down and wait until the next day to see, as 80% of 'urgent opportunities' are actually traps. Making money is a marathon, not a sprint; those rushed by a sense of urgency will eventually stumble.
Tenth, focus on high-probability events while guarding against the large risks that small-probability events may cause.
Over these 6 years, I mainly profited from 'high-probability opportunities': the main uptrend of mainstream coins in a bull market, rebounds at the bottom of a bear market, and high sell-low buy strategies in a volatile range—these are repetitive patterns.
But more importantly, guard against 'small-probability black swan events': always keep 20% cash for protection, avoid leveraged contracts, and do not buy air coins without fundamentals. Just like wearing a seatbelt while driving, you may not need it daily, but it can save your life when an accident occurs.
Finally, I want to say:
From 300,000 to 20 million, what I am most grateful for is not a certain 'miraculous operation', but the discipline built over these 6 years. The crypto circle can indeed change one’s fate, but it relies not on luck, but on 'knowing what to wait for, what to give up, and what to keep'.
These 10 sentences are not complicated; the difficulty lies in the persistence day after day. Some say 'the crypto circle is too chaotic', but I have seen too many ordinary people make money with the right beliefs; some say 'making money is hard', but what’s hard is never the opportunity, but controlling one’s greed and impatience.
If you are also exploring in the crypto circle, I hope these 10 sentences can help you avoid detours. Remember: real money-making is a gradual process of becoming rich, rooting in high probabilities, avoiding risks in low-risk situations, and steadily walking to the finish line at your own pace.
Let’s encourage each other; those who love to comment will definitely have good luck! If you are also a tech enthusiast and are delving into technical operations in the crypto circle, it might be worth following.@钱包守护者 You will gain more!