When I was liquidated for the first time in 2017, I lived on instant noodles in a rental for half a month; at the peak of the bull market in 2021, I made enough for my first house with a single take-profit order; during the bear market crash in 2022, my account drawdown didn’t exceed 20%.

From a regular office worker born in 1993 to a net worth of 20 million at 33, after eight years of ups and downs in the cryptocurrency market, the pitfalls I've encountered could fill a truck. Ultimately, I distilled 8 iron rules that helped me survive the cycles of bull and bear markets.

Today I will share these heartfelt experiences with you, without any mystical analysis, all based on bloody lessons—those who can understand and follow can at least avoid 80% of the deadly traps in the cryptocurrency world.

Iron Rule One: Only use idle funds to participate, leaving a backup for living.

In 2018, I made the dumbest mistake: I gambled 30,000, which was meant for rent, on altcoins, and ended up losing 90%, almost getting kicked out by my landlord. Since then, I set a strict rule: the money invested must be idle funds that I won't need for the next three years; mortgage, living expenses, and children's tuition are rigid expenditures that should not be touched.

Now my capital pool is always divided into three parts: 60% for daily expenses (absolutely untouched), 30% for stable investments (mainly preserving capital), and only 10% for high-risk cryptocurrency investments. Even if this 10% is lost, it won't affect normal family life. Remember: those who trade with living expenses have already lost their mindset; a 10% drop makes them panic as if the sky is falling, and they can't hold onto real opportunities.

Iron Rule Two: Stop-loss is a lifeline; if it breaks, run without hesitation.

On the night of the crash on March 12, 2020, I watched helplessly as my friend's account went from 500,000 to zero—he always said 'after a big drop, there will be a rebound', never using stop-loss, and ended up in liquidation. I had set a 15% stop-loss in advance; although I lost money on a single coin, I preserved 85% of my principal and quickly made it back after the crash ended.

The stop-loss formula concluded from these eight years: mainstream coins stop-loss at 10%-15%, altcoins stop-loss at 5%-8%. Fill out the stop-loss order before opening a position, and let it execute automatically at the set point—never manually withdraw the order. Newbies often think stop-loss means losing money, but not having a stop-loss means using up all your bullets—if you keep your principal, you have the opportunity to wait for the next market wave.

Iron Rule Three: Stay away from leverage and contracts; for newbies, playing with leverage is equivalent to signing a death warrant.

I have seen too many myths of 'getting rich overnight' that ultimately turned into the tragedy of 'losing everything overnight'. In 2019, a brother used 10x leverage to go long on ETH, initially earning 200,000, wanting to add positions for a bigger gamble, but a single downward trend led to liquidation, losing even the principal, nearly leading him to suicide.

Since 2021, I have completely cleared out my contract account and only trade spot. Leverage is like a drug; when you’re winning, you feel like a god; when you’re losing, you have no chance to recover. The volatility in the cryptocurrency world is already significant; if you do well in spot trading, you can still double your money. Why force yourself into a dead end with leverage? Remember: those who can make money in spot trading deserve to talk about long-term survival.

Iron Rule Four: Don’t chase prices or sell in panic, avoid busy places.

When Dogecoin surged in 2021, the WeChat group was flooded with trading signals; one of my friends followed suit, buying at the high point of 0.7, and now Dogecoin has dropped to 0.07, still trapped after three years. I only tried a small position when it retraced to the 5-day line and volume increased; I took profits and ran without being greedy.

The market is always repeating the cycle of 'danger during excitement, opportunity during quiet'. My approach is: the more lively the group, the calmer I must be. When everyone shouts 'there's no opportunity in a bear market', that's when I need to pay close attention. Establish your own judgment criteria—like only buying mainstream coins that have dropped below their estimated value, and only entering when trading volume expands, instead of blindly trading based on price fluctuations.

Iron Rule Five: Position management is paramount, never go all in.

Before LUNA went to zero in 2022, I only had 5% of LUNA in my portfolio; although I lost, the impact was minimal. Meanwhile, a wealthy acquaintance was fully invested in LUNA, turning from a millionaire into debt. This highlights the importance of position management: never hold more than 30% in a single coin, and always keep 20% of the total position in cash.

My position formula: 60% position in a bull market (mainly mainstream coins), 30% in altcoins (high-quality sectors), 10% in cash; in a bear market, 40% mainstream coins, 20% cash management, 40% cash on standby. Going all in is like a ship without a life jacket; when the storm comes, it capsizes. Keeping cash allows for bottom fishing during crashes and adding positions when opportunities arise.

Iron Rule Six: Don’t trust 'insider information'; the hotter the news, the more cautious you should be.

In 2018, I was scammed out of 500,000 by so-called 'private placement insider information'; the project team said it was 'imminently listing on the three major exchanges', but after I invested, the team ran away. Since then, I no longer believe in any 'insider news', only look at the project’s white paper, code updates, and progress.

The truth of the cryptocurrency world is: real opportunities will not be shouted in WeChat groups; anything that can be publicly disclosed as 'insider information' is what the market makers want you to see. My research method is simple: check the founder's background (any blockchain experience?), observe on-chain data (whether funds are genuinely entering), and monitor community discussions (any real users?). The money earned through self-research is 100 times more reliable than listening to news.

Iron Rule Seven: Learn to take profits, don’t be a 'roller coaster' player.

In 2020, when ETH rose from 200 to 1000 dollars, I was greedy and didn’t take profits, resulting in a retracement to 400 dollars, wiping out 70% of my profits. Later, I set a profit-taking rule: take 30% profit after doubling, take 50% profit after a 2x increase, and set a trailing stop for the remaining profit. Even if it continues to rise later, at least the money I pocketed is mine.

Greed when making profits is more deadly than fear when losing. Newbies always think 'what if it goes up after I sell', but the result is often 'if I don't sell, it goes down'. Taking profits is not about selling at the highest point, but about preserving most of the profit—if you have 100,000 in principal and earn 500,000, taking profit at 300,000 still leaves you with a profit of 200,000, which is the logic of guaranteed profit.

Iron Rule Eight: Control your emotions, trade as an emotionless machine.

I have seen too many people turn trading into 'emotional venting': when losing, they double down in anger, and when winning, they become reckless. In 2023, I made 300,000 with ETH, my confidence soared, and I randomly bought a bunch of altcoins, only to lose 200,000 back within a week. That lesson taught me that when emotions are unstable, the best operation is to not operate.

Now, before trading each day, I ask myself three questions: 'Am I opening a position because of greed? Am I considering cutting losses because of panic? Does this decision align with my rules?' When emotions run high, I force myself to stop trading, go for a run or read a book, and return when I’m calm. The cryptocurrency market is not short of opportunities; what it lacks are those who can remain rational when opportunities arise.

Lastly, I want to say: 20 million is not the endpoint; surviving is.

From not even being able to afford instant noodles to now having a net worth of 20 million, what I cherish most is not how much I earned, but that I learned to 'survive through bull and bear markets'. These eight iron rules seem simple, but very few can actually implement them—some people always think of getting rich overnight, some can't control their hands and trade recklessly, and others trust luck over rules.

The true experts in the cryptocurrency world are not those who call the shots most accurately, but those who can resist the urge to add positions during a surge and remain steady without cutting losses during a drop, using discipline to combat human weaknesses. If you are still in loss now, don’t panic; start by implementing 3 out of these 8 rules—like 'only use idle funds', 'strict stop-loss', and 'never go all in'—and gradually build your trading system.

Remember: the money made in the cryptocurrency world is not luck, but money made from awareness and discipline. When the next bull market arrives, may you rely on rules rather than luck, and become a true winner.

Making money in the cryptocurrency world doesn’t rely on mysticism, but on thoroughly understanding simple techniques, using rules as confidence, which can help avoid pitfalls and maximize gains in short trading.@钱包守护者 Follow , for more simple and practical operational techniques, let technology become your confidence for making money.