Staring at the negative numbers in my account late at night, I still remember the sting of my third liquidation. At that time, I thought making money in crypto depended on 'insider information' and 'luck', until I stumbled enough times to understand: the real survival rule is to avoid traps, which is more important than seizing opportunities.
Today, we won’t talk about the illusory myths of getting rich quickly; instead, I will break down the practical experience that helped me climb out of the loss pit - 3 core steps + 8 life-saving rules, each one comes with hard-earned lessons. If you find it useless after reading, feel free to call me out in the comments.
Let me pour a bucket of cold water: 90% of losses in crypto are due to 'knowing but still doing'.
People often ask me: 'Can I still get rich by entering the market now?' Yes, but the odds are akin to being struck by lightning twice on a rainy day. The stock market's '7 lose, 2 break even, 1 profit' is nothing in crypto, where it’s '9 lose, 1 profit', and the root of losses lies entirely in human weaknesses.
I’ve seen too many shocking cases: some people gamble their children's education funds on unknown altcoins, others borrow online loans to bet on contracts with 20x leverage, ending up going from 'wanting to earn 1 million' to 'wanting to recover 10,000', even dragging down their entire family. Remember this: In crypto, the premise of survival is 'not losing big money'; before figuring out 'how to earn', first learn to avoid these 5 deadly traps.
5 major 'harvesting' traps in crypto; if you step into 2, I suggest you exit directly.
'Pie-in-the-sky trap': The 'vision' of the project party is essentially your 'capital harvesting machine'.
Stop believing in nonsense like 'disrupting industries' or 'changing the world'. Luna fell from $119 to $0.0001 in just 7 days, and FIL was halved to $238 then again to $5. When these coins were rising, the team was sending you 'technical white papers' daily; by the time you heavily invested, they had already cashed out secretly. The truth is: 95% of new coins are launched just to harvest retail investors, and truly valuable projects never rush to tell you 'get in and get rich'.'Small exchange trap': The interest you are tempted by is bait for your principal.
Don’t blindly trust 'high-yield investments' and 'new platform benefits'. Last year, even FTX, one of the top three exchanges globally, collapsed overnight; those small platforms whose names you can’t even pronounce often don’t bother to release announcements when they run away. My principle: Only trade on exchanges ranked in the top 2 globally, and never leave large amounts of funds on platforms; withdraw your earnings to your own wallet - the fees may be higher, but capital safety is more important than anything.'Leverage trap': The thrill of 10 profitable trades cannot compare to the despair of 1 liquidation.
Contracts are not off-limits, but 90% of people fail because of 'too high leverage'. I’ve seen too many people use 10x leverage to win 9 times, but on the last trade, the market reverses, wiping out both principal and profits, and even owing money to the platform. My iron rule: Only use 10% of your capital for contracts, never exceed 2x leverage, and you must set a stop-loss (run if you lose a maximum of 3% in one go); earning slowly is better than losing everything.'Shanzhai trap': The 'profit screenshots' in the group are scripts for retail investors.
Those shouting 'this coin will definitely rise 100 times' and flaunting their profits in the community are 99% shills. They will first let you make a small profit to entice you; once you increase your position, they will collectively dump and leave you holding the bag at a high price. When I see coins that 'aren't on top exchanges' or 'have names with letters + numbers', I ignore them - even if they skyrocket, I won’t envy them; cash in hand is what counts.'Custody trap': Your coins might get 'disappeared' without you knowing.
Small wallets and small platforms' 'hacker attacks' are often self-theft. Remember: Only choose open-source leading projects for wallets (like MetaMask, Trust Wallet), keep only small amounts for daily transactions on exchanges, and large assets must be withdrawn to wallets where you control the private keys; losing the private key means losing your coins - that’s the bottom line.
3 core steps for stable profits, simple enough that you might doubt yourself.
After two consecutive years of losses, I finally realized: Making money in crypto doesn’t require complex techniques; mastering these 3 steps can help beginners avoid detours.
Step one: Filter - Only earn money you can understand.
Divide all coins into two categories: those that you can explain the logic of after 3 months of research, and those that leave you confused just by hearing the name. If you don’t understand a coin, even if others say it will rise 1000 times, don’t touch it. I currently never hold more than 5 coins, all mainstream coins like Bitcoin and Ethereum, or projects with practical scenarios. They may rise slowly, but they don’t plummet, ensuring you won’t wake up one day to find your principal halved.
Step two: Wait for signals - Use one indicator to capture buying and selling points.
Don’t learn those flashy technical analyses; the RSI indicator is sufficient. Simply put:
RSI below 30 (oversold) indicates that it has fallen too much; you can buy after it stabilizes with the trend line.
RSI above 70 (overbought) indicates that it has risen too much; you can sell after it breaks below the trend line.
In April this year, when ETH fell to $1800, RSI dropped to 27, I bought in batches; when it rose to $2400 and RSI reached 72, I decisively sold and easily made a 30% profit. This method is simple enough that beginners can master it in a week; the key is to 'wait for signals before acting', don’t guess blindly.
Step three: Control your position - Always leave yourself a chance to turn things around.
Your position in a single coin should never exceed 25%, and your total position should be at most 70% (must keep 30% cash). For example, if you have 100,000 in capital, you can spend a maximum of 25,000 on one coin, and even if it drops 50%, you only lose 12,500, while still having 75,000 in cash to average down or switch assets. Remember: There are always opportunities in crypto; as long as your principal is intact, it’s not a loss.
8 life-saving rules to help you survive the bull and bear markets in crypto.
These 8 rules are survival rules I summarized after breaking my leg; each one can help you avoid fatal pitfalls.
Never use money that you need within 3 years to trade cryptocurrency; pressure will make you lose your rationality.
Observe newly launched projects for at least 6 months, wait until the big players have sold off before considering.
Contract leverage should be a maximum of 2x, and a stop-loss line must be set, with a single loss not exceeding 3% of the principal.
Any 'insider information' or 'teacher-led trades' are traps; trust them once and you’ll lose every time.
If a single coin's profit exceeds 30%, sell half first to lock in your profits.
If you don’t understand the market, it's better to stay out; random operations can result in worse losses than missing out.
Trade no more than 3 times a week; the more you operate, the higher the chance of making mistakes.
Remember: If you can survive 3 bull and bear markets in cryptocurrency, you have already surpassed 90% of people.
Lastly, I want to say: The secret to making money in crypto is 'making fewer mistakes' rather than 'seizing more opportunities'.
After 3 liquidations, my biggest gain over 3 consecutive years of profit wasn’t how much money I made, but understanding: the crypto market is never a 'get-rich quick scheme', but a 'survival arena'. Avoiding traps, waiting for the right signals, and controlling positions, these 3 steps may seem simple, but they can help you go from being in the '90% who get cut' to the '10% who make money'.
If you are also struggling in the crypto market, you might want to try this method. Follow me, and I will break down more practical skills, from selecting coins to position management, helping you earn steadily over time. The road in crypto is long; as long as you survive, you can wait for your own opportunity.
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What is the most painful pit you have stepped into? Let's discuss in the comments, and I’ll help you avoid the pitfalls~