Last night, I saw a newcomer crying: "I followed the trend and invested in a popular cryptocurrency, lost half a year's salary in 3 days, and now at 4 AM I'm still flipping through the market looking for a lifeline." Isn't that just me 7 years ago? Back then, I gambled all my savings on a 'star project', and ended up losing all but the money to buy instant noodles in a week, crying on the balcony of my rental apartment while staring at the K-line, even the music from the aunt downstairs dancing felt like mockery.
The crypto market is not about who makes the most money, but about who dies the slowest. I've seen too many people rush in with dreams of 'getting rich overnight', treating trading software like a slot machine, only to be taught a harsh lesson by the market. Today, I'm sharing 4 survival principles that I learned through hard-earned money; those who understand them can at least survive 3 more bull and bear cycles in this hellish arena!
[Cut: 3% stop-loss line, my lifeline]
When I first entered the industry, like all beginners, I always thought 'if it drops, just hold on, it will rebound'—until one time I stepped on a landmine, watching my account shrink from five digits to two digits, only then did I realize 'if you can't bear to cut losses, you will be uprooted.'
Now my iron rule is harder than rebar: for every trade, the stop-loss line is set firmly at 3%, and if it falls, I directly clear the position with one click, absolutely not 'getting emotional' with the candlesticks. Last year, there was a niche cryptocurrency that surged 200%; friends around me were crazily increasing their positions, but I decisively exited when it retraced 2.8%. Later, this cryptocurrency was directly cut in half, and my friends cried and asked me how I managed to hold back.
Remember: The volatility of the cryptocurrency market is comparable to riding a roller coaster, 'cutting the tail' is not giving up, it is tactical retreat. Those who hold the mentality of 'waiting a little longer' ultimately become 'cannon fodder' on the candlestick chart—you think you are bottom-fishing, but you are actually catching flying knives, and those are the poisonous ones.
[Calm: No signal, absolutely do not act, no matter how crazy the hotspot is]
In today's cryptocurrency circle, there are new 'wealth myths' every day: 'A certain cryptocurrency doubled in three days' 'A certain big shot made millions,' and the shouting in the group is even louder than a vegetable market. But I have long learned to 'turn a deaf ear,' and even muted a few groups that shouted crazily.
Trading is not a sprint, it is a marathon, and it is a marathon in the desert—those who can truly survive are not the ones running every day, but those who know how to conserve their strength in a sandstorm. I have a dedicated 'observation list'; any cryptocurrency that wants to enter my portfolio must meet two conditions: volume and price must rise together, and it must break through key resistance levels—missing one is not negotiable.
Last month, there was a hot cryptocurrency that was hyped up, surging 150% in a single day. Fans messaged me asking if I wanted to invest, and I directly sent them a chart: 'A surge without volume is a paper tiger, it will burst with a poke.' Sure enough, three days later, this cryptocurrency fell back to its starting point, and those who followed the trend began to collectively complain about 'being cut off.'
[Practice: Turn trading into 'muscle memory,' refuse emotional operations]
I have seen too many people treat trading rooms as casinos, chasing after rises and panicking during falls, operating purely on feelings—this is not trading, it is 'giving away money.' I have long made trading into a 'standardized process': fixed time to watch the market every day, record candlestick patterns, review profit and loss reasons, and even create a 'response manual' for common market trends.
For example: when a bearish engulfing pattern appears, directly reduce the position by 50%; if it breaks the previous high without volume, decisively exit; if it retraces to the support level with shrinking volume, try small positions. Now, these operations have become my 'muscle memory,' even if the market goes crazy, I will not lose my composure.
Last year, during the craziest part of the bull market, my account made a profit for five consecutive days. Friends around me urged me to 'increase my position, take advantage of the trend to earn a profit,' but I still followed the process to take profits, converting 30% of my profits into fiat currency. Later, when the market corrected, many people lost their profits or even incurred losses, while I calmly enjoyed milk tea—remember, the core of trading is 'stability,' not 'speed.' Repeating correct operations earns more than blindly messing around.
[Calm: Account fluctuations do not affect my milk tea]
If the first three principles are 'techniques,' then 'calm' is the 'way'—let your account learn to 'breathe independently,' only then can you truly become the 'master' of the market, not a 'slave.'
Now, I look at the market like checking the weather forecast: if it rises, I won't check my account again; if it falls, I still order milk tea takeout, and I even set automatic reminders for profit-taking and stop-loss, so I don't have to stare at the screen all day. Once my position was limit-up for three consecutive days, and a friend said I 'must be secretly overjoyed,' but I still had my meals and sleep, and easily converted half of my profits into stable assets—this was even calmer than receiving a year-end bonus.
Newcomers often ask me: 'How to cultivate the right mindset?' I say: 'When you go to the supermarket to buy a pound of eggs, watch it every day, tell yourself that 'price fluctuations are like egg prices, there's no need to make a big fuss,' practice for a month, and your mindset will naturally stabilize.' In fact, mindset is not about 'endurance,' but about 'experience.' After seeing three rounds of bull and bear markets, experiencing cycles of earning and losing, you will understand: market fluctuations are temporary, only by surviving can you wait for real opportunities.
