After ten years of trading cryptocurrencies, I feel like I've seen through this industry.
That was in March 2020, when the market was in a panic, and Bitcoin crashed from nearly ten thousand dollars to 3800. I had just over five thousand U left in my account, but I knew my two-year wait for an opportunity might have come.
I didn't rush in on the day of the crash. Instead, I waited a week, watching the market no longer make new lows and start to consolidate. I told myself: this is 'bottom fishing', using time to gain space. I bought in three batches at 4000, 4500, and 5000, fully invested.
After buying, I didn't look at the market again. I knew there was no rush; the main upward wave needed time to brew. Sure enough, after two months of consolidation, the market finally took off. I didn't guess the top; I only set a trailing stop to let profits run. When it rose to ten thousand, many people shouted that it had peaked, so I reduced my position by a third; after a pullback and stabilization, I added back in.
What really tests people is the beginning of 2021. From thirty thousand to forty thousand, then plummeting back to thirty thousand, market sentiment was like a roller coaster. I defended my position at a key level based on weekly support, refusing to be shaken out. Because I knew, the real acceleration phase had not yet come.
Then came the epic market everyone knows. I took profits in batches around fifty thousand and sixty thousand, finally clearing my last batch of spot above sixty-three thousand. My account assets changed from five thousand USD to seven figures.
Looking back, there were no miraculous operations in this trade. I simply did what I understood before: layout when no one is paying attention, and exit when madness is spreading. For a whole year, I spent most of my time waiting, and the actual time spent trading was less than a week. Profits are not 'traded' out, they are 'waited' out like a hunter.
This experience made me completely believe: in this market, slow is fast. When you are no longer led by every fluctuation of the candlesticks, you can see the real waves.
Most people lose money, not because the market is bad, but because they step into the pit step by step themselves.
Ten years ago, when I first entered the industry, I watched others double their money in a few days, feeling anxious and envious, always thinking that if I was just a step slower, I would miss an era. What was the result? Chasing highs and cutting lows, my account felt like it was being drained by a pump, losing more the more impatient I became.
Later, I completely woke up: for small funds to survive, the key is not 'fast' but 'waiting'. In a year, it is actually enough to catch two or three major uptrends to steadily earn a profit that covers a year's living expenses. Trading every day with full positions and rushing in when news breaks is not trading; it's gambling.
I have seen too many newcomers who dare to go all-in without even recognizing the candlesticks fully. But real trading is not a simulation; there is no redo once you make a mistake. Some people are always superstitious about news, chasing high when good news comes out, only to be hit by the big players as soon as they enter the market—I've seen this play too many times in the past ten years. Remember, the market always anticipates first; good news often turns into bad news when it lands. When everyone knows this news, it is already not an opportunity.
Rhythm is more important. When the market is sluggish, rebounds are as slow as an old ox pulling a cart; but once it accelerates downward, rebounds can be astonishingly fast. Bottom fishing and peak escaping rely on grasping the rhythm.
I also suffered a huge loss: not reducing positions before holidays. I always thought I would be the exception, but when the holiday arrived, Bitcoin suddenly plummeted, evaporating months of profits in an instant. The iron law of the market never favors those who rely on luck.
My method is actually not complicated: keep enough cash for medium-term trading, sell when prices rise and buy when they fall; for short-term, only focus on coins with high trading volume, using 15-minute candlesticks and KDJ to find the rhythm. Those obscure small coins are the playground for big players to cut retail investors, not our battlefield.
After ten years, my biggest realization is: making money does not rely on luck, but on execution. Whether you can make money from the market is actually already written in your habits. Don't always fantasize about getting rich overnight; first learn to be steady, then talk about winning.
Now I often help newcomers review their trades, helping them identify the root causes of their losses. Sometimes, pinpointing a rhythm or clarifying a line of thought can really save an account.
In the past, I used to stumble around in the dark alone, but now I have the light in my hands.
The light is always on, will you follow?
