Ingrain trading discipline into your bones.
The market can't kill you.
Last week late at night, a fan sent me a screenshot: altcoins plummeted by 18%, but he followed his plan and only lost 2% by cutting losses, then bought back at a low position, earning 4% that day. He exclaimed, 'Coach, I discovered for the first time that I can make money without going all in.'
I replied to him: 'The secret to surviving in the crypto world is just one phrase - slow is fast, not gambling is winning.'
This brother posted a screenshot of a 50x leverage liquidation a month ago, going to zero in ten minutes. At that time, he asked me, 'Is it because I haven't mastered the technical indicators?' I directly poured cold water on him: 'It has nothing to do with your skills; you were killed by your inner demon.'
1. The three major killers of the dream of sudden wealth
Look at how many people have fallen in the crypto circle; 90% have died under the same knife:
Greed—seeing a bullish candle rise makes you itch with desire, fantasizing about achieving financial freedom in one go, only for the market to reverse, leaving you unable to protect your capital. Blindly chasing highs during market rises and panicking during declines are both driven by greed and fear.
Hurry—without finishing reading the project white paper, hearing others shout 'thousandfold coins' makes you rush to go all in, fearing to miss this train to wealth. Blindly following influencers or the FOMO mood spread by communities is extremely dangerous.
Endure—when losses have already exceeded half, comforting yourself with 'value investing' results in short positions turning into legacies, leaving no opportunity to cut losses. Fear of small losses and failure to stop loss in time will lead to larger losses.
2. My three iron rules
I set three strict rules for that fan, forcing him to write them in his phone's memo and loudly recite them before the market opens every day:
1. No single position over 25%, never leave empty guns
No matter how good an opportunity seems, do not go all in. You must keep emergency cash; the probability of liquidation for full-position traders is 11 times that of partial-position traders. When your bullets are all fired, you can only watch others make money when the real opportunity arrives.
2. Take partial profits at 5% gains, accumulating small victories into significant wins.
Don't underestimate mosquito meat; compound interest can turn a mosquito leg into an elephant leg. Set clear stop-loss and take-profit points to avoid emotional trading. The core of trading discipline is not to pursue perfection but to accept discomfort—knowing it’s hard, you still have to execute according to the plan.
3. Break the stop-loss line, decisively cut losses without entanglement
The preset stop-loss line is the baseline; once touched, close positions immediately, do not average down or hold onto losing positions. Strictly execute the trading plan to avoid emotional decision-making. Moving stop-loss is a fast track to liquidation.
3. Practical techniques to lock in inner demons
To prevent him from getting itchy, I directly locked his trading platform's leverage below 3 times, and I keep the password. Want to change it? You can, but first, run 5 kilometers to clear your mind, then explain your reasons to me via video.
Why is it 3 times? Because users with 10x leverage have an average survival period of only 17 days, and 83% of liquidation orders occur when leverage is ≥5 times. For novices, banning leverage is the first iron rule.
True winners do not rely on a single windfall but avoid fatal mistakes, seize key opportunities, and gradually achieve compounding. The market is always in motion; patiently waiting for your own opportunity is smarter than blindly chasing every hotspot.
4. Discipline is the greatest moat
After I fully implemented these principles, that fan finally experienced the benefits of 'planned trading.' In the last operation, he placed an order according to the pre-set stop-loss point, automatically executing during a market crash, controlling losses within 2%, and then he used reserved funds to buy back at a low point, resulting in a net gain for the day.
At that moment, he understood: the first lesson of survival in the crypto circle is not how much you earn, but how long you survive.
Trading frequency is not your friend—each order is a probability game, and transaction fees, slippage, and mistakes are eating away at your capital. Decisions made in a fatigued state are worse than flipping a coin randomly; they amplify emotions and weaken judgment.
5. My survival insights
After years of ups and downs, I have summarized a few core insights:
1. Staying still is also a strategy
Not every opportunity belongs to you. If I cannot explain in one sentence why to place an order, then I will resolutely refrain from acting. Market hotspots rotate quickly, blindly participating in unfamiliar areas can easily lead to becoming a bag holder.
2. Risk control is the science of survival
Before each trade, ask yourself three questions: What is my position? Where is my stop-loss? What is the risk-reward ratio? If the answers are vague, never enter the market. It’s better to miss ten small profits than to risk losing everything in one go.
3. Surviving means output
There are no eternal winners in the crypto circle, but there are lasting survivors. Survival is victory. Cambridge data shows that strictly adhering to trading rules increases the survival rate of novices from 19% to 68% over three years. In this market, controlling risk is more important than chasing high profits.
The essence of investment is realizing knowledge; you will never earn money beyond your understanding. True trading experts are not without emotions but deeply understand their psychological weaknesses and impose systematic constraints.
Follow the rules, control emotions, and maintain the baseline—only those who can stay at the table are qualified to talk about victory.
Writing down positions, take-profits, and stop-losses as code ingrains them in muscle memory; the market cannot kill you. Remember, first learn to survive, then talk about recovery.
In this arena of winners and losers, those who survive are not necessarily the most skilled but those with the least inner demons. Follow Xiang Ge to learn more first-hand information and precise points in the crypto circle, becoming your guide in the crypto world; learning is your greatest wealth!#加密市场反弹 #加密市场观察 $ETH
