Ten years of hardships, from ignorance to awakening
Ten years ago today, I stepped into the crypto world with my hard-earned savings. At that time, I was like many newcomers today, stirred by various myths of becoming rich overnight. Ten years have passed, and I have witnessed too many myths of overnight riches, as well as more tragedies of losing everything.
Today, what I want to share is not some profound theory, but three 'foolish methods' that have allowed me to survive in this market for ten years. In this complex market, sometimes the simplest strategies are the most effective.
1. Only play with coins that have ancestors: bad money drives out good money is the norm
When I first entered the market, I was also dazzled by various cool-sounding altcoins. I remember there was a coin called 'Interstellar Universe' that was heavily promoted. I jumped into it with the group's enthusiasm, and as a result, it dropped 80% in half a month. My hands trembled when I had to sell at a loss.
This lesson taught me a principle: in this unregulated jungle, only those coins with a true foundation can withstand the storms.
Later, I set a strict rule for myself — only deal with Bitcoin and Ethereum. Why? Because they are the cornerstones of this industry. Even if they dropped 70% during the bear market in 2018, as long as you don't sell at a loss, there will always be a chance to come back. Most altcoins, once they drop, really can't rise again.
I have seen too many people chasing various concept coins, from DeFi to NFTs, from the metaverse to AI, and in the end, they mostly lose more than they gain. I stick to my Bitcoin and Ethereum; although I won't get rich overnight, at least I can sleep soundly.
There are new concepts every day in the crypto world, but true value storage never goes out of style. In this industry, living long is more important than earning fast.
Second, dollar-cost averaging is the best friend of ordinary people: give up the fantasy of timing the market.
This dollar-cost averaging strategy sounds silly, but for an ordinary person like me, it's the most reliable.
Since 2016, after I receive my salary every month, I consistently take out 5% for dollar-cost averaging. Regardless of whether the coin price is $3,000 or $60,000, I never hesitate to buy because it 'rose too high' or want to buy more because it 'dropped too much.'
In March 2020, Bitcoin plummeted below $4,000, and the market was in a panic. Many around me were afraid of going to zero and dared not continue investing. But I still followed my plan, and my dollar-cost averaging did not stop that month. Later, when the market warmed up, my average cost was much lower than those trying to time the market.
The biggest feature of the crypto world is its unpredictability; no one can accurately judge market tops and bottoms. Through dollar-cost averaging, I gave up the fantasy of timing the market and avoided being swayed by emotions. Over the past decade, I've seen too many people trying to time the market, often chasing the highs and selling at the lows.
The charm of dollar-cost averaging lies in its stripping away emotional factors, making investment a discipline rather than gambling.
Third, not cashing in on profits is equivalent to not making money: learning to 'hit the brakes' is more important than accelerating.
At the peak of the bull market in 2021, my account's floating profit reached 4.7 million. Many people advised me to hold on, saying it could reach 10 million. But I resolutely withdrew 1.5 million to buy a small house, and half of the remaining funds were converted to cash.
Later, the market corrected by 60%, and many who had once made millions returned to square one. Because I cashed out early, I preserved most of my gains.
In the crypto world, the hardest part is not making money, but keeping it. Greed is the hardest part of human nature to overcome. Many people go from massive profits to losing everything because they don't understand when to take profits.
The rule I set for myself is: whenever my assets double from the initial investment, I will at least withdraw 30% of the profits to convert into real assets. This money is either used to improve my life or allocated to low-risk financial products.
Wealth in the crypto world, if only staying on paper, will always be just numbers. Only by converting it into tangible life security can it be considered real profit.
Survival is the top priority: my insights from the crypto world.
In the past ten years, my biggest realization is that the crypto world is not a casino, but a battlefield for monetizing knowledge.
Those who can survive long-term in this market are not the smartest or the most daring gamblers, but the most disciplined and the best at risk control.
I have seen too many tragedies around me: those who leveraged and lost everything overnight, those who heavily invested in altcoins and lost everything, and even those who borrowed money to trade crypto and ended up losing their families. The root of these tragedies is treating the crypto world as a casino and seeing oneself as a gambler.
Now, whenever a newcomer asks me whether they should enter the crypto world, my advice is always: first ensure a worry-free life, then invest with spare money. The crypto world does have opportunities, but it's not worth risking your entire life for it.
Ten years have passed, and my account has grown from 30,000 to a peak of 4.7 million, and now I am living steadily with over 2 million. I do not envy those overnight success stories because I know that in this industry, longevity is the true victory.
Sometimes, slow is fast; stability leads to longevity. This is my survival philosophy in the crypto world. Follow Ake to learn more first-hand information and precise points of crypto knowledge, becoming your navigation in the crypto world; learning is your greatest wealth!
