Today, let's not talk about the myth of a thousandfold returns; I just want to chat with you about: when everyone says 'the crypto world is a game for big players,' what exactly did those who started with a few thousand yuan do right?
1. The young person who changed my perception
Three years ago, I met a college student in a community. He entered with 5000 yuan living expenses, and a year later, his account grew to 50,000 yuan. I asked him for the secret, and he showed me an Excel spreadsheet—detailed records of every transaction, including the reasons, amounts, and reflections.
'I have no money, so I can't afford to lose,' he said, 'I can only treat every penny as if it were the last one I have.'
At that moment, I understood: the advantage of small funds is never about 'seeking huge profits', but about 'being forced to be rational'.
Two, the survival rules for small funds: restraint is more important than courage.
Rule 1: Goal setting decides life or death.
I have seen too many small fund investors fail because they approach 'long-term investments' with a 'let's gamble' mindset.
The correct goal for small funds should be:
First year: do not lose money, familiarize with market rhythms;
Second year: annualized return of 20-30%, outpace inflation;
Third year: establish a stable trading system for continuous profit.
Remember: small funds only need a 100% increase to double, but reaching zero only requires one mistake.
Rule 2: Avoid 'small fund killers'.
I have statistically analyzed 100 small fund investors who lost more than 50%, and found that they all share the following characteristics:
Average holding of more than 10 currencies (capital overly diversified);
Average single loss exceeds 30% (no stop-loss discipline);
Monthly trading frequency exceeds 20 times (overtrading).
Small funds should do the exact opposite: concentrate, stop-loss, low frequency.
Rule 3: Utilize the advantages of 'small and beautiful'.
Large funds have difficulty entering and exiting, but small funds can:
Accurately layout potential currencies in the market value range of 100-500 million;
Quickly build positions when the market starts;
Swiftly exit when risks appear.
The key is to know where your strengths lie and to operate within that range.
Three, my 'small fund combat manual'.
Step one: fund allocation (taking 5000 yuan as an example).
3000 yuan (60%): fixed investment in Bitcoin and Ethereum, with a set monthly amount;
1500 yuan (30%): 2-3 potential small cryptocurrencies, 500 yuan each;
500 yuan (10%): never touch, as a 'learning fund' (used for paying courses, data tools, etc.).
This way, even if all small cryptocurrencies go to zero, you still have 60% of your funds in mainstream currencies.
Step two: select currency framework.
I have five standards for choosing small-cap currencies:
Market value range: 100-500 million USD (too large has no space, too small has high risk);
Launch time: 6-18 months (too new is unstable, too old lacks explosiveness);
GitHub: code submissions in the past month;
Community: Discord/Telegram daily activity exceeds 1000 people;
Fundamentals: there are real products or protocols in operation.
Consider projects that meet four out of the five standards, and directly abandon those that meet less than three.
Step three: entrance and exit discipline.
Entrance:
Price breaks through key resistance levels and stabilizes for 3 days;
Trading volume increases to more than 1.5 times the monthly average;
Market sentiment has not yet overheated (search index has not surged).
Stop-loss:
Hard stop-loss: leave unconditionally with a 15% loss;
Time stop-loss: leave unconditionally if the position has not met expectations after 30 days;
Event stop-loss: leave unconditionally if negative news appears about a project.
Take profit:
Profit 30%: sell the principal part;
Profit 50%: sell another 30%;
Set mobile stop-loss for the remaining part and let profits run.
The goal of small funds is not to capture the entire increase, but to grasp the certain part.
Four, strategies for different market cycles.
Mid bull market (current stage):
Use 70% of funds to layout mainstream currencies (BTC/ETH);
Use 30% of funds to layout 2-3 leading projects (AI, DeFi, GameFi, etc.);
Monthly fixed investment, do not chase prices.
Late bull market (frenzy stage):
Gradually sell small-cap currencies;
Transfer profits to stablecoins;
Retain mainstream currency positions, set mobile stop-loss.
Early bear market (downward stage):
Clear all small-cap currencies;
Retain mainstream currency fixed investments;
Spend a lot of time learning and researching the next round of potential projects.
Late bear market (bottom-building stage):
Start laying out the next round of potential currencies in batches;
Focus on studying projects that are still being built in a bear market;
Wait, wait patiently.
Five, three habits that small funds must develop.
Habit 1: Daily review, but no need to watch the market closely.
I spend 30 minutes every day doing three things:
Check if the holding currencies have significant news;
Review whether yesterday's trades complied with the plan;
Record changes in market sentiment (greed and fear index, search popularity, etc.).
The most valuable thing for small funds is not money, but time—using time to gain understanding.
Habit 2: Regularly withdraw profits.
Whenever profits reach the following milestones:
Total funds increase by 50%: withdraw 30% of the growth.
Doubling a single currency: withdraw the principal;
Monthly profit exceeds 20%: withdraw the excess.
Only the money that leaves the market is the real profit.
Habit 3: Maintain the ability to earn outside the market.
All my most successful investor friends share a common characteristic:
Continuously improve in the main business;
Regularly invest main business income into the market;
Do not rely on trading income for living.
Investment should be a tool to improve life, not the entirety of life.
Six, advice for small fund investors at different stages.
First stage: 0-10,000 yuan.
Goal: don't lose money, establish a system.
Suggestions:
Only trade Bitcoin and Ethereum;
Monthly fixed investment;
Record the emotional changes of each trade.
Second stage: 10,000-100,000 yuan.
Goal: annualized return of 20-30%.
Suggestions:
80% of funds in mainstream currencies, 20% in potential small currencies;
Establish a complete trading plan;
Start systematically learning technical analysis and fundamental analysis.
Third stage: 100,000-500,000 yuan.
Goal: control drawdowns, achieve stable appreciation.
Suggestions:
Establish a multi-strategy portfolio (fixed investment + swing + arbitrage);
Start using professional tools (data platforms, analysis software);
Establish your own investment framework.
Seven, the final heartfelt words.
I know that small fund investors often feel powerless—watching others operate boldly while they can only be cautious.
But I want to tell you: in this market, scale is never the deciding factor; discipline is.
That college student who started with 5000 yuan had over 200,000 in his account by the time he graduated last year.
He told me: 'What I am most grateful for is having little money at the beginning—because with little money, I dared not make mistakes; because I dared not make mistakes, I developed discipline.'
Now, his capital is no longer 'small funds', but he still maintains the habits he had at the beginning:
Daily review, strict stop-loss, regular withdrawals.
He said: 'These habits are more important than any technology.'
The fairest place in the cryptocurrency world is that it does not care about your starting point, only your endpoint.
What decides the endpoint is not a miraculous operation on a particular occasion, but the persistence and restraint of every day.
If you are also a small fund investor looking for your own path, feel free to follow me.
I will continue to share:
How small funds can efficiently research projects.
Position management methods for different fund sizes.
And, how to establish a competitive advantage with limited resources.
There are no miracles of overnight wealth here, only the growth of accumulation over time.
After all, in this marathon—stability is the fastest speed.
Follow me, don't get lost! Patience accumulates, waiting for flowers to bloom. 🌱
