There is a saying I now firmly believe— the market only respects those who are well-prepared and ignores any complaints.

At 3 a.m., the decline on the screen was as glaring as a knife. The night of margin liquidation, five months of gains vanished in an instant. It wasn’t about money; it was the collapse of my entire belief system. Only later did I realize where my biggest mistake lay.

I have summarized my years of experience and lessons into four rules. They are not lofty theories, but lessons learned through actual accounts.

**Rule 1: Respect the trend, don’t go against the market**

In the early days, I was a staunch bull, convinced that good projects would eventually rebound. The result was repeated halts. The turning point was when I started only looking at the weekly timeframe as a lifeline—any coin that declined for three days straight was immediately removed from my watchlist, to avoid getting stuck in endless hesitation.

The crypto market is like an ocean; you can’t change the tide’s direction, only go with the flow. Experienced traders understand one thing: the trend is your best friend and also your boss. No one can make money by going against their boss.

**Rule 2: Position management, be as cautious as defusing a bomb**

The most common mistake beginners make is falling in love at first sight—seeing a project that looks good and going all in immediately. I now use the “Minefield Clearing Method”: start by investing 10% of your funds to test the waters, and once the technical and emotional aspects stabilize, gradually increase to 30%.

Surviving in this market is more important than making big money. What matters are ten small wins, not one fatal full-position liquidation.

These rules may seem simple, but few can truly follow through. I hope you won’t repeat my mistakes.