From the FOMO Curse to the Discipline of Survival: It Took Me 3 Years to Understand What “Right Trading” Truly Means

Have you ever had this feeling? Sitting in front of the screen at midnight, watching the green numbers flicker as if mocking you. Your account goes up by 5%, 10%, 20%, and your mind starts painting scenarios—quitting your job, opening a cafe, traveling to Bali, changing your life… But just one unexpected drop, a vertical line plunging down, your heart falls with the chart, your hands shake so much that you hesitate to press the close order button. Welcome to the real world of crypto trading. I used to be just as confused. Three years ago, I was an office worker, opening charts at night like buying lottery tickets. After saving up 30 million, I bet almost everything on a coin that was “breaking ATH”, with the naive belief: “Everyone says it’s going up, it can’t be wrong.” The result? The first time I FOMOed, I won. The second time, I lost all my profit. The third time, I lost my principal. In just a few months, I went from being “on cloud nine” straight down to earth. And thanks to those slaps from the market, I began to understand: Making money in crypto is not hard—the hard part is keeping it. After burning money many times, I distilled some lessons I wish I’d known sooner.

1. Trading Journal: The Mirror That Exposes Every Mistake I used to think just watching charts and analysis was enough. But when the market moved hard, I’d forget all my initial plans and act on emotion. Since I started writing a trading journal, I’ve realized how much I’ve been “self-sabotaging”: Opening trades because… the group chat said it would pumpMoving my stop loss down because “it might bounce back”Not taking profits because “it still looks like it’ll go up”Spending less time on charts, more time watching others’ trades After three months of notes, I found 90% of my losses were due to repeating mistakes, not because the market was too difficult. Writing a journal isn’t sexy or exciting, but it’s saved me from a lot of “dumb deaths.”
2. Not Setting a Stop Loss = Intentional Suicide Most newbies say this: “I have a stop in my head, if the price hits that level I’ll cut it myself.” No, you won’t. You won’t cut. Because when it hits, you’ll think: “Maybe it’ll bounce back a bit more…”“Can’t be that unlucky…”“What if I cut and then it reverses…” That’s the common mindset of everyone who’s ever blown up their account. Since I started setting stop loss and take profit right when I open a trade—and not changing them—the results have completely changed. My tip: Large assets → give it 20% roomSmall altcoins → 15% roomHit the target → exit without regret Crypto is extremely volatile, and there’s no safety net except your own discipline.
3. Never Put More Than 30% of Your Capital Into One Trade I used to “lightly all in” 70% on a coin I had extreme faith in. It halved in a week. My soul halved in a night. I realized: You can be right 9 times, but just one mistake and it’s over. After that, I set a strict rule: No coin gets more than 30% of total capitalPrioritize splitting into multiple positionsNo FOMO “all-in” no matter how good the news sounds Because in crypto, “black swan events” happen so often, they’re not even rare anymore.
4. Leverage—The Fastest Killer, Not the Market I used to think: “If I don’t use leverage, how will I ever get rich?” After seeing dozens of friends go from 2x their accounts in a week to losing it all overnight, I finally understood: Leverage doesn’t make you richer, it just blows up your mistakes faster. If you can’t calmly accept losing an entire position, it’s best not to touch leverage. Better to go slow than die fast. The Most Important Thing I Learned: Making Money Is a Skill — Keeping It Is Character After years of riding the market’s ups and downs, I’ve seen: Some people go from 5 million to 1 billion,And some go from billions back to… working in a factory I used to think those who made the most were the best. Not true. The best traders are those who know when to stop, are disciplined, and survive long term. If you’re worried because the market is crashing today, or you’re holding cash but afraid to enter, ask yourself these three questions: How much loss can I accept without breaking down?Is my next trade based on analysis or… emotion?If my account drops 50% tomorrow, will I still keep my cool? If you can’t answer all three clearly—you’re not ready to trade.