(Statement: The views expressed are personal and do not constitute investment advice.)

Remember that late night in 2020, when a friend was looking at the task panel and cursing: "Does this system really pay out? The trading costs are almost unbearable." Two months later, he used the rewards from completing tasks to buy a house in cash back home. Those who mocked him back then are now still sighing over rental contracts.

Similar stories are everywhere in the crypto world. The problem is, most people only see the ending but fail to grasp the critical timing window. When retail investors flood in collectively, the game rules have already been rewritten — task costs jump from tens of yuan to tens of thousands, and rewards can't even cover transaction fees, turning participants into free labor for project teams.

As someone who has experienced three bull and bear cycles, I have concluded: real opportunities do not knock twice.

**1. The Invisible Barrier of the Dividend Window: Cognitive Gaps Are the Moat**

In the wave of digital inscriptions in 2023, early participants numbered no more than 200. A recent graduate was sitting in a tech community studying source code, and after half a year, his account balance had increased by several digits. When the entire network was touting the "Inscription Wealth Myth," I repeatedly warned about risk exposure during live streams, but some still went all-in with their wedding money — a month later, the project collapsed, and they lost everything.

Why do some people never learn their lessons? Because market hype often outpaces fundamentals. When a concept is being discussed even by street vendors, the true liquidity has already been drained by those who have the information. Most of those later criticizing "air projects" were driven by FOMO to chase high, ultimately becoming bagholders.

**2. Behind the Stories of Survival: The Trap of Survivor Bias**

The most ironic phenomenon in the community is: during the cold bear market, it's hard to hear stories of "getting rich."