From Real Experience: How to Survive in Crypto Before Thinking About Making a Lot of Money

I’m not a big winner from the start. On the contrary, I am the type of “seasoned veteran who has taken enough hits”: I have witnessed accounts approaching zero, and I have also experienced doubling my assets in extreme excitement. There was a worst period when I only had 5,000 USDT left. Every time I placed an order, my hands trembled not because I was afraid of losing more, but because I was afraid of losing my last capital.

Looking back, that very period was the starting point for change. I no longer dream of getting rich quickly, but only think about one thing: how to survive first, then focus on sustainable earning. This article does not contain any wealth myths, just what I have experienced and verified myself.

Focus Only on 1–2 Core Coins, Don’t Overload In the early days of entering the market, I almost bought every type of coin: meme coins, new system coins, “rumored to skyrocket” coins. The results were very familiar: When coins surged, I didn’t hold them; when they plummeted, I held too many. Later, I understood: opportunities in crypto are plentiful, but your capital and focus are limited. Tracking 10 coins without understanding which one is still risky, compared to just trading 1 coin but holding it very confidently. I chose Ethereum as my main focus, for three simple reasons: Price has repeatable patterns and clear zones: Important price levels are often tested repeatedly. When the price reaches these zones, the probability of buying support is quite high. Real usage demand: DeFi, NFT, Layer 2… all require ETH as the foundation. The more the ecosystem develops, the more stable the long-term value. Continuous upgrades: Improvements that reduce fees and increase performance have real impacts, not just rumors to drive up the price. My approach is very “slow”: I only look at the 4H chart of ETH daily, drawing support and resistance zones. When the market is euphoric, I stay out. When the market is panicking, I enter orders gradually. No need to buy at the bottom, just buy where the price starts “falling without stopping.”

Break the Habit of FOMO, Learn to Buy When Others Are Afraid Anyone who has suffered heavy losses understands one thing: FOMO is the fastest way to wipe out your account. Seeing a long green candle, rushing in, and many times I became the bagholder for others. Now, I do the opposite: Place buy orders during market panic: When prices drop sharply due to bad news, and oversold indicators appear, I pre-set buy orders lower. Automatic order matching helps me avoid hesitation or fear. Take partial profits: When in profit, I don’t hold everything. For example, a 10–15% gain, I withdraw part of the capital, and the remaining part is protected to lock in profits. Limit leverage: I’ve seen too many people “blow up” overnight because of high leverage. If I use leverage, it’s very low and only when I’m in profit, never holding losses. The core of contrarian trading is: act only when market emotions reach extremes, and you still have enough money to place orders.

Psychology Matters More Than Any Indicator I used to believe that technical indicators were “sacred.” After many losses, I realized: psychology is what determines whether you survive or get eliminated. When my account was down to 5,000 USDT, I forced myself to follow three principles: Cut losses when wrong, don’t average down when in loss: Hope that “it will recover, so I sell” is the way to turn small losses into big ones. Real profits are only when you withdraw them: I often transfer part of the gains into stablecoins to preserve the results. Don’t trade all day and night: The market never sleeps, but humans do. Trading when tired or emotional can lead to stupid decisions. Every day before trading, I write a clear plan. Afterward, I review whether I followed it. Maintaining this habit for a month, you will see yourself calmer and more disciplined.

Conclusion Crypto always offers opportunities, but only those with capital can wait for them. From 5,000 USDT to 500,000 USDT, it took me nearly three years. I missed many “crazy” rallies but also avoided many catastrophic crashes. If I had to summarize, the core is only three things: Use only idle money, don’t risk your entire life. Hold large-cap coins to accumulate value, treat small coins as lottery tickets. Discipline is more important than intelligence. If you are losing, don’t rush to recover. Stop, reassess your strategy. The market will still be there, but your capital might not. Survive first, get rich later—that’s just a matter of time.