Don’t call me a guru—I’m just an old hand who’s broken a leg or two in this game.

Back in 2019, when Bitcoin got cut in half, I went all-in long and got liquidated to zero. In 2021, I tried to catch the bottom with altcoins—ended up halfway down the mountain, eating instant noodles for 30 days straight at my worst. The fact that I’m still here breathing is all thanks to hard-earned lessons paid for with real money.

Take this week as an example: Bitcoin dropped below $86,000, 170,000 people got liquidated in a single day, and $528 million evaporated faster than boiling water. In a market this wild, survival comes first.

Last year, a buddy came to me with $2,700, eyes red, saying he wanted to patch up his past losses.

I didn’t draw any charts for him, didn’t talk about MACD crossovers or other technical mumbo jumbo. I just gave him three heartfelt rules.

He stuck to them for three months, and his account grew to $50,000. Even after this round of crashes, he’s still sitting steady at the table.

**Rule 1: Split your money into three parts—make survival your top priority**

I told him to divide his $2,700 into three parts, $900 each, and never let one touch the other’s territory.

This is a rule I learned the hard way after getting wiped out: use the first part for short-term trades—at most two trades a day, then close the app and go do something else. Even one more look can make you greedy, thinking “just one more trade,” and you end up giving all your profits back.

The second part is for catching trends. If the weekly chart doesn’t show a clear bullish signal and there’s no breakout with volume over key resistance, stay out and do nothing. In this kind of choppy market, jumping in blindly is just donating money to the market.

The third part is your lifeline. When you see things like ETH dropping 7% in a single day, this is the money you use to average down and stay alive. Getting liquidated is like losing a finger—lose your principal and it’s like losing your head. You won’t even get a chance to make a comeback.

**Rule 2: Take the meat, don’t try to eat the whole fish**

Back in the day, I got slapped around in choppy markets nine times out of ten. Now I stick to this:

If the daily moving averages aren’t lined up neatly, don’t touch it. Ignore those so-called “opportunities”—missing out won’t kill you, but going in recklessly will.

Wait for a breakout with volume above previous highs, and a close above resistance. Only then, and only with a small position, do you test the waters.

When you’re up 30%, cash out half immediately and lock in those gains. Set a trailing stop at 10% for the rest. Remember: money in your pocket is real, numbers on a chart are just smoke. Trying to squeeze every penny out of every move? That’s a job for gods, not us mere mortals.

**Rule 3: Lock down your emotions—execute mechanically**

Before entering a trade, write your plan down in black and white: set your stop loss at 3%, close automatically if hit, and never hope “maybe it’ll bounce back.” That kind of thinking will kill you.

When you’re up 10%, move your stop loss to break even—everything after that is a free ride.

Shut down your computer at midnight sharp. No matter how tempting the chart looks, don’t watch—just go to sleep.

During this week’s crash, countless people panicked watching the screen, their hands shaking as they cut their positions, only to see the market rebound right after. Emotions are the biggest trap in this market.

The crypto market just lost $1.2 trillion in total value. The opportunities never stop, but if your principal’s gone, you’re out for good—you can’t even buy a ticket to watch.

Don’t rush to study Elliott Waves or Gann angles. Burn these three rules into your bones first. Show some respect for the market, and you’ll find more stability. Stay alive, and you’ll always have a shot at a comeback.