Having been in this circle for ten years, experiencing margin calls, anxiety, and countless nights staying up watching the markets, I now realize that the simplest principles are often the hardest to follow. From losses to stable profits, with an annualized return of over 70%, and growing the account from zero to eight figures, the core insight along this journey is only one: survive first, then talk about making money.

Sharing some practical experience with those still exploring the market—this isn’t about calling trades; it’s a trading manual that puts survival first.

**The first step to making money is actually withdrawing funds**

Many people will laugh, making money isn’t hard. The hard part is, can you really take that money out of your account? My habit is simple: for every 1000U increase in the account, withdraw 400U to your bank card, and let the rest continue to grow. Seeing many digits in the account is just floating profit; the real cash is in your bank. How many have been trapped by the thought of “earning a little more,” only to end up losing their principal.

**Use indicators to speak, don’t gamble based on feelings**

Trading by gut feeling? That’s a hallmark of retail traders. I mainly use TradingView, focusing on MACD, RSI, and Bollinger Bands. What’s the real entry signal? At least two indicators aligned before considering a trade. For short-term rhythm, use the 1-hour chart; for trend judgment, look at the 4-hour chart. For example, when going long on Ethereum, check that two consecutive 1-hour candles are above the Bollinger middle band and MACD is showing a bullish crossover. Only when these conditions are met do I enter.

**Stop-loss is the guarantee of staying alive**

Setting a tight stop-loss makes it easy to get wiped out by the market. My approach is, when I can monitor the market, dynamically move the stop-loss to protect profits. When I can’t watch the market, I set a hard stop-loss, for example, exit if loss reaches 3%. This way, even in extreme market conditions, you can avoid big losses. Don’t think of stop-loss as being timid; it’s actually the bottom line for professional traders.

**Regular withdrawals make the curve healthier**

Every Friday, I withdraw 30% of the profits, regardless of whether that week was profitable or not—just take out a portion first. Stick to this for three months, and you’ll find your account curve becomes healthier, and your emotions stabilize. This helps you break out of the vicious cycle of repeatedly resetting and starting over.

**Draw clear red lines**

I never use leverage exceeding 10x, and for beginners, 3 to 5x is enough. Limit your trading to no more than 3 times a day; more than that means your emotions are controlling you. Stay away from meme coins, joke tokens—high volatility, low value, tools for harvesting retail investors. More importantly, don’t borrow money to trade crypto.

The most crucial point: treat crypto trading as a profession, not gambling. Study the charts seriously when needed, rest properly when needed. No all-nighters, no chasing highs or panic selling. What you want is long-term stable returns, not short-term thrills.

Once you truly have a stable, replicable, and risk-controlled strategy, you’ll realize that the sense of security from steady profits is far more valuable than the illusion of getting rich overnight.