Trading is fundamentally not complicated at all. The core idea is clear and easy to understand—grasp the key points and you'll avoid many detours.

**Step One: First, identify the market's major direction—is it a bull market or a bear market? Get the direction right, and your trading is already half successful.** Many people get caught up in complex indicators and end up overlooking the most intuitive bull and bear characteristics.

My definition of bull and bear markets is straightforward: if a decline over a week can be fully recovered within just three days, that's a textbook bull market. In a bull market, capital absorption is strong, downturns are merely temporary corrections, lost ground is quickly reclaimed, and the trend consistently moves upward.

Conversely, if gains accumulated slowly over a week are completely wiped out in a single day—all profits instantly forfeited—that's a typical bear market. In a bear market, bounces lack conviction, rallies are merely short-lived bull traps, and any gains are swiftly erased. The trend continues to weaken.

Trading strategy consequently becomes straightforward: when it's clearly a bull market, trade long decisively and follow the trend. When you determine it's a bear market, short decisively and don't fight the trend. Set aside complicated theories and useless tactics. Identify the bull or bear, trade with the trend, don't catch tops, don't chase bottoms, and follow the major trend—this is the most solid and efficient trading approach.