Entered the crypto world at 30, now 38, that’s a full 8 years of grinding.

2023 to 2024 was definitely a turning point—my account hit eight figures for the first time. Now when I travel and stay at hotels, dropping 4,100 a night doesn’t even make me blink. I love putting crypto logos on my luggage and hats—no matter where I go, I always run into fellow travelers from the space.

Compared to older relatives running factories or doing e-commerce, life is much easier: no need to watch over supply chains, no contract disputes, no clients defaulting on payments. Most of the headaches are gone.

People often ask: What’s the secret to trading crypto?

After thinking about it, it really comes down to two words—mindset is king, skills take a back seat.

After all these years of ups and downs, I’ve summed up a few “survival rules”:

**BTC will always be the boss.**
In this game, your eyes must stay on it. When Bitcoin pumps, altcoins get to ride the wave; when Bitcoin dumps, the little guys all get crushed. Occasionally, ETH has its own moves, but don’t count on alts to hold up if the main market crashes.

**BTC and USDT are a seesaw.**
Remember: if USDT price rises, be wary of Bitcoin; if Bitcoin is pumping hard, convert some to USDT to lock in profits.

**Two golden time windows:**

Midnight to 1 a.m.—most likely time for “wicks.” Place orders before bed, and you often catch bargains.

6 a.m. to 8 a.m.—this sets the tone for the whole day:
If the market dropped in the first half of the night and is still dropping now, buy in blindly—it’ll likely bounce back during the day.
If it pumped in the first half and is still going up now, get out quick—most of the time, a pullback is coming.

**Don’t lose focus at 5 p.m.**
Because of time zones, that’s when US funds enter the market, so big moves often happen.

**“Black Friday”? Don’t take it too seriously.**
Markets have dropped, risen, and gone sideways on Fridays—it all depends on the news cycle.

**The most practical rule:**
As long as it’s not a shitcoin and has real trading volume, don’t panic if it drops. In three to five days, or maybe a month, it’ll bounce back. If you have spare cash, buy in batches to average down; if not, just hold on—it’s usually fine.

My proudest case: bought DOGE at 0.085, held on tight all the way until now, over 20x returns.

Fact is: in the end, crypto trading is all about patience and self-control.