When I rushed into the contract trading with half a month's salary, my mind was filled with the beautiful dream of "tonight I'm getting the latest phone"—after all, all I saw were stories about "capital multiplying by 10 times" and "instant car pick-up"; who wouldn't be confused? But reality hit me harder than an alarm clock: as soon as my full-position long order entered the market, the trend immediately turned downward. Watching the account balance disappear at a visible speed, my hands trembled so much I couldn't press the close button. It wasn't until there was only a small amount left that I realized: this is not making money, this is giving the market "spending money"!
Later, I saw too many beginners just like I was back then: holding a few thousand in capital, treating contracts like a 'lottery ticket', comforting themselves with 'next time I’ll win for sure' when they lost, and getting carried away with three times leverage when they won. But here's a harsh truth: contracts are never about 'gambling big', but about 'calculating probabilities'. Those who rely on random guesses for short-term gains will eventually return their money with interest. I really started making money when I woke myself up - that day, I printed out all my trading records and stuck them on a wall, like a detective breaking a case, and only then did I realize all my losses were hiding the same pit.
Reviewing trades is not about 'watching the flow', it's about identifying your own 'losing habits'.
Many people review only 'how much they earned or lost', which is meaningless! What's really useful is categorizing your own mistakes: I identified three major 'losing habits' - impulsive entry type (following others' calls without understanding the candlesticks), stubborn holding type (fantasizing about a rebound even when breaking support, forgetting 'stop-loss'), and greedy position sizing type (feeling like 'the chosen one' after a small gain and immediately increasing leverage). Later, I set a strict rule for myself: before each trade, write an 'operation plan', including entry signals, stop-loss levels, and target position size; any trade without a plan, even if it skyrockets, I won't touch.
You don't need many indicators; mastering one is enough.
I've seen beginners fill their screens with dozens of indicators, and when the market moves, they panic. In fact, it's not about how many indicators you have, but about 'understanding their temperament'. I later specialized in Bollinger Bands, not by memorizing the 20-day cycle parameters, but by watching the market daily to see its 'expression': when it narrows, it's likely to consolidate, so don't chase highs or lows; wait for a breakout of the upper and lower bands before acting; when it opens, it's a trending market, but make sure to wait for a pullback confirmation - for example, when the upper band opens upward, don't rush to go long; wait for the price to pull back to the middle band without breaking it, and with increased volume, then it's safe to enter. When I first achieved a 15-fold return using this logic, I didn't think like before, 'I need to make another quick profit,' but rather took out my principal first, leaving the remaining profit as 'spending money.' That sense of security was much more satisfying than sudden wealth.
More important than strategy is having the mindset to 'control your hands'.
I have a friend who used the strategy template I gave him, but blew up his account three times in a month. Later, I realized that he would take 5x leverage after making 5% and panic-sell when losing 3% - position size is a magnifying glass for mentality; the more eager you are to get rich, the more it amplifies your flaws. Now, I have a 'three-question principle' for my trades: Is this trade based on a signal or just a feeling? Is the stop-loss point set properly? Is the position size over 5% of total capital? If any answer is 'no', I immediately close the trading interface and go have a cup of tea.
The crypto world is never short of 'get rich overnight' myths, but what it lacks is people who can 'laugh all the way to the end'. After I blew up my account, I survived on instant noodles for a week, and only then did I understand that the first principle of contract trading is not 'how much money to make', but 'survival' - only by surviving can you wait for good market conditions, and only by surviving can you grow small profits into large returns. Now, I make no more than 5 trades a week, but each one is logically clear and risk-controlled, earning more steadily and sleeping better compared to my former self chasing highs and lows.
If you have also stumbled in contracts, don't be discouraged - who hasn't paid their 'tuition' yet? Follow me, and every week I will break down the pitfalls I've encountered and the practical skills I've summarized, without any fancy jargon, just usable 'survival secrets'. After all, in this circle, the longer you survive, the more likely you are to feast on the juiciest meat!
