2025-12-23 11:26:41

The numbers on the screen jumped indifferently, and at that moment I realized: what is truly scarce in the crypto world is not the opportunity to get rich quickly, but the wisdom to survive.

On that sleepless night in 2020, I watched helplessly as my account shrank by more than 80% in just a few hours. The keyboard was rattling, my fingers were cold, yet nothing could change the situation. The plans I had been making just three days ago, those promises to my family, instantly turned into a fleeting illusion.

In my seven years in the crypto world, I have witnessed too many extreme stories. Some people gambled 20,000 on altcoins and turned it into 5 million in half a month, then flaunted their private jets on social media; I have also seen friends go bankrupt due to leverage, with their wives holding their children in despair. The crypto world is never short of legends of overnight wealth, what is scarce are ordinary people who can stand up after their dreams shatter.

From three liquidations to finding balance again, what I learned is not more advanced technical analysis, but three survival bottom lines bought with the price of blood.

**Rule 1: Leverage is a noose, not wings**

When I first entered this crypto world, I was also captivated by the saying "Fortune favors the bold." Using 20x leverage for the first time, I happened to catch a small bull market, making hundreds of thousands in a single day. It felt like riding a rocket, and I was confident that I was a born trading genius, splurging in high-end places and painting a picture of financial freedom in three years to my friends.

The beautiful dream was shattered by the sudden change in regulatory policies. The market plummeted across the board, and accounts were cut in half within two hours. Leverage amplifies not only profits but also your ignorance of risk. At that moment, I understood a hard truth: leverage is always a double-edged sword, and most people cannot handle this knife.

The market will not change direction because of your predictions; even the strongest trends of ETH and BTC may suddenly reverse. Leveraging is like going all-in at a gambling table; the thrill of winning once will make you forget the reality that losing once means losing everything. I now tell everyone who is still dreaming: if you need leverage to make money, it means you haven't really understood this market yet.

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ClassicDumpster

· 12-23 11:58

Indeed, leverage is just a pitfall; I've seen too many people die because of it. --- 80% just disappeared, it hurts me... this is the true portrayal of the crypto world. --- There are very few people who can make money without leverage; most of us are just wondering why we want to play such high-risk games. --- Those who can stand up after their dreams are shattered are real men; others have long since collapsed mentally. --- Stories of getting rich overnight are just stories; staying alive is the highest return. --- I believe someone made hundreds of thousands with 20x leverage, but the question is how to earn steadily; no one talks about that. --- That's how the crypto world is; those who earn quick money are risking their lives, and those without life just need to safeguard their principal. --- It's easy to speak well after the fact, but how many people actually live by these bottom lines... --- So one must have self-awareness and not go against the market. --- Leverage is a mental demon; whoever plays with it will regret it, no exceptions.

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ShadowStaker

· 12-23 11:58

ngl the leverage part hits different when you've actually seen the liquidation cascade unfold. most retail doesn't even calculate their slashing risk properly before going all-in.

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TradFiRefugee

· 12-23 11:56

You spoke too truthfully, I was also played for suckers like this in 2018, going all in with 20x leverage, and got liquidated in two hours. That day my mom was still asking me when I could pay off the mortgage.

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gas_fee_therapist

· 12-23 11:46

Really, I saw through that wave in 2020. Leverage is just a pit, whoever touches it dies. --- 80%, too real, man, that’s just the daily life in the crypto world. --- Got it, not making money without leverage means I’m not skilled, I accept that. --- I’ve heard too many stories about five million, but the stories of bankruptcy really hit hard. --- A noose fits better than wings, why are so many people still all-in? --- Surviving means winning, that saying is worth a million, bro. --- Those who got rich overnight have become stories, and those who survived are living very hard. --- I almost went for that 20x leverage, luckily I didn’t. --- The problem is, knowing is one thing, but when the opportunity comes, I forget my brain at home, haha. --- The hardest part isn’t losing money, it’s the promises to family.

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BlockchainTalker

· 12-23 11:39

actually, this hits different when you realize the author's essentially describing negative expected value behavior dressed up as wisdom. let's break it down: leverage = volatility amplifier, not wealth multiplier. empirically proven through every crypto cycle since 2017.

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