Eight years ago, I was renting in an urban village, calculating every meal just to get by. Now, I have 20 million sitting in my account and own two properties.

Don’t be quick to say I was just lucky. I started with 190,000, and the pitfalls I’ve encountered could fill a book of blood and tears. It’s these four hard-earned rules that truly turned things around for me.

**Rule 1: The pace of a rally hides the whales’ intentions**

A quick surge followed by a slow decline is usually just shaking out weak hands; a violent pump immediately followed by a crash means it’s really time to run.

Early on, I mistook shakeouts for market tops, foolishly selling everything, only to watch the price soar another 50%. Later, I spotted a flash crash signal in ETC and pulled out early, dodging a 40% plunge. Staring at candlestick charts is pointless—you need to figure out what the whales are up to.

**Rule 2: Low volume at highs is more dangerous than a crash**

One time, a major coin moved sideways at a high price, with trading volume dropping to a standstill. I didn’t pay attention and lost 30,000 when it halved a week later.

Remember: High volume at the top means there are still buyers; low volume at the top means get out fast.

**Rule 3: Real bottoms are confirmed by volume**

A rebound after a sharp drop doesn’t mean a reversal. I once got trapped for over half a year because I misunderstood this.

What does a real bottom look like? Low-volume consolidation for a while, then three consecutive days of moderate volume increases with bullish closes. When BTC showed this signal last year, I went heavy and tripled my money in six months.

**Rule 4: Volume never lies—stay flexible in your mindset**

Candlestick charts can mislead, but volume doesn’t lie.

Don’t chase tops, don’t try to catch falling knives, don’t go all-in or stay all-out—always keep some ammo for high-conviction opportunities. With this approach, I went from panic selling to calmly sniping the best trades.

Brother, if you still panic with every price swing, hesitate with every take-profit or stop-loss decision, or constantly doubt yourself when it comes to your capital—it’s not luck you’re missing, it’s a trading system you can actually replicate.

As long as you truly follow these four iron rules, your account curve will eventually start to turn upward.