Last October, on a late night, I was staring at the screen in a daze, with $2000 in my account—my third deposit. Many stories start here with a comeback, but what I want to say is that the real reason my account balance gained an extra zero was never due to a hundredfold coin, but because I turned off the trading software that night.

I used to believe in the saying "not watching the market means missing opportunities." Staying up at 3 or 4 a.m., my mind full of fantasies of turning things around overnight. But what happened? Frequent trades, doubling down when the direction was wrong, going all-in when emotions ran high. Taking profits and running, or stubbornly holding on after losses—that's not about you, it's about the me I used to be. The fastest way to reset to zero is never the market itself, but the drunken state of my mind in the middle of the night.

Later, I made a decision: split my account into two. Half transferred out to a place I couldn't see, as if that money was already gone; the remaining half, I set three rules with myself—only let profits grow, never touch the principal. This small move changed everything. I was no longer trading money, but discipline.

Now, my trading logic boils down to three points:

**First, the trend is your friend, but you need to know when it should go quiet.** I don’t guess tops or bottoms. I only look at the daily chart to see if the price can stand firm; on the 1-hour chart, I wait for a pullback near key moving averages with decreasing volume before considering entry. If the price isn’t stable or volume isn’t rising, I don’t buy even if it’s cheaper. The most expensive lesson in the market is always trying to buy cheap ahead of time.

**Second, profits should be taken like slicing a sausage—bit by bit.** When a trade reaches 3% profit, take partial profits multiple times; never try to make it all in one shot. The benefit of this approach is less psychological pressure, and I can accept fluctuations even if the market moves against me.

**Third, stop-loss is never about admitting defeat, but about preserving strength.** Set a stop-loss point, and if it hits, get out—no bargaining. This is the hardest part because everyone wants to wait and see, but I now understand that cutting losses promptly is actually the fastest way to make money.

From $2000 to now, I haven’t experienced dramatic wealth explosions, but my account has been steadily growing. The biggest gain isn’t the money, but understanding a truth: in trading markets, surviving longer is more important than making quick profits. Those stories of big ups and downs are indeed eye-catching, but the ones who make it to the end are always those who understand self-discipline, dare to cut losses, and keep their emotions stable.