15 years ago, when I was playing Dota, there was a YouTube series called "Luck is not an excuse". In the show, players defeated their opponents through precise positioning and operation, and won the victory.
I tried to replicate these moments, but failed. Was it because I was not lucky enough, or because I didn't try hard enough? In other words, I need to get stronger.
The same logic applies in the cryptocurrency field. You see others making life-changing wealth from cryptocurrencies, and you think, "Why can't I do it?" This feeling prompts you to take action - you buy TRUMP, chase VINE, look for the next hot currency, and participate in the narrative.
Of course, if you understand how the market works, you may indeed be lucky. But if you don't understand, you may end up worse off than when you started.
I started getting into cryptocurrencies at the end of 2021 - that was the peak of the bull market. My first investment was CAKE, attracted by its 70-100% annual yield, but I lost 30% in a week because CAKE crashed. At the time, I didn't understand it and thought it was a bad asset.
Then I discovered TIME Wonderland, its 50,000% annual yield and the famous calculator attracted me: "Invest 1,000, turn it into 1M in a year through staking and compound interest. If everyone stakes, we all win, (3,3) mechanism." As we all know, the result.
I lost money and learned the lesson of "issuance". A few months later, I learned about the importance of teams in Web3 projects through Solidly. Finally, I found my direction in the Pinksale Finance issuance project and made a profit, then invested the funds in Bybit's Launchpad project, and then earned 140% annual yield on Abracadabra. Three months later, I made a mistake.
I put most of my funds into the Terra ecosystem's Lockdrop and LBA projects, locking up UST to maximize token rewards. Unfortunately, the de-pegging of UST and the collapse of Terra Luna caused me to lose all my funds. In desperation, I tried to recoup the losses by shorting LUNA, but was liquidated during the rebound. In the end, I went from nearly six-figure assets to $500.
But this experience led me to a job at @TheSpartanGroup as a project consultant. Later, I started this account and wrote about DeFi. In early 2023, I discovered @CamelotDEX and other Arbitrum DeFi projects, analyzed and shared my insights with the community, and my Twitter account exploded as a result.
From 2023 to 2024, I drifted in the market, sometimes lacking motivation. DeFi innovation slowed, L1/L2/L3 became fragmented, and my life also changed.
Until a conversation with @vtes369 and the @ChasmNetwork team in August 2024 led me to delve deeper into AI. Without a formal AI background, I started learning about retail-oriented AI companions and agents, and eventually found @virtuals_io. In a call with @everythingempt0, he explained Virtuals' vision of tokenizing AI agents, and I had a moment of enlightenment, reminiscent of when I discovered @pendle_fi in 2023.
Just as Pendle tokenized yield, Virtuals aims to tokenize AI agents, which could be a multi-billion dollar market. The team's creativity made me firmly believe in their vision. I invested in VIRTUAL when the market cap was 30M. After the platform launched, my investment thesis was validated. I got deeply involved, creating articles about AI agents and building a supportive community.
This is not to boast, I still have a long way to go. The point is: in cryptocurrencies, you have to learn from your mistakes, adapt and keep improving. Resilience is key. The market may rise, fall or sideways, interest may wane, but you have to keep participating, keep learning, and support others. If you persist long enough, luck will be on your side.
Experiences I've learned in cryptocurrencies:
- Do your own research.
- Form your own views and theories.
- Reflect on your own mistakes.
- Engage with the market every day.
My daily routine:
- Check @cookiedotfun, @Decentralisedco and @GoatIndexAI for trends.
- Track curated Twitter timelines in the AI field.
- Write one piece of content every day to solidify my thinking and share with others.
Those who went from $500 to millions are not just lucky, they have spent countless hours in the trenches of cryptocurrencies, enduring failures, persisting and being tested for resilience.
Many people see these successes and think it's easy, but that's not the case. The truth is: luck is a skill. It is earned through preparation, consistency, and the courage to persevere in adversity.
Cryptocurrencies, like life, are a marathon, not a sprint. You may fall, you may hit rock bottom, but the only true failure is to stop trying.
The market is not over. Alpha still exists, waiting to be discovered. The best investment opportunity is when everything is in a trough, when the streets are filled with panic. That's when the opportunities are right in front of you - just waiting for those brave enough to discover them.
Success is accumulated through years of effort, reflection and constant growth. So keep going, keep learning, and keep believing. Your lucky breakthrough is not waiting, but being paved by the efforts you make today.
