After years of navigating this market, I’ve come to a painful realization:

Many people believe that “grinding through it will lead to victory” as an infallible rule. They think that with enough time, losses will automatically turn around. But the harsh truth is, time simply won’t turn the red in your account into green—it will only ruthlessly eliminate those who stubbornly hold on despite being wrong.

I know quite a few veterans who have endured two full cycles, only to find their accounts shrinking year after year. They’re not unprofessional. They monitor charts daily, study candlesticks, review trades at night—they really put in effort. But unfortunately, their trading mode is stuck in a vicious cycle: they rush to exit after a small profit, grit their teeth and hold after a loss; when the market starts to surge, they become timid, only chasing after prices when they’ve already skyrocketed; once emotions explode, all trading plans go out the window.

Honestly, there’s no shortage of opportunities in the market. The real scarcity is in the ability to stay “steady.”

The root of the problem boils down to these three issues:

**Focusing on price and forgetting about cycles.** When prices rise, they think it will keep going forever; when they fall, they’re convinced it will never recover. Their thinking never jumps out of this mindset.

**Replacing a plan with feelings.** Opening positions on impulse, setting stop-losses based on current mood—this logic is doomed to repeatedly hit the wrong notes.

**Positioning is hijacked by emotions.** The more it rises, the more they want to add; the deeper it falls, the more they want to cut losses. In the end, it turns into a textbook scene of “buy high, sell low.”

My ability to stand here today isn’t because I have some divine prediction skill, but because I set a few ironclad rules early on:

Only trade with money I can afford to lose, so I can sleep peacefully at night.

Trade in batches; never expect to buy at the lowest point or sell at the highest.

Making one less mistake is more worthwhile than earning one more profit.

This market is fascinating. Bull markets still see people losing all their money, and bear markets can see others turn the tables. If you observe carefully, you’ll find: those who make money are never the ones trading frequently. The survivors and earners are those few who understand patience, see the market clearly, dare to act decisively when opportunities arise, and equally dare to stop when it’s time.

If you’re tired of being led around by the market’s whims, why not try a different approach: do less, wait more, and let time truly become your ally rather than your opponent.