From Electronics Worker to Crypto Market: I Changed My Life Thanks to 4 “Life-or-Death Disciplines” in Trading

Eight years ago, I was still standing on the assembly line of an electronics factory in Bac Ninh, screwing thousands of bolts every day like a machine. My monthly salary was 6 million VND, divided into three parts: sending money back home to my parents, paying for a cramped six-person dormitory that felt like a matchbox, and the rest just enough for 25k-meal portions—if I wanted to add an egg, I’d have to think it over for a few minutes.

It took me nearly half a year to save up 8 million. Looking at my account balance, I told myself: “I cannot spend my whole life in the noise of machines and the smell of metal.”

Today, I live in Hanoi with two apartments under my name and over 20 billion VND in cash. Many people think I was lucky to catch the right trend and hold the right altcoins, but they don’t know I endured four devastating setbacks—crying in the middle of the night—to gain four trading disciplines that any beginner can apply right away.

1. Market Drops Gradually—DON’T Panic; Flash Crash—Run Immediately In my early years in crypto, my stupidest mistake was: Price rises 20% → starts dropping slightly → I’m afraid I’ll “lose it all after making a bit,” so I rush to get out. Result: after I sell, 3–5 days later it goes up another 50%.

But the wake-up call came another time: A top coin shot up 30% and then plunged straight down—I immediately exited everything. Three days later, it dropped another 40%.

Hard-earned lesson: Slow declines → usually a shakeout, whales forcing weak hands out of the game. Sharp pump then a vertical drop → that’s not a rebound, that’s money fleeing. If you see a chart falling like an elevator with large sell orders appearing → don’t think, don’t wait, cut.

2. Coin Stagnant at the Top + Declining Volume → EXIT IMMEDIATELY Three years ago, a hot altcoin stayed at the same high price for two weeks. I looked at the chart and reassured myself: “Probably accumulating for a breakout.” But the volume was lower every day. A week later, it… halved. I watched 30 million vanish from my account before I could react.

Reviewing it later, I realized: Declining volume = buying power exhausted. Price stagnant = sellers haven’t dumped yet. That’s not accumulation. That’s the calm before the storm.

Remember: Volume and price diverging = reversal warning. At the top with no volume → even riskier than a sharp drop.

3. Want to Catch the Bottom? Avoid “False Bounces”—Only Buy with These 2 Signals I once saw an exchange token drop 25% and then bounce 10%. Thinking “this is the bottom,” I jumped in recklessly → got stuck for 6 months. Later I learned: A real bottom never appears just because the price dropped deeply. A real bottom has signs.

I only try to catch the bottom when I see both of these: (1) At least 2 weeks of sideways price with low volume → Buyers and sellers are balanced, the market has stopped panic-selling. (2) 3 consecutive days of slight green + rising volume → Real money is coming back in.

With these two signals, the error rate is extremely low. Last year, I used this exact formula during a major correction. Six months later, my portfolio tripled.

Crypto doesn’t reward the reckless. Crypto rewards those who wait for the signal.

4. Volume—The ONLY Indicator That Doesn’t Lie News can be exaggerated. KOLs can hype. Charts can be manipulated. But trading volume can’t be faked—because that’s real money.

Now, my trading principles are crystal clear: Never all-in Never chase prices after a big pump Never guess the bottom Always keep 30% of capital waiting for the moment when price and volume rise together

I spend less than an hour a day looking at charts, only watching volume and the above signals. Yet my performance is better than when I used to stare at the screen 12 hours a day.

Conclusion Beginners always want to get rich quick. Eight years ago, I was the same—and that impatience cost me the most. In the end, I realized: Big profits don’t come from risky bets, but from discipline. Go slow but go right, and you’ll go further than all those running in panic.