Anyone who’s traded contracts knows that suffocating feeling—you predict the direction perfectly, the price actually moves exactly as you expected, but your account balance? It drops like you’re on a slide. You think you’re just unlucky, but in reality, you’re being cut down by the market rules, plain and simple.

I still remember the lesson from that year’s ETH long position—it still hurts to think about. At the time, I thought the bull market had arrived, so I went all in on a long. The price soared, my unrealized profit jumped from $1,500 to $5,000, and I was so excited I felt like I was floating, dreaming of doubling my money in one shot. But what happened? A big red candle stabbed down like a spear, instantly triggering my stop loss and evaporating my position in a flash. By the time I realized what had happened, the market had already rebounded, and all I could do was stare blankly at the liquidation alerts on the screen.

It took me a while to understand that trading contracts isn’t a game where you just “guess the direction right and win while lying down.” What it really tests is your understanding of the rules, your timing, and your psychological stability. You think you’re betting on price moves? Wrong. You’re actually fighting against liquidation lines, funding rates, slippage—all those invisible knives. The market doesn’t care if you make money, but it’s already dug the traps—if you try to run after a small gain, you’re out, and if you lose a little, you get liquidated.

Those who can actually profit consistently have already figured out the logic: don’t rely on guessing, rely on calculating probabilities; don’t chase pumps or dumps, just manage your position sizes. The first question before opening a position isn’t “how much can I make,” but “how much can I lose at most.”

It took losing 80,000 in principal for me to truly understand the old saying: in trading contracts, it’s not about intuition—it’s about rationality and respecting the rules. Now, every time I open a position, I calculate the risk first. I’ve stopped dreaming about overnight riches and just focus on how to survive. After all, in this market, only those who survive have the right to talk about profits.

Most people aren’t lazy—they just haven’t found the right path. You’re not incapable; you just haven’t figured out the rules yet.