Jan 2018, I was riding high. Had just sold LTC for $300 several months after buying it for $40. A 700%+ gain in such a short time, it’s the kind of thing most stock market people only dream of. I had bought low and sold high. Damnit what a rush!

But I was not yet an experienced cryptonaut, and was suddenly reading about how big Ethereum was going to get, how it was going to rewrite the internet as we knew it, and how it would become so scare that it threatened Bitcoin’s dominance. I read, and I read, and I read some more. Ethereum was going to be like investing in Apple in 1982, but bigger, and faster. It would be a game changer unlike any other!

I did my own research

So what did I do? I bought in at $1310. I had to, after all. It was about to reach escape velocity, right? Right??

Narrator: “He would not, in fact, be right.”

You know the story. The Bull ended. ETH fell off a cliff. Week after week after painful week. $1100. $950. $750. $500

For those who haven’t experienced it before, watching your investment crater is numbing. It feels unreal. There’s a denialism that begins with “OMG I could have bought so much cheaper,” and steadily moves towards “This thing won’t go to zero… will it??”

When Eth finally bottomed i could have bought 13X the amount of ETH for the same Money. It was too early, in a market too bullish, too Irrational, and ETH was way too expensive.

So what did I do? I sucked in my teeth, shrugged my shoulders, and said “I still believe this is going to succeed.” I hodled, down 93%. And today, well you know where ETH stands.

I think it’s important for the n00bs and the Cardanonites and everyone else to remember a few important points with all the people asking now if Cardano is a buy or if they should buy in while the market is pumping. If you are going to do more than DCA, if you have a lump sum you want to drop on a coin, ask the following:

-If this doubles, will I sell some to ensure profits?

-If this triples and I sold some at double, will I be able to be grateful for my gains?

-If a big FUD incident happens (exchange hack, ban in a country, investigation by government etc.) will I be able to shrug it off?

-If the coin drops, will I regret getting in at this price? If it continues to only go up, will I regret sitting on the sidelines more?

Am I -only- putting in money I 100% dont need and can afford to 100% lose?

If there is a total crash, and my coin drops 75/85/95(!) %, will I have the belief in it and the confidence to know that I will hold on no matter what?

If any of these are a no, then think long and hard about fomoing. Anything could happen. Tether could blow up tomorrow. Maybe Binance gets hacked for 5 billion. Maybe Coinbase gets ransomewared. The future in uncertain and crypto can be downright terrifying at times.

As a wise man once said “This ain’t no party, this ain’t no disco, this ain’t no foolin around.”

Make sure you aren’t either.