1. I learned that no one can accurately and consistently predict the market. There are many gurus out there, giving out predictions like candy. Some have large followings and paid groups. It gives people a sense of comfort to seek advice and predictions from these people. But in the end, it's important to remember that no one knows what is going to happen.
2. I have learned that protecting my money is the number one priority. Many people develop a sense of attachment to certain tokens. They will lock them away in cold storage, and HODL no matter what happens. But remember that even the most solid tokens will bleed heavily during a massive market correction. Many people with "strong hands" HODL all the way to the bottom, where they eventually sell and get REKT. Remember that not everything will rebound. In the real world, 9 out of 10 traditional new businesses will fail within 5 years. Why would crypto, which is based upon brand new technology, be any different? This is why I believe in setting stop losses. Even if the token bounces after I sell, at least I have protected my earnings and I can continue to trade another day.
3. The trend is my friend. When Bitcoin starts trading at lower highs and lower lows, that is the sign of a possible bear market. At that point, I convert back into fiat and wait. I don't try to catch falling knives, which means buy crypto as prices are falling. I patiently wait until the market hits the bottom. But how do I know what the bottom is? I don't. I wait for Bitcoin to show a reversal and solid uptrend, higher highs and higher lows, building solid support levels before I start to invest again. When I start investing, I carefully dollar cost average in.
4. By selling during a downtrend and buying during an uptrend, I make consistent profits. I don't have to know where the tops and bottoms are. And even if I make a mistake and sell my crypto too early, only to watch them rebound and moon, I have still protected my money. Then I get back on the train and continue the ride upward. I may suffer a little FOMO, but nothing is really lost.
That's my personal strategy. It's important to remember that everyone on crypto Twitter is looking out for their own investments. They will encourage you to HODL when the ship is sinking because they don't want their bags to lose value. But I always look out for myself first, and never get attached to tokens.
Again, this is my personal strategy and not trading advice. What have you learned from trading?