41- You Ignore Airdrops
Airdrops are free money with little to no effort.
Many times, new projects will airdrop their token as a marketing strategy to raise awareness.
You might need to register on their website to claim the airdropped tokens, but sometimes, you have to do nothing at all.
Check out AirdropAlert to be on top of every airdrop opportunity.
42- You Don’t Prepare For Forks
Hard forks are similar to airdrops from an investor’s standpoint - free money! Most investors I know miss out on these opportunities, which can turn out to be quite lucrative.
Bitcoin Cash is an example of a hard fork of Bitcoin, where all Bitcoin holders received 1 Bitcoin Cash for each Bitcoin in their wallet. Bitcoin Cash trades for well over $100 or $200, so these coins you can get for free, aren’t cheap.
Just make sure the wallet you are using support the fork. Simple as that!
43- You Don’t Use the Best Tools Available
The cryptocurrency industry is full of creative and hardworking people who offer some handy products and services.
Don’t rely on only yourself, use all the tools at your disposal to craft the best cryptocurrency investment strategy and make better decisions.
44- You Hold USDT
Tether, or USDT, is a stablecoin that is pegged to the value of $1. Each Tether is supposed to be backed by one USD in a bank.
There are two dangers to holding USDT:
• They’ve had a shady past. Many believe that not every Tether is backed by a single USD, which means that if you want to redeem $1,000 USDT for USD, then you’re $1,000 USDT is meaningless.
• Transfers cost a lot. Second, most people don’t know this, but just to withdraw
USDT from an exchange costs several dollars. If you want to transfer funds to another exchange, it is often less expensive (but more time-consuming) to trade back to a cryptocurrency before withdrawing.
While it’s okay to enter USDT positions for short-term trades, don’t hold it for too long.
45- You Don’t Buy the Rumor
There’s a popular narrative that says, “buy the rumor, sell the news.”
Often, cryptocurrency projects launch their coin before a final product is made. Rumors can spread around the community about when their product will be complete, which companies will partner with them, and which exchanges the cryptocurrency will be listed on.
Usually, these rumors create lots of hype. The hype can grow to be so strong that when the real news is released, the price drops.
One example is the Verge project, which at one time had rumors spread by John McAfee and other prominent figures, discussing partnerships and innovations. The price was skyrocketing on rumors, and some made the best decisions of their lives by getting in early.
46- You Buy the News
On the other hand, when the news comes out, do not buy it - it’s likely too late.
This is when those who bought the rumor will take their profits.
When the time came for real news to be released about Verge, the price dropped drastically - well over 80%
So, instead of just buying coins at the time the news is released, take some risk.
Buy the rumor, wait for the bubble to grow, and sell when the news comes out.
You’ll thank me later.
47- You Don’t Understand How to Read a Trading Chart
Once you understand some basic dynamics such as supply and demand, then you should start learning how to read trading charts, also known as technical analysis.
Technical analysis is a science which helps you better predict the future by analyzing historical market data. You’ll gain a feel for when markets are about to turn, or if assets aren’t priced properly.
For some, it’s super helpful and core to many people’s cryptocurrency investment strategy. Knowing how to read charts can give you an advantage over those who don’t - and it can be quite lucrative.
48- You Don’t Prepare for Bull Markets
Do you believe the market is dead and the entire crypto industry will vanish away just because Bitcoin drops 40%? Of course not. These cycles happen, so don’t be afraid to go against the crowd.
If you sold when you were in profits, then you should have fiat ready to invest in cryptocurrencies during bear markets.
Keep these funds available in your wallets and be ready to accumulate your favorite cryptocurrencies when everyone else in the market is panicking.
But, don’t FOMO! Generally, bear markets can last for well over a year. If you buy the dip too early, you’ll end up losing a lot of money.
Bear markets should also give you plenty of time to find some altcoins worth investing in. So do not wait until the bull market is back - do your research in advance.
49- You Don’t Listen to the Market Sentiment
If the overall sentiment varies, then so may the price.
While you may expect a bull market soon or be optimistic about a cryptocurrency, other investors may feel the opposite way.
This is why listening to the sentiment of other investors in the industry is crucial. If you don’t, you might miss the next bear/bull market, or the next cryptocurrency about to moon.
So, how do you listen to the sentiment of your peers?
• Read other investors’ thoughts. Not thoughts from influencers or media - from investors, like you and I. You can do this by joining and participating actively in some of the best crypto communities (read mistake #29)
• Use tools. These tools scrape information from the web and turn it into actionable metrics, and each of them uses different factors to determine
sentiment. Alternative.me, for example, scrapes data from trading volumes, Google Trends, and social media amongst other indicators.
Remember that sentiment is just one indicator of the next market movements.
When crafting your cryptocurrency strategy, cross-reference different indicators from several sources. Always use logic over emotions.
50- You Don’t Earn Interest From Your Crypto
You cannot earn interest from cryptocurrencies as you do with your bank account, but there are ways to grow your bags simply by holding.
There are three ways to earn interest on your cryptocurrencies:
• Stake your coins. If you are holding Proof-of-Stake (PoS) coins, hold them in the official wallet, turn on staking, and you will begin earning stake rewards, much like interest in a bank account.
• Margin Lending. Exchanges which offer margin trading allow users to lend coins for a percentage return. This may be small, say 1-2% a month, but it can add up! Even at 1% a month, that comes to 12% a year as a safe return. Beats a 0.2% interest bank account.
• Lending Platforms. Nexo is one example of a lending platform that can land you a minimum of ~6% a year. For minimal risk, not a bad deal.
