This is my list of the best advice I have received, and things I've learned, in the short but profitable 4 months in the Crypto world. I'm by no means an expert, or financial advisor, but maybe this can help you if you are also new.
- Get in the game. Even if it is just $20 bucks. You can buy fractions of Bitcoin. Don't let this opportunity pass you by. You will not learn as well from just sitting on the sidelines and watching.
- Do not invest any money you are not ready to lose! The crypto market is not only incredibly volatile, but has a high learning curve, and is not user-friendly yet. There are a myriad of ways for you to lose your money. ie. buying too high - selling low, emotional trading, investing in bad coins, not having a diverse portfolio, being too diverse where you make no money, making weak passwords, losing passwords, computer crashing with crypto wallet on it, keeping all of your money in the same place, mis-typing a cryptocurrency address. The risk of you making a mistake is much greater threat than the risk of being hacked, or something happening with an exchange.
- You will likely lose money in one of different ways mentioned above. Don't beat yourself up about it, this stuff is complicated. Your mess-up is your tuition fee for learning how to invest in this stuff. You will win by just staying in the game, and making better and better decisions.
- Get a password helper like Dashlane (which I use) or lastpass.com - or be very organized about your passwords. Print out a copy or write down everything on paper. Try not to keep digital copies of this stuff, especially don't send your passwords/private keys via email or anything on the internet. YOU ARE THE BANK NOW. There is nobody to help you if you lose your money. You are in control of your money, which is a revolutionary thing, but also comes with responsibility.
- Learn as much as you can about Cryptocurrency in general, and the specific coins you hold. You will be able to sleep better at night with your investment, if you are informed.
- Figure out how cryptocurrency investing fits into your lifestyle. If you don't have time to check on it- Play it safe and just invest in Bitcoin, and other coins you have heavily researched. Figure out how many you're comfortable holding. Be diverse but not too diverse. Always be heavy in Bitcoin, especially right now.
- You'll naturally start investing because of fundamental analysis, but you should be hungry to learn technical analysis.
- Be patient in general. But especially about getting the right buy price. If you don't get the price you want, or if you missed the moon-mission, move on to the next coin. Don't buy the top!
- "Dollar Cost Average." your buying - Especially with Bitcoin. Statistically Friday is the best day to buy. Buy every Friday with a small sum of money you can afford. I like to spend half that money on Fridays, and half I save for a big price correction.
- Sometimes it's good to hedge your bets against the majority... Bitcoin Cash might be a good buy right now....
- Don't fall in love with any coin. Even Bitcoin could fall at some point. Getting emotionally attached to a coin can cloud your judgement.
- Make a plan. Have a specific price target to buy, and have a reason to buy it there. Have a specific price or indication to sell. Don't sell all at once if you got a good price in the beginning. Use stop losses.
- Cut your losses quick. Don't hang on to something if it doesn't work out as planned, you will get burned. There are tons of coins mooning everyday. The quicker you cut losses the more chances you have to try again.
- Be quick to adapt to new trends, and be open to new coins and exchanges.
- Record your progress. In a spreadsheet, or try cointracking.info. Maybe keep a trade journal, or notes. Maybe record a big trading event, how you played it, and how it turned out.
- Develop a trade strategy. When you find one that works for you. Repeat it. Go with that and perfect it. Experiment with a separate and smaller pile of money.
- Teach others about cryptocurrency. By teaching others you will solidify your knowledge, and grow the community.
Shoutout to Cryptocurrency.market, Coin Mastery, Bitesizebitcoin, Datadash, Chasethatcoin - For all the helpful videos