How To Hodl Like A Pro

Author: Harshit Dugar

Holding crypto isn’t an act, it’s a habit! It takes a pair to keep all the associated stresses in check and not let them get in the way of making profits. Luckily, we’re gonna teach you how to “hodl” that crypto like a top G.

Okay, so we’ve probably all done this at some point in our crypto lives: we see a coin we’ve never seen before, we buy it cause it’s ‘been in the news’ recently, or cause we just have a ‘great feeling’ about this one, and for some reason the coin goes on to deliver a devastating kick in the crotch by falling some whopping 1.3%!

“What if it keeps falling? Omg my $10.5 investment will become peanuts! Lost are the dreams of owning that Ferrari!” You panic sell. Next day, ‘your coin’ is up-and-up by 15% and your butt feels like an overripe watermelon ready to split open from all that pain.

What did you do wrong?

You were trading (if horribly bad), not hodling. Simple.

More often than not, the route to “ching-ching” lies not through trading, but rather through investing - and subsequently hodling. That’s not to say that trading can’t make you rich. Quite the opposite! However, trading is a whole different genre that requires enormous amounts of cranial capacity, luck and energy. Needless to say, the risks are much higher. What we’re discussing instead is a much easier, safer approach to crypto riches, readily available for an everyday joe (or karen). And like anything else, it comes with its own set of rules.

Rule 1 - Your gut is for digestion: trust data instead.

It’s EXTREMELY important that you DYOR (do-your-own-research) before investing even one stinky penny into anything!

Gather as much knowledge about the asset as possible. Take a few days off. Then come back for another round. Rinse and repeat until your head starts to throb. You dig? When researching, don’t Google up “why X is good”, instead ask the gods of info about “why X is bad”. Learn the cons, before you learn the pros and ask yourself “Am I ready to deal with all this baggage on a daily basis?” And God forbid that you rely on search results like “what crypto is best to invest in 2022” in your judgment. Google is plagued with trillions of opinions of billions of people. They won’t be responsible for your financial slip-ups.

When you put Shiba into this perspective, you need to find all the information about the project: the community, what it offers, what are its cons (high gas fees for on-ETH blockchain transactions) and what are its pros (store of value, consistent returns, coin that can be used conveniently for charity, high volume and growing liquidity.) Just who are the peeps that run the show?

Once you’ve learned the good and the bad sides associated with said asset, only then should you think about going ahead with investing in it.

Rule 2 - F**K Splurging

Scammers are becoming more and more ingenious, dead ends are becoming more prevalent, and volatility is through the f-ing the roof! All these combined increase the general risk in trusting any asset with your krill. What you can do to minimize the risks and protect yourself is to invest so much money that you can lose without bashing your head open on the wall after you lose it.

The thin blue line that differentiates investing from gambling is the art of calculating one’s risk, one’s goal and obviously, one’s ‘bet’ or ‘investment’. Personally, I had initially invested only $300 in crypto because that was the maximum amount of money I was willing to lose. The amount has now blossomed of course, but it’s just safer to not put all your eggs in the same basket.

Rule 3 - Get A Life

It's that one time when you momma was right!

Stop harassing those price charts around the clock and most importantly, stop caring too much about your wallet. Investing is supposed to give you pleasure and kicks, not have you glued to your phone like a chart maniac. Understand that dumps will happen. That value won’t always be green. The bad news will annoy you every once in a while. It’s normal. Learn to live with it. If your asset tends to worry you too much, you’ve probably put your ball(s) in the wrong court. Change it!

I know many individuals who hodl Shiba and quite literally, they hodl it. They do book profits at times, but they keep their Shiba wallet far from their eyes and try to pay as little attention to the money aspect of investing as possible. This is an effective method to "hodl" without going nuts.

Rule 4 - Embrace Evolution

Darwin would be happy with crypto space. It’s an ever-changing, evolving environment. At this point, it’s still by and large a chaotic monkey tribe, rather than an organized society. Always be ready to accept changes in the market.

‘Adapt, Improve, Overcome’.

When you see the tides of the market change in a drastic way that bothers you, you might consider altering your portfolio to suit your philosophy and your needs. The change may be of long or of short term, which is why a slight - or even sometimes - a complete change of portfolio may not be a bad idea. Again, it’s your call to make and your wish should be your command, but you may consider altering yourself and your holdings, with time. That’s it.

This is of course not the end of all you need to know and it never will be, but it should give you a brief idea of what’s out there and how you can try and prepare for the worst that crypto may have in store for you! All the best and happy investing!