Many people ask me what the secret is to surviving so well after so many years of trading contracts. Actually, there’s no black technology—just strict discipline, ensuring every dollar has a clear plan for entry and exit. I’ve seen too many traders double their money and then become greedy, refusing to exit, only to be hit by a wave of retracement that brings them back to the starting point or even below their principal. Today, I’ll share the trading rules I’ve accumulated through years of ups and downs, all taught with real money.

**Protect profits more valuable than chasing huge gains**

Many people lose money not because they see the wrong direction, but because after making money, they always think "wait a bit longer, it will definitely go higher." As a result, they miss the best exit points and get trapped. My approach is to lock in profits in stages: when profits exceed 10%, immediately move the stop-loss to the breakeven point, so even if the market turns bad, you won’t lose money. When profits reach over 20%, you must hold onto at least a 10% profit bottom line—even if there’s a retracement later, the gains from before can be protected. When making big money, I use a trailing stop method, for example, every 5% increase, move the stop-loss up by 3%. This way, you can follow the trend to earn, but also prevent giving everything back. The market will always surprise you, but trading rules keep you alive. A big drop can wipe out ten small gains, so the protective bottom line of profitable trades must become stronger and stronger.

**Stop-loss aggressively, admit mistakes quickly**

The biggest risk in contracts is the "holding on" mentality. I’ve seen people unwilling to close a position with a 5% loss, only to be down 50% later and lying flat, ending in liquidation. Stop-loss is not failure; it’s leaving yourself with capital to bounce back. My strict rule is that a single loss should never exceed 15%—when you hit this line, close the position immediately, don’t think "maybe it will rebound." If the price breaks below your support, it indicates your previous judgment was wrong. Trying to be brave at this point will only turn a small loss into a big one. The stop-loss position should also be scientific—don’t just use round numbers; look at technical indicators—for example, breaking through the 4-hour MA60, or falling below a previous low. When it’s time to exit, do so.