After all these years in the crypto world, I’ve seen a cruel truth: all genuine opportunities only appear once and can never be replicated. Those who react too slowly can only end up as bagholders.

The airdrop craze is the best example. Between 2020 and 2023, projects like DYDX, ARB, ENS, OP, and STRK had mind-blowing airdrop rewards. Early participants who casually received any of them could see their wealth skyrocket; some even made billions from airdrops. But later followers found that the entry barriers had skyrocketed, eligibility checks became twice as strict, and in the end, many got PUA’d by project teams. The time and money invested ended up going down the drain, and they even lost on Gas fees.

The inscriptions wave was no different. When ORDI and SATS first launched, hundreds or even thousands of times gains were everywhere—some turned a few thousand USDT into millions. But when retail investors flooded in at the end of the year, they were met with bloody declines, and many finally lost all their principal.

The AI sector’s story is even more ironic. Initially, no one dared to be optimistic and was even accused of scams, yet visionary players witnessed explosive gains—WLD 10x, FET 20x, ARKM 30x. When retail investors chased in later, they got stuck for over two years, unable to move.

The Meme coin frenzy in 2024 seemed to break this pattern, but it didn’t. PEPE, BOME, WIF, PNUT—each initially brought early participants thousands or hundreds of times gains, changing lives. But now, chasing new Meme coins on-chain usually caps out at a market cap of just one or two hundred million. Most projects end up zeroing out or running away, and entering means getting deeply trapped.

The most ironic part is: when true opportunities arrive, seasoned players are still hesitating and watching, while newcomers are already fully committed. They haven’t experienced the despair of a bear market, haven’t established price anchors, and are willing to go all-in and fight to the death—ultimately earning the most. That’s how the crypto world works—opportunities always go to the first who dare to take the plunge. By the time you fully understand, the window to make money has already closed.