The most despairing moments in the market often hide the greatest opportunities.

Last year, a fan used 8000U to buy ETH at the extreme fear index, and now the account has exceeded 400,000U. The entry point was exactly at the most pessimistic moment in the market—this is not luck, but a traceable contrarian mindset.

**The essence of retail investors' losses is simple: be greedy when afraid, and be afraid when greedy.** Market sentiment is often an accurate contrarian indicator. Under extreme emotions, prices will deviate significantly from their intrinsic value, which is precisely the signal for a turning point.

## How to quantify panic? From noise to navigation

Instead of relying on complex technical indicators, it’s better to directly observe market sentiment. Rational bets during extreme emotions can achieve nonlinear growth even with small funds. This method requires no complex tools and can be set up in 5 minutes.

**Step 1: Establish a panic observation checklist**

Three core indicators need daily tracking:

1. **Fear and Greed Index**: Watch closely if it stays below 20 for 3 consecutive days; pay high attention if it drops below 10;
2. **Stablecoin Premium Signal**: If a major exchange’s USDT/USD shows sustained negative premium ≤ -2%, it indicates capital panic withdrawal;
3. **Community Sentiment Response**: Full screen of "zeroing theory"