The biggest lie new traders tell themselves is that futures trading is just buying $BTC or $AVAX with extra speed. It isn't. When you buy spot $BTC, you own the asset. If the price drops 20%, you are down on paper, but you still hold the exact amount of coins you started with. You can wait three years for a recovery if you have to. In futures, the asset you hold is a contract, and that contract has a ticking clock called a liquidation price. I learned this the hard way when I went long on $AVAX during a flash wick. I thought I was "investing," but the exchange saw my margin dip below their maintenance...