Most people lose money in DeFi not because they picked the wrong token — but because they skipped the fundamentals.

Here are the 3 biggest mistakes I see:

1. Chasing APY without checking the protocol

That 10,000% APY farm? It's probably a fork of a fork with no audit. Before you ape in, check: Is the contract verified? Is there a team behind it? What's the TVL trend — growing or dumping?

2. Ignoring gas fees on small positions

Swapping $50 on Ethereum mainnet when gas is $30 means you're already down 60%. Use L2s (Arbitrum, Base, Optimism) or wait for low-gas windows. This alone saves beginners hundreds.

3. Not understanding impermanent loss

Providing liquidity sounds like free money until the ratio shifts and you end up with less than if you just held. IL calculators exist — use them before you LP.

DeFi is the most powerful financial system ever built, but only if you respect the learning curve. I break down protocols, setups, and strategies weekly inside Dr. Zuler DeFi & Trading Alpha.