Well-Known Cryptocurrency Analyst Miles Deutscher Shares His Journey to Wealth in His Early Twenties, Emphasizing Proactive Action, Improving AI Skills, and Building a Personal Brand. This article is based on Miles Deutscher's tweet, translated and compiled by Dongqu.
(Previous context: Delivery Driver and Crypto Trader Youth: Who Is Stealing Young People's Compound Interest Life?)
(Additional background: In the AI era, you should memorize this: Silicon Valley's founding father Paul Graham's 13 Tips for Entrepreneurs)

Table of Contents

• Part One: Laying the Foundation
• Focus Intensely
• Growth Leverage
• Farewell Words
• Conclusion

Unfortunately, no one ever told us how to achieve so-called “success” in our twenties. If you're in your twenties and feel you haven't “succeeded” yet, this article is worth reading carefully.

The road ahead is not easy. Sadly, no one has ever taught us how to make a mark at this age.

School classes won't cover it, parents may not have the experience, and the vast amount of online information? Mostly just noise.

In my twenties, I achieved some results through “non-mainstream” paths (of course, I am still improving, and there is a long way to go). I hope to honestly share my advice and personal experience here, like a letter to my 18-year-old self.

No matter how old you are now, I hope some wisdom from these insights can help you.

This article doesn't talk about vague theories but delves into concrete practices you can implement immediately.

I suggest saving it, taking notes as you read, or using it as a reference for your AI assistant.

But remember: to truly benefit from this kind of content, mere collection is not enough. You need to calm down and think carefully about how to incorporate these principles into your daily life.

This article is 100% written by me personally.

Part One: Laying the Foundation

Entering 2026 and beyond, the most critical skill is: possessing a strong “proactive drive.”

In plain language, it means you can take control of your life.

Discover opportunities, act decisively, face setbacks, learn from experience, bounce back, and strike again—how quickly can you complete this cycle?

This is the first time in human history that “information” no longer constitutes a competitive advantage (now you can ask AI anytime and get instant answers).

Today, your most solid moat lies in your flexibility of thinking and response speed.

Next is maintaining a thirst for knowledge.

If you feel your life is stagnating, it's likely because you've been in the same place for too long.

Read broadly, explore boldly, dive into fascinating fields of knowledge, try new tools, and communicate with all kinds of people.

This last point is especially important because modern society is increasingly isolating.

People deeply desire to work shoulder to shoulder with outstanding individuals.

Countless excellent opportunities stem from collaboration, dialogue, and brainstorming.

This is why platforms like 𝕏 (Twitter) can change lives, and it will continue to do so in the future.

Don't give up on exploring new horizons out of curiosity.

You'll be surprised to find that with just strong action and insatiable curiosity, you can go very far.

Focus Intensely

Build a set of daily routines—high-value habits that push you forward every day.

No matter what, stay away from “meaningless things.”

By “meaningless,” I mean: video games, aimless scrolling on social media (unless for research or content creation), junk food, blindly chasing relationships… basically, anything that doesn't substantively help your core goals.

Of course, people need leisure and entertainment. But I find that taking an “extreme mode” is more effective than ambiguity. For example: fully dedicate three months to work, then completely relax for a week—don't mix the two.

Prioritize health

Health = diet + exercise + sleep, these three account for 90% of influence. Among this 90%, sleep takes up half. If you could optimize only one thing in your life, choose sleep. My experience is: as long as your mind is in a good state, work naturally flows smoothly.

Make work your focus

Plan the three most important tasks the night before that can best advance your goals. Execute immediately after waking up. Until those are done, other trivial matters can be put aside.

The work that needs to be done will ultimately be carried by someone—and that person is only you.

How many consecutive days can you maintain this rhythm? The compound effect will make your momentum grow stronger and stronger.

Make “working hard” your personal brand label, not just a fleeting impulse.

I spend 14 hours daily, seven days a week (of course, with breaks, exercise, and training). Sometimes I feel exhausted, but I get up and keep pushing. Honestly, my fatigue often isn't from workload but from doing things that don't align with my inner purpose. If I truly love it, I can do it tirelessly for days.

Simplify life, create “anchor” habits

You only need a few high-efficiency habits, and long-term accumulation will produce astonishing results.

Two examples:

• Set a bedtime alarm (sleep well → good condition → high efficiency)
• Write down three top priorities daily (even if the rest of the time is relaxed, core progress is guaranteed)

Growth Leverage

Labor Arbitrage

Once financially feasible, hire an administrative assistant immediately. Their cost isn't high (make good use of global labor cost differences). When capable of hiring a second, act quickly and keep expanding. Invest money in increasing manpower, not in luxury watches, designer brands, or extravagance—I’ve experienced all these myself, owning several Patek Philippe, driving a Maybach, wearing Loro Piana suits. Believe me, these are all “vanity.”

AI Skills

Dedicate at least 10 hours weekly to learning and improving AI capabilities, plus 1-2 hours daily for hands-on practice. While writing this article, I was simultaneously using ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini, each with customized commands and skill sets.

(I don't use them to write for me—just a reminder: letting AI write for you is the worst way to build a personal brand. Besides, writing itself is a mentally challenging joy; don’t deprive yourself of the pleasure of thinking just for speed.)

Here are the AI skills with the highest ROI so far:

• AI Fundamentals: best practices for large language models, prompt engineering, project management, image/design generation, etc.
• Automation workflows: Zapier or n8n are good starting points for building workflows
• Natural language programming: creating software with spoken language

Personal Branding

In fact, everyone has a personal brand.

Some people's “brand” is only known among friends and family; others are followed by millions online.

I'm not encouraging you to become an embarrassing “influencer,” but I want you to realize: you already have a brand.

Next, decide whether to make this brand public.

Public creation is the best approach; my account grew this way. Initially, I just shared my observations and trading insights, but it completely changed my destiny. I was once just a 20-year-old in Australia, now I can build friendships with billionaires, venture capitalists, and entrepreneurs—all starting from the moment I began tweeting.

“Where should I invest my energy?”

Focus most of your effort on things with “high return on investment.”

Of course, to accumulate the necessary startup capital (not just money, but also knowledge and resources), you might need to start with some “limited ceiling” activities (for example, many SaaS founders started as agents or info product creators).

Farewell Words

First, don't blindly follow “passion.”

This may sound counterintuitive, but limiting yourself to a single “passion” might cause you to miss other opportunities you love.

For example: as a teenager, I was obsessed with music, dreaming of becoming a singer. Later, I started exploring finance and cryptocurrencies. Initially, this wasn't my “passion,” just something that seemed interesting. But small achievements gradually built up into big success, and I became more and more immersed, eventually loving this career. Looking back, my childhood music dreams are no match for the excitement of entrepreneurship. None of this started from passion; it was cultivated through curiosity and continuous experimentation.

So, stay curious and be brave to try new things. You might unexpectedly enter a career field you never considered.

In this coming era of upheaval, this open-minded attitude is crucial.

Finally, emotional intelligence far outweighs IQ.

Many people are actually quite foolish—not in terms of knowledge, but in lacking emotional intelligence.

In business, always consider the other person's perspective. Think about consequences before acting, give a little extra, and exceed expectations.

If you make mistakes, face them calmly and reflect deeply. Stop blaming others or your environment.

Yes, life has many worries, and many things are beyond our control. But what you can control are your actions and responses.

Conclusion

A gentle reminder: only when you calm down, seriously reflect, and truly integrate these principles into your life can articles like this be valuable.

One of the best ways to do this is to treat this article as background material, feed it to an AI (any large language model), and then ask: “Based on these suggestions, how should I start taking action?”