Terminology & Foundations

Why this course exists

This course creates a shared language for the community.

Investing gets confusing when people use terms without shared definitions. Terminology (369) removes that friction so conversations, analysis, and decisions are clearer—regardless of experience level.

How to use this course

You do not need to memorize everything here.

Use this course as a reference:

What 369 means

369 is not a difficulty level.

It represents structure, cycles, and patterns that repeat across markets and systems.

This course focuses on foundational understanding, not complexity.

Navigation tips

Unsolicited explanations ahead—do what you want with them.

💬 Discussion

What investing or crypto term confused you the most when you first heard it?

What Is a Market?

Goal: Give members a shared mental model of how markets work before terminology branches out.

A market is a place where buyers and sellers exchange assets.

Price is not “truth.”

It is simply the most recent agreement between sellers and buyers.

Markets exist for:

All markets share the same mechanics:

Understanding this helps prevent overreacting to short-term price movement.

Price moves when supply (sellers) and demand (buyers) become imbalanced.

Demand increases when:

Supply increases when:

Markets move fastest when:

This is why smaller markets often experience larger price swings.

💬 Discussion Where do you see supply or demand most commonly misunderstood?

Liquidity measures how easily an asset can be bought or sold without significantly affecting price.

High liquidity:

Low liquidity:

Liquidity often dominates price in the short term. Fundamentals tend to dominate outcomes in the long term.

Confusing the two leads to poor decision-making.

Volatility = how much price moves. Risk is the chance of permanent loss.

An asset can be:

Volatility feels dangerous. Permanent loss is dangerous.

NOTE: Long-term investors learn to tolerate volatility to reduce real risk.

This course is the foundation.

You now have the language needed to think clearly about markets, risk, and decision-making across asset classes.

What you do next depends on where you want to focus:

Revisit this course anytime a term feels unclear.

Clear language leads to clearer thinking.

This is education, not advice—apply it however you choose.