What should I look out for, how should I prepare, and what’s the best approach? All suggestions are welcome!
The best approach is to learn the movements of the market well and then participate in any competition. If the market is going up and it reached high peaks then surely it will have some correction and in correction shorting works like a charm but if market is dumped and bull run is still there then there'e chance the market may go up again and in such times it's better to open long positions to earn profits.
And when you learn to acquire the knowledge of the movement in the market, it will help you to succeed among the competitors in the market because you have the experience of the market which it will lead you to the season to trade your coins to make a good profit other people are making from trading. It depend the price you bought your coins in the market, because if you buy your coins in a high price and you sell the coins in the bull run, it will not help you to make plenty profits like those that bought their coins in the bear run and sell in the bull run.
This long hodling before trading, is very hard for some newbies to achieve to improve in any competition trading because they feel is a waste of time for them, than to trade without considering the price of the market at the moment, which it will not help them to earn a good profit with other traders in the competition.