Weekly Update for week 24/50 ended 6/25/2011 Another bad week, down 21K (7.6%). Now finally broke to the downside of the prior lows. This is getting embarrassing. Two bad option fades in MCP on MOnday and Oracle on Friday combined to knock off 20K from my account. Continuing with the programming to free me from these purely discretionary forays. I should probably be ready with a live system in a weeks time. Code: Opening Balance: 272,529 Net loss for the week 20,731 ------------------------------------------------ Net Balance: 251,798 Number of Trades 16 Number of Profitable Trades 9 Since Inception of Thread 01/8/2011 - 6/25/2011 Opening Balance: 335,899 Net loss (Less Margin Interest) 84,101 (Down 25%) ------------------------------------------------ Net Balance 251,798 Number of Trades 488 Number of Profitable Trades 257
Don't be embarrassed. This market has been humbling for a lot of people. Anyone who's done this for years inevitably goes through challenges. Maybe you should be concerned, but that's a different story. You don't own anyone else an explanation.
A humbling market is only a problem if you don't respect it. Neke should have cut position sizes long ago and to be fair he has but not nearly enough. I think he could consistently grind out a few grand a week if had any respect for the market. Coincidentally, I've known a few poker players who could make $100k+/yr if they stuck to the $10 tables but all of them would rather blow up on the $100 or $1000 tables then earn a decent living.
CommunistMonkey hit one nail perfectly. Proper position sizing is one key element. The other is knowing what your beliefs are about the markets. You trade what you believe, and need to know how to position size accordingly to preserve capital in order to continue to be able to stay the course. Taking care of the downside is far more important than being concerned with the upside. Do the former correctly, and the latter will come, not vice versa! No surprises here though as the trading results have a negative expectancy, and have had for quite sometime. The system is definitely lacking structurally, if one would really refer to this as a system. Being kind and referring to it as such, it then has proven it's not suitable for this type of market.
Neke.. You should stop trading now .. Take time off from the market to recharge. your grinding your account down like a gambler. You do not trade to earn a living like most full time traders do. what is the point of pissing away your money & fightng yourself in trading & taking losses . i know it's addictive but you have to be realisitc that your only harming yourself. most traders can't take a vacation & relax . the feel they are missing something. that's not healthy. When you keep losing money it's time to take a pause for the cause before it's too late & then you will really feel embarrassed by your actions. save yourself & take a real vacation . It will give you a new prospective of the market & will get you on track again with trading.
I would be interested to know more about NEKE'S system. I've been following his thread for a while now and don't recall much specifics about it. He probably doesn't want to be distracted by unqualified advice, just the same, it's difficult to understand big draw downs without know what he is trying to do. Risk management seems to stand out pretty consistently as an issue, as others have noted. GL NEKE, and post a fat gainer soon.
Seriously, you need pay attention to position sizing (I have no clue what it is). You are a gambler, not a trader (I have no idea that they are different). You need to take a long vacation (have no clue that vacation can improve trading). You need to quit gambling, call gambling anonymous (really? what about my ID and name showing on the receiver's Caller ID screen?)
Neke... Another choice can be to trade stocks Only short term ( a few days) take a break from daytrading. Drop trading Options for now .. That's not working for you. Better off to trade stocks with a hard stop loss per position. preserving capital is key .. Give yourself a opportunity to be profitable again with less stress & still be involved in the market. This may fail on deaf ears, but a smart move is to make some changes Now
I'm not sure why I'm doing this, as I don't know you at all. However, I feel compelled to "lend a hand". So here it is... HEDGE YOUR OPTION POSITIONS!... look at how the successful floor traders managed option positions... Hopefully, you'll heed this advise. It's truly worthwhile. thanks, Walter