I find it interesting that so many people start out in this business because it has an allure of "tons of easy money". Admittedly, that is why I got involved with trading. I let myself get distracted from school by this allure, and realize now that attaining success through the academic route would have been considerably easier and much safer. The fact is that trading is far from easy, and it would have probably been easier for me to pursue a career in virtually any other field. The broad range and amount of knowledge I had to gain to become consistently profitable is absurd in itself. The difficulty I had to go through to get this knowledge was immense on another level. I have met too many traders that think that they can turn a profit just by willing it to happen. It doesn't work like that.. I am posting this hoping that some of the newer traders come up upon this thread and realize something very important.. Trading is not for those that want easy money; It is an extremely difficult profession that rigorously tests knowledge, emotional control, creativity, and virtually every other aspect of a person's character. Unless you are willing to push yourself to your mental and emotional limits - or mostly likely beyond those limits - this is not the business for you.
It is an extremely difficult profession that rigorously tests knowledge, emotional control, creativity, and virtually every other aspect of a person's character. -------------------------------- And last but not least, their integrity.
A low barrier to entry and greed make for a combination few can resist. These two reasons alone explain why 98% fail.
Here is a question: if you could go back in time, would you choose a different profession and if so, what profession? Also, what profession has the best risk:reward profile?
If I could go back in time, I would still want to go into the field of finance. When I first started trading, I was strictly in it for the money. Admittedly, I am still in it for the money, but now I also love the what I do. When I think about it, I realize that I could have started out in a more effective manner. I was 17 years old when I started trading, and was very much blinded by the allure of "easy money". Although I read a lot of trading books, attended the seminars, and took all the "standard starting out steps", I look back on it now and realize I was an idiot compared to the person I am now. In another three years, I might very well be saying that about the same thing about the present me. What has helped me the most is the knowledge of math and programming I have amassed over the 3 years I have been trading. If I could, I would have learned a lot more math and programming at the beginning, and taken a more quantitative approach to the markets. I find this approach to be most effective for controlling risk - the most important aspect of trading. I have also realized the value of a good education. I am twenty years old, and was supposed to graduate college by 2009. However, since I shifted my efforts more towards trading then school, my graduation date is now in 2010. At my current rate, it will take me another 9-12 months to compound to the point that I'll be making "the big bux" (I prefer to reduce risk as I grow, contrary to what many other traders do). However, if I had just focused on school, I would have still been making good money in 9-12 months with my degree. Regardless, I would not change a thing. My experience has shaped my into the person that I am, and to alter the past is to destroy who I am today, and I do not want to do that. As for your question about the profession with the best risk to reward ratio, I would have to say something in health care. The tuition for school would be the risk, but the almost guaranteed high salary at the end of it all offsets that risk (this is probably why students studying to be doctors get student loans MUCH easier than students in other programs).
Also, what profession has the best risk:reward profile? The profession doesn't matter. You could sell pencils, the r/r profile needs to be a business that is cash as opposed to the dang 1099's or reportable income.
First of all, congratulations on knowing exactly what you want and going after it at such a young age, it's always very impressive in a culture which celebrates hanging-out, getting drunk and getting laid. While your thead title is designed to act as a warning, I'm telling you right now that your post is more of a BEACON which is going to draw new traders to the field like moths to the flame.
Funny topic, the above poster is right, if anything it draws me more into the field. I have just finished a computer science degree, but I don't find it exciting or challenging enough. If anything I am dying to start my Finance degree and work in that field because of the amount of challenge and how it pushes every part of a person, not just their logical brain. There's more to life than the logical, and that's what I love about the stock market. Added the excitment of new events happening every day, this is the type of job that has some real life to it, as opposed to my current programming internship which is repetitive and downright annoying at times. Doing this for 2 months was a pain, I could never picture myself working as a coder for years. Programming is like building immaginary lego blocks in your head, but understanding the financial world touches on every single subject out there, it's very challenging, very dynamic and teaches you a immense deal about yourself and the world. Hell most of my doctors seem bored with their jobs. I'm also twenty and I think I'm starting down the same road you started on 3 years ago, reading investment books and keeping up to date on uprising events. I've got the math and the programming, I'm sure the latter is helpful but I haven't made the connection yet, I'm still accumulating the massive amounts of knowledge you refered to. And I'm looking forward to it.