%% MOST medical bills are so overpriced, no wonder Hillsdale College article names it ''medical \industrial complex................................................................................................'' Ever been to Las Vegas?? I have not, but i noticed all[100%]of the systems use cash stocks... or only 1 contract. Most service businesses/investors/ cash ETFs traders make more money than stock traders/............................. I never had good profits on XOM or CVX, but i never traded CVX; FENY profits, sure /FXN profits sure. SCHW brokerage has some good points /they always use income= dividends, full page WSJ money market ad. IBKR had an old good green ad SPY phone about $250+; not green EGG or woke broke ad. So since you cant beat the SPY benchmark , ever considered joining it??Context of that old IBKR ad was uptrend; so few bear funds[of the few bear funds] make money There is a thin blue line between you + danger\ i thought that was a 50 day moving average/ actually it was thewell funded Las Vegas Police Dept
THIS is why you have problems with being profitable. It is not about "knowing" where the price will go and overleverage these trades - this is a recipe for disaster. It is about risk management. Also, first decide on one instrument. Then find a profitable strategy. Then follow it. Then you will be on the edge of consistent profitability and only then you will start battling the discipline. At least this is how my journey went. And one last thing - knowing how much I am making (or anyone else here) is none of your business and for your own good you should focus on your own progress. If you feel running a business is easier than trading, than maybe stick to what you are good at? Why change careers?
Beautiful images coming from this comment. Almost poetic. Thanks Sir. As for OPs initial post: - This is my second year in, started with 10k. Current: 9k. - I'd say I'm between swing and position trading. Mostly because of lack of time. I am aware I have not gone anywhere because I have not ACTUALLY put in all of myself into it. - Instruments: UCITS ETFs. Did a few CHF and AUD and USD when trading spot currencies before. - I have read around 100 books but as others have said just a few things stay with you. This is subjective though. Read a book more than once. Read the "classics" more than once (i.e. market wizards, reminiscences of a SO, etc etx). - Strategy: it's all discretionary ATM. I started to build a system that ought to automate all aspects of trading but that takes time out of learning the ropes. So that comes and goes. - What are these ropes? IMC/CFA/CMT. Papers. Market microstructures. IMF newsletters. BoE announcements. Posts by a few folks here that appear to know what they are doing/saying (could be bullshit, but that's fine. That always comes out when the snow melts). Of course, this also takes time, so I select. I'm also an engineer, software/systems. And I believe trading is what can forever feed my sense of curiosity. That's why I'm doing it.
%% NOT sure a green box will help him\ i use green + red, blue + purple moving averages myself. NOT sure anyone that ''knows' where price will go will ever make money; even though a mental wish to trade larger will not hurt. So his solution = ''bet big'' Sorry\markets are not gambling or a bet; \ ''big bets'' will help Las Vegas + actually help your broker, but make you broker.[Edit some traders use bets or gambling for ''stupid risk''=OK, by me] Easy to beat SPY or sso benchmark; some times LOL. He could trade bigger if he had more cash in brokerage account; or bank account\but those are not bets or gambling. Sorry my bottom lines\ i now see he is in index futures,Christ + portfolio managers may deal in derivatives\glad i did not learn @ first with derivatives.[He] she is[was] like the merchant[trading] ships-PROverbs 31/KJV/NET
Giving advice is weird since almost nobody usually follows it. Personal experience is worth of millions really If I gave some I would sign what others mentioned here - stay away from daytrading / scalping and focus on longer term. Or at least focus on slow plays first and study DT aside. DT is just a mindfuck because it really tells you how damn consistent you are and if you are not you are pretty fucked :-D I do not say it does not work but I am pretty confident that it works better compared to swing trading maybe for 0.1% daytraders? Others would be waaaay better just swing trading and having a happy life. It's not just fees, slippage, platforms and other shit that needs to work like it never breaks but you also invest your health, psyche, free time into watching just noise most of the time. Even if you spot intra-day patterns it can be very short-lived. A great way to blow up Some say swing trading futures cannot be done with a small account to start with. I say bullshit. You can trade futures spreads. Same tick sizes, fractional margins, sometimes better trends than outrights Look, if I were a REALLY CONSISTENT trader the seasonal futures spread trading would make me millions, I swear to god. The line would be just about straight. Just look at the largest losing trade (B9 cell). You are really as good as your last trade. You need to learn how to lose! What I found working in a decent manner: seasonal trading shorting stocks - mean-reversion crypto breakouts / long mean-rev I am still struggling make a breakthrough in daytrading but I am slowly accepting it is more of an ego play than a way towards great success in the markets - still it can be done I am sure but after years most people including me I believe come to a realization it is more than watching chart and covering fees. You literally become a screenslave or screenbitch. Definitely a field for learning how to automate things. Let the code work for you P.S. I am sorry not to support you in your ES dream