I agree things don't look too good right now, but in certain situations [not this current drop] it can pay to buy dips [stocks] and sell juiced vols on those issues. Anyways besides the point. The majority of people trading intraday futures are basically trading with the trend trying to catch momentum runs.
I wasn't curious about the cost of your system just the setup itself. Looks like you got advise from a trader already, I can't imagine someone new to trading setting that up. What were you trading?
I think you're referring to their "squeeze indicator" ( or something similar sounding). I don't use it myself but it's actually a useful indicator because it predicts impending volatility expansion. There is no "holy water" someone can sprinkle on you and then you'll suddenly turn into a great trader ( in my book anyone making consistent money from the market qualifies for the moniker "great"). If I were to do it again, I'd join a prop firm with decent traders willing to help. Forget the per share or payout. Just be there to learn. otherwise, remove all money from your trading account and leave only the bare minimum. Then try removing all indicators (everything) from your chart and trade the SPY with 100 lots. Keep a daily record of your observations and what you learned that day. Create achievable goals metrics. Review them. Expect to blow up several times (hence keeping account small), have written rules on how you will re-fund the account. Practice Yoga. The mental and emotional aspect is 99.99% of the game.
Carters squeeze indicator is an excellent confirmation tool for a mechanical trading system. I use it in my daily routine (swing trades).
I was trading ES...pretty much just trying to catch trends, but i kept getting faked out at the worst possible time.. as far as the setup, i designed & planned it myself...i went with 8 monitors for 2 reasons....the first was i wanted to be able to have many markets up at one time to try to find causal relationships or leading markets that i could use to trade lagging markets.....second, vista & my motherboard can only run 2 video cards....i used the nvs440 cards which run 4 monitors each... I pulled the desks from my real estate office, ordered the TV from wallmart, i figured that all traders used aerons & voila, there you have it
Friday was a tough day, even though it was in a downward trend it had a few strong bounces taking out stops.
It just seems like their must be much more to learn than just....buy when the MCAD crosses or the ADX does this or the CCI does that or sell on a 20 day breakout to the downside.... I mean we all know futures are zero-sum, and to win I have to out-think other very smart traders who have all these same tools & then some... I have considered flying out to vegas to check out Bright's place... I think an issue for me is that even with all the great info & posts on ET, there is sometimes too much information, all with various S/N ratios. I do read tons here & try to glean what i can, but i know that one-on-one with a great trader, even for a few days, would propel me exponentially
My compliments on your office - I've long had an appreciation for architectural detail (former woodbutcher here), and your room has that in spades. May I also suggest that you concentrate more on blazing your own trail. Great if you can actually enlist the aid of an accomplished mentor, but in the meantime, why don't you just roll up your sleeves, and put in the time and effort to develop your own knowledge and skills. Many have been fortunate this past year to receive the help and guidance from a couple very benevolent gentlemen, and the best thing is that their contributions are now archived here on ET: Begin your Journey here Should your interest be more in the equities' arena, there is also a paralleled journal for that endeavor. Your real estate savvy has brought you to an enviable position in life. You apparently now have the available capital and time to seriously undertake trading as a profession, provided it is a personal passion. Just dive into the journal, put in several hours each of reading and screentime per day, and you should be able to reach your daily goal in the matter of a few short months. And there is a host of good folks around to answer the questions as they develop. You stated you've already lost the equivalent of the cost of your equipment within a two week period. That should be ample evidence that the markets will gladly accept whatever monies you care to recklessly throw at 'em. Take it slow, and strive to personally acquire the necessary tools. Best of luck ...
judging by the look of the room, I guess the rest of the house must be really nice. How about widen your offer to include a staying at your house.