My only reason for making a blanket statement is because a lot of posts in response to whether or not to try trading full time, have come from people who do not do it full time themselves and I just wanted to point out that its a completely different ballgame than the average person who makes a few trades a week while they are at their primary job (cause i used to do that when i worked for Fannie Mae). And i'm not saying that you treat trading as a hobby, but someone who trades as a second source of possible income has that luxury. I do not. I must be sharp and on point everyday, regardless of what else is going on in my life. I'm sorry if I offended you, its just the way I saw it.
I agree with you. Treating trading as anything less than a real business will lead to road blocks. That pretty much goes for any pursuit. I think your comments are accurate. I was hoping this thread won't turn into a flame war as many others have.
"Almost every succesful trader I know is very independent thinking and is a risk taker. I am not suggesting that you need to be a gambler to suceed at trading, but you do need a little bit of that in your blood." Nitro hit the nail on the head Only the OP can make this decision on what to do, and although he is looking for advice here, we probably have just confused him even more.
It is good to climb a mountain with safety ropes. But if you don't make it to the top of the mountain, you always wonder what if you did not have the rope to save you, and if you had no choice but to climb whether you would have made it to the top and it was the rope that was keeping you from the top? A man can never truly know his limitations/potential unless all ropes are removed. Do or do not, there is no try. nitro
Some very interesting debate on this thread as to the merits and disadvantages of trading for a living. I graduate uni in six months and intend on taking a position with a UK based prop firm. I want to trade and have done since the age of 10, but I am not considered a good enough candidate to get a job with one of the IB's so for me the only way to live my dream is through a prop shop. I intend on studying for my masters degree (distant learning) in economics and finance which will take 3 years and after this time if I am not enjoying prop trading then I will re-apply to the IB'S as a stronger candidate with a masters degree and three years trading experience under my belt! However, if I am successful and pulling in six figure's a year then stuff the IB's!
sle, there goes the fantasy again. Why do people just assume just because you are given an account to trade and start throwing stuff on the wall until something stick that you'll make a couple of hundred grand per year? Is trading that easy? Have you read Market Wizzards? How many long agnozing years of losing, gains, and blood & sweat before some of these best traders get to the pinnacle of success? But that's not so odd is it? Doctors go through at least 12years of training(4yrs undergrad, 4yrs med school, 4 years of residency). Even then when they first come out they don't make even 6 figures. I have a few MD friends just out of residency. Same with senior mgmt, sr engineers, sr scientists, sr anything in all lines of business. They put in the long hours and time to MASTER their craft. Now, any newbies fresh out of school think that in 1-2 yrs they will be making 6 figures consistently? Is there a bit of a disconnect? just wondering... misc
and now am trading stocks full time. I would still advise you to pursue the engineering and get your money and times worth. You must have worked hard to make it through engineering. I would not throw the education away like that. Use it, and then realize how much engineering sucks and move on to something else as most engineers do! I am still glad I got the money from the engineering even though it sucked and I hated it. Trading will be there for you when you get tired of engineering. I was a BSME.