Have been working hard at becoming a competent and consistent day trader for three years. The good news is that I am now at a point where I expect to consistently earn about 1% of my account size per week. The bad news is that I'm struggling with some decisions about some very important things. I have daily/weekly/monthly goals, and--like all of you--just HATE giving back profits. If I hit my goal by 11 am, like I did today, I stop trading. If I hit my weekly goal, like I did today, I stop for the week. If I hit my monthly goal, like I did by February 24th, I stop. While it is great locking in profits, it's not so great to be (I would hope, anyway) leaving some very nice money on the table--and it's eating me up. I also know--from first hand experience of course--that if I continue trading past my goal and end giving back even a small amount, then THAT eats me up. If it matters, I average about 3.25 trades per day, win rate just over 50%, average winner is twice the size of the average loser. Position size is 5% of portfolio with goal of getting to at least 7.5%. Thanks for reading and any suggestions. A.
Consistency comes from a resolved mind. And yet you say you achieve consistency one one hand but cannot resolve fear and greed on the other. I really cannot help you, unless of course I just have. regards f9
Well, you raise a good point, but a mind may be resolved on solution A one day and then decide to be resolved on solution B the next. My mind IS resolved right now in that I have faithfully stuck to my plan which is to protect profits, period. Guess I am asking if that is a wise thing to do. Not sure it is, but until I learn otherwise, I will continue to be resolved in that manner.
You have highlighted my point and that is why I cannot help you. You believe a mind can be resolved on A one day and B tomorrow. A resolved mind is neither attached or directed to anything, it simply exists. regards f9
There is only one person who can help you. It's YOU! Talent is not transferable, not teachable and not substitutable. It's either you have it or you don't. Please do not take me wrong, I have no idea whether you have it or not and I am not judging. But, please, understand it very clearly, - only you can discover whether you have this talent or not. Think of trading as a very individual sport. You can have all of the best equipment in the world and still could suck at it. I have spent at least 7 years discovering my abilities to trade. It is a lot of sweat and blood! Sometimes it feels that you cannot take it anymore. But if you survive it will become the best accomplishment of your life! Trust me!
Maestro--with all due respect, whose post were you answering? Certainly wasn't mine. I posted nothing that would imply I was asking how one determines if they have "it."
Let me take a wild guess: You just finished a self realization course by one of Paramahansa Yogananda's disciples? Good grief.
I am sorry, I was just trying to help. I was implying in my post that the MM technique is a core of a trading talent. That's all. Cheers
Unless you have a logical reason for stopping trading such as, "you expect market conditions to become unfavorable for your trading method", there is no reason to stop trading. I suspect your fear of giving back profits is caused by your excessive trading size. It's logical to stop trading daily, weekly, etc. when you're doing poorly due to market conditions, poor focus, or other adverse reasons. Check your pulse and blood pressure when trading. If it's significantly different than at rest, then stress is probably your real problem. With your excellent record, you could reduce your stress by reducing your trade size to 1-2% of account and trade every day (with firewalls in place to halt trading during losing periods). If you need to trade 5% of your account for financial reasons, consider stopping trading and get a job to build your bankroll so you can trade without risking so much.