All you prop traders out there "doing size", how much would you have made with the same buying power by just buying a basket of gold stocks and going to play golf for 6 months ? Don't think about it too long it will make you vomit. Better to just jump on the next upswing and look to the future.
Yep. But that's easier said than done. With hindsight anything is possible though. keke. But it's true. If daytraders had just short the index and went to sleep the last few years they would have done quite well. Or short index futures and went long gold and oil. Oh the possibilities...That's why institutions have longer term horizon... But we are not even talking that long of a time horizon(a few years) to have reap a lot of $ . If you had gone in and out at the right time in a few DAYS or at most a week you would realize huge gains, lower commissions, lower stress, and can manage more positions. Since the beginning of Feb which was only 12 days ago, SP has dropped already 40pts. 40*50-$2000/contract * 20 contracts - $40K. not bad.. oh well... good luck all!
Hindsight being the operative word. If you had seen today's complete intraday chart at 9:30 in the morning, you could have easily made 80 ES points less maybe 3% of your gross gain in commissions. And that's on a slooooooooooooowwwwwww day like today.
Also, you cant really ignore the fact that trend trading (in the macro sense), which a 6 month time horizon consists of, you have to be able to endure the pullbacks, many of which will be very strong against trend moves on the micro time horizon...
If we are playing the market with Hindsight......you could have shorted 10-20K shares of IBM a month ago and coverd this week for 100-200K.....damn, why didn't I do that? Oh I know why....I can't see into the future.
mondo, although that smacks of peter lynch style "if you'd bought and held MCD for the past 30 years you'd be a milionaire", i agree that even the most died in the wool daytrader would benefit from considering the broader picture, and developing strategies to capitalize on it. now, i just have to take my own advice...
Mondo... why couldn't you have taken this longer-term approach of yours and day-traded gold stocks and gold futures from the long side for the last six months? Where is Jimmy Hoffa's body? Why did the chicken cross the road? Woulda-coulda-shoulda.
Cause we are too interested in catching .50 on 5000 shs in IBM, and being done at 10! I too need to shift my perspective, I was short the SPY at 93, I think I made a .30! Good trading David
Where is this thread going?.... Everyone make their money differently. If you are good enough to daytrade and make 20 ticks a day on the ES ---> you WOULD day trade. If you don't have the passion to trade day in day out.. you are more likely to SWING it. That's all. :: what am i am trying to say ... Just don't think a good day trader would be complaining about this market.