Neo I just started trading the minis about three weeks ago. So far I am ahead but just barely. Its two steps forward, one step back. I dont think I would have tried it with 4k. I put 7k in and have some backup. I really expected to lose a couple of grand right off the bat but have been trading for two years and adjusted pretty quickly. With your lack of actual trading experience and poor connection I think you will get killed to be perfectly honest. I do have a suggestion. I spent a month in Linda Raschkes chat room. Its kind of high at $350 a month but she is a tremendous teacher and she calls trades on the S&P which you can follow pretty easily. The entire month I was in there I think she made two bad calls. She doesnt call a lot of trades on the S&Ps, maybe one or two a day but the winning percentage is pretty high and if you have the patience to wait for the calls you might be able to at least break even while you learn.I prefer a much faster pace and so I left the room but she is somethin' else.
neo, the other one, There is no shame in keeping your money instead of letting vultures take it from you. it is a lot of money for you. the stock market is not the way to become millionnaire. It even takes quite some capital to be able to adapt to different market conditions and stay in the game. You mentioned me with mechanical futs system. it's true. and my success rate was 80-90% with 10 contracts and more. but it was for a period of time. And It was too intense for me (mechanical or not). Now I am in a totally different sector and much easier (better risk reward) it takes quite some cash though. it takes pretty long to understand trading. "there is no spoon" is a reminder that trading is really not what people think it is. and as long as you don't trade the way the market really is, you can't succeed. it takes very long usually to get it (at least with me it took long ). it usually also costs a lot of money to learn. so again, it is OK to stop on this. tntneo
OK tntneo, Ill make a deal with you - I own an appartment in Zagreb which I could sell for at least 50k. Ill givem to you if youd show me that there is no G** D*** spoon. And of course teach me the way markets operate. Fair enough ? ALex
hi Alex, I am sure many would like the chance to take your money. Mostly thieves anyway. Now back to your request, be careful, it is not that easy. I read some traders learn the craft by paying very high prices to get a coach and or mentor. And maybe that's not that stupid (after all I lost 30% of what I had before I started to get it.. so maybe I should have paid a mentor instead ). But it is very difficult to find a real good coach or mentor (not the same thing by the way. a coach might not be a great trader, but still make you a winner.. I had a good coach. my 'morpheus'). Another good solution is to take the same kind of money and join a pro firm. you may loose the money, but at least you will be with some traders really succeeding, not just people who want your money. It is very difficult to succeed on your own, so remote from the rest of the best trading community. So I don't think I, or other succesful traders can help you so far away. And otherwise, you just can't buy 'it'. 'it' does not exist (the way to make money). market dynamics is not something you buy, you either get it or not. it is explained in many books and is very basic (trend theory/volume relationship eventually tape reading if it applies). I hope I could help more. I think I am anyway tntneo
Something that all traders should keep in mind always is that if you make $1 Net per year, you are among the top 10% of all traders. One lousey dollar and you are better than 90% of the people who try their hand at this. Each trader needs to figure out what is going make them so good that they can make even that $1 when 90% can't. That's not how system vendors and brokers want you to think, but that is the way it really is. Brandon
And I thought a buck was only good for long distance calling. Hardly covers the trader's overhead however.
LOL !! I am usually puzzled by the statement that 90% of traders loose. It is a vague and rather meaningless statement. traders? there are all kind of traders, trading all kind of things. are we talking online private investors trying to trade ? hedge fund managers ? currency traders ? floor trader for that matter.. the word 'trader' is so overused. don't get me wrong. most reader of this forum are not making money (not even a buck). they should consider themselves lucky if they are break even (it's a big achievement already). but that's no reason to use 'trader' as a catch all to say we all loose. now if most amateur traders (or junior pro traders) fail, it's in part because they have the wrong idea about what trading is about. I learned that lesson along with so many when the nasdaq collapse caught me while I used to think i knew what trading was (fool!). It cost a lot. 30% before I even started to understand and a little more until I turned the corner. that's usually when you'll know if you will ever get it or not (when you loose a lot). the problem is the wrong perception of the market. that's why psychology is often mentioned as the most important thing. it is not, a sound system is, then psychology. but anyway. psychology is important because the perception is so difficult to change. I remember someone here mentioned something very interesting about trading your equity curve. think about it (I tried already to write about this but let me try this new way) : if you are always loosing, it means your equity curve is going down. why not short yourself ? (what?! that's it, tntneo lost it! :eek: ) no, no, think about it. you would make money if someone would trade against yourself. YOU ARE ALWAYS GOING DOWN : I just short you and I will make money ! that's the idea about doing the opposite of what you are doing, then you will make money. my experience is just that. I became successful when I understood what I was doing and why. since that was not working, I started to do the contrary. from another thread I wrote "the edge is about removing what does not work, not ask for what works". you always fail (90% of you, if I must believe the word on the street). why don't you do the opposite of what you do ? yes, it is very difficult (psychology prevents you to do it). but that's the only way. that's also why, success is very personal because each trader fails in a very specific way. that's the way he must reverse. Also, I know, sometimes some strategy are difficult to reverse. my strategies were not that easy to reverse because of very active time trame, I slowed down. the point is you can always reverse what you do. it is just hard to do. that's the price to pay. anyway.. tntneo
funster if you still around come to this chat room (look for links in my post) http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/showthread.php?threadid=3866&perpage=6&pagenumber=4 and see woodie call the trade 5 points per day or more each and every day when he is in
neo, Some friendly advice. The markets suck right now, at least the stock markets in the US. Why beat your head against the wall? Maybe you could make it in a great trending market with an undercapitalized account but now? Forget it. Hitman knows what he is doing and he is struggling to break even. Go into real estate and make some serious money. Trade off the daily charts with small positions, 10-50 shares. Or look into other futures markets. Many require very low margin. I would suggest eurodollars, cattle, soybean meal. Trade one contract at a time. Not as sexy maybe as NQ futures but plenty of traders made fortunes in them. And you will be learning to trade. We may even be entering a time like the 1970's when these markets were where the action was and the stockmarket was deadly boring.