I started trading with a prop firm in November and now have three months of experience to draw upon. I find myself stuck and I am asking for some input. Currently, I seem to be capable of trading gross positive but have not been able to consistently trade net positive. I made huge gains in my performance from November to December and leveled off in January. In November, I simply was not managing risk properly. I found myself trading too much size and allowing losers to run. I started trading 500 share lots because this is what I was practicing with when I was trading a simulator. I felt comfortable with this size and wanted to change as few variables as possible when I went live. The following were my trading stats for November: Shares Traded 194028 Number of trades 358 Avg per share/trd -0.009650369 Average duration 0:10:26 Gross Loss -1476.996 Winners 202 Avg gain 0.091829624 Losers 156 Avg loss -0.141053949 Win % 0.56424581 Shrt Win 34 Avg gain 0.092352941 Shrt Loss 33 Avg loss -0.161770182 SS Win % 0.507462687 Win >.1 73 Loss >.1 74 Win >.2 23 Loss >.2 40 Win >.3 7 Loss >.3 17 Win >.4 1 Loss >.4 10 Loss >.5 6 Loss >.6 5 Loss >.7 3 Loss >.8 2 Loss >.9 1 Based upon these results, I determined that I took too many large losses. Additionally, in December I dropped my size to 100 shares.
My results were almost identical for both months so I will combine the data: Shares Traded 235260 Number of trades 1100 Average trade 0.007790909 Average duration 0:04:59 Gross Profit $670.16 Winners 560 Average Win 0.086669643 Losers 540 Average Loss -0.074009259 Win % 0.509090909 Shrt Win 72 Average Win 0.110638889 Shrt Loss 73 Average Loss -0.109561644 SS Win % 0.496551724 Win >.1 193 Loss >.1 141 Win >.2 60 Loss >.2 42 Win >.3 23 Loss >.3 16 Win >.4 7 Loss <.4 5 Win >.5 3 Loss >.5 2 Win >.6 2 Loss >.6 1 Win >.7 1 I am frustrated because I feel that I am so close to turning the corner. I have committed to allowing my winners to run and to limit my tendency to churn at times. I build a small net profit during the day and then give it back only to struggle to return to net positive or remain gross positive. Additionally, I have had a run of good days and attempt to raise my shares only to self-destruct. The good news is that I no longer feel like throwing up. I definitely underestimated the emotional toll trading would take upon me. The financial hit, though painful, hasn't been devastating. My wife and I have had a number of gut checks and she remains supportive as long as I continue to show progress. Based upon what I have disclosed, does anyone have any constructive criticism? Thank you in advance.
if your looking to make a real living this year i think you should just write a check to the specialist club at nyse. if you take your time and relax it will come. there are no secrets its about failing failing and more failing til you catch on. i like to size down alot when i am not feeling it. its very easy to get out of small size when scalping so just trade small. its pretty easy to make $400 a day trading 300 to 500 shares when scalping between bid and ask. my problem is when i size up on a trade like that its hard to get out and i lose getting out. also try to use acra and isld its a great tool. i trade larger size(1000 to 4000) but not for scalping but with a trend or a chart play. the key is to learn were to size up or size down and i learn alittle more each day. goodluck