well said Shneed, I started pretty much the time, about 3 years ago. Did not make a penny from the 99 boom nor bust, but learnt trading during the hardest times. I lost 40% of my account within the first week. It took me some time and reflection to finally realized that if I was to trade for a living, discipline is the ONLY way to keep me in the game. From that, I worked on a strategy where I am most comfortable with; time frame, size of contracts/shares, and instruments. I got away from trading Nasdaq stocks, and spent 3 weeks analyzing the QQQ and slowly switched to futures. And it wasn't until I found my most comfortable 'zone' that I started trading fulltime with my full attention @ full throttle. Once everything starts clicking, man... you would look forward to every trading day. All to say that, you shouldn't be taking % return or even worst having a set date, as a goal. It might sound a little abstract, but finding your 'zone' should be your only goal. Maybe it's swing trading, maybe it's daytrading, but you will know when that day comes. Trial and error will lead you there. Best of luck.
Easy, Have you ever considered that maybe doing things your way, on your own, actually SAVED you a lot of time? I can't help but think, that if I never read a single trading book, and hadn't filled my head with so much GARBAGE, that I would have figured this out a lot faster After all... what are the chances that an average joe can find a REAL mentor that REALLY could help him learn faster? The only mentor I would EVER trust is a close personal friend or relative, who is ALSO a successful trader. Most people don't have that. peace axeman
Great info from you both. I can see that you are both in the zone. I know my post sounded wrong since I asked how long it takes to become a successful daytrader, But I just wanted to see haow many month/ years it took for the average trader. You insight is great Thanks.
It all boils down to how much you know going into it full time, if you have good traders to help you along etc. I started fulltime (before that i basically just paper traded and followed markets closely) about 4 months ago, and i have been profitable every month since i started. Im deffently in a "learning curve" and i think the actual learning with trading lasts forever but ive still made money every month. Everyone is different. some people can make money the first month and never have a losing month for years. Some guys lose money for 6 months, and all of a sudden they figure it out and become great traders. Name of the game is to not think of the money when you start. But like i said, everyone is different.
shneed, let me get this straight you changed a $10K account into more than $500k and this after 2000, so in less than 3 years and scalping equities only?
maybe its just the way I think, but.......... I made alot money this year and still have not decided I am successfully. That will take another year. It is possible to make alot of money in a very short time and think you can do repeat it every month. I'm still keeping the other job on the side in case this doesn't work out. You need to make money AND have a track record of doing so. Oh and the whole zone thing..... I believe in it (although I like to think of it as in discipline or out of discipline).. You don't stay in the zone, it comes and goes, just recognize when it is gone, and take the day off.
C Verm, a couple of us asked you what you meant by "profitable" in your 4 years of swing trading, and you never replied. I asked - and I assume others did - because this is an important consideration. If you have been profitable, then why not further exploit what you already know, and can do? If you have not been profitable, then I can assure you that you will not be very likely to soon turn a profit in what, IMO, is a harder game to master. Having started way back in daytrading, and since moved to swing trading full time for the past three years, I can tell you that daytrading is a much more demanding environment. You may think, as many do, that it is more effective to take quick profits since you want instant income and the gratification of success. But that very often isn't the case, because it's surprising how quickly small losses can turn into a frightening dent in your capital. So again, if you can make money swing trading, stay with the program. This is an excellent market environment for it, depending on your strategy.
Kicking, Yes. Tried to add an attachment of my trades from a closed account, but the file was way too big. Too many trades. shneed