you are a real loser, it is always easier to say on hindsight. I would have make a millions bla bla bla. Every position is a 50/50 assuming commission is not counted and risk / reward is equal, this is regardless of who is speaking, what news is releasing, or what charts you are looking at. THIS FACT DO NOT CHANGE.
my advice is have a edge over the market, just like casino they have house edge so every round the casino is not worry about how big your bet or how much your bet is cos the casino have a edge that make them a winner in the long run. In trading there is 2 edge, a maths edge (not doubling or tripling of contract, only 1 contract), this is true edge, I have discover it and I call it a unfair edge. When you have a unfair edge, you will not be afraid to take losses as you know you will win in the long run like the casino. Another edge is what most people talk about a trading edge, TA, backtesting, forward testing, money management, trading plan etc etc. I believe a maths edge is a true edge and combine with trading edge will bring your trading to a next level. take a look at this thread http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=52629
Lefty/Icarus OK I know I have come late to this thread but I want to add something. I do not understand why it is necessary to feel as if trading is a war between us and the "Newbies" I have been trading seriously for over 5 years My only goal is to continue on my never ending quest to become an even better trader as well as take as much money as resonably possible from the markets I trade each day. I love what I do and cannot imagine doing anything else, I do not see each day as a war but a challange. Like lefty, I will tear apart the charts on any trade I lose on, not in anger but to see what went wrong and if it is something I can prevent in the future. I some times feel a bit isolated as I am: A)A female trader and B) trade from overseas in the summers and my only contact with other traders is this message board. But, like someone else posted on this thread, This is the hardest I have ever worked for a $. A "normal" job would be much easier. But I would be miserable. I as well would trade even if it only paid minimum wage. In fact, I would probably trade for free if it wasn't for that pesky thing called bills
BTW, in another thread, this guy "Ripley" claims he is on target to do "at least 5000 RTs on YM per day." http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/showt...30&perpage=6&highlight=more lies&pagenumber=1 I am convinced these threads are started by someone who is paid by ET to generate hits. It doesn't even matter if what is being said is true, as long as it gets enough people interested in the topic. I find it funny that people come full of advice to the "rescue" of these so called traders. IF this guy is for real, only the pain of blowing out three times will "cure" his lack of respect for the markets. nitro
Well i hope what Ripley is saying is true.....it think its awsome! I plan on switching to futures (e-minis) by the end of the year and i wanna be just like Ripley! ......err i mean to be able to hang in there like he has. Ripley....hows your account now??????
lol... My account today is worth $ 605 and some change. This time it is my own money. And Monday is going to be an exciting day because if I fall below the margin for one contract, I need to raise some more money somehow. But I know I won't !!! I suck at making projections about my trading. Yes, I was trading 10 contracts almost two weeks ago. Then I reduced it to 5, and right now I am trading just 1, and most likely Monday would be the last day of trading if I continue the current losing streak I am on. I have an unbelievable ability to make and lose a lot of money very fast. And I just noticed that I trade for excitement rather than to make money. I also learned that I should quit trading the max # of contracts my margin would allow. That means, I should only risk a very very small percentage on each trade. My mistake was, I was risking 2% of my equity thinking that there is no way I could have 50 straight losses. But, guess what? it could very well happen because the days that you have to quit trading because of your automatic shut off point for the day, can and will add up. As well as those days that might get out of hand and you don't end up shutting down at your shut off point. Thus, effectively, I had 34 losing trades in a row. (not losing trades, but when "shut off trading" days are magnified into their equivalent # of trades). Another problem is that I am in a trade at almost all the time, although this is something I am fighting very hard it is very hard to do. I usually have 38 trades a day!!! Thats why there is a higher likelyhood that a trade could take a wild turn against me, not that my EDGE isn't ineffective or anything. Another problem (I only have problems!!!) is that I allow some losses to get big because I give it a little room because I was up +$ 1000 and such for the day. Turning a potential +$ 1000 day into -$ 2000 day was one of the turning points as to why I am riding down the equity curve right now. But its all good, because this weekend, I had the privilege of reading the best book on trading that is ever written. If I hadn't experienced what I had experienced during the last couple of days, I don't think I would've had any desire or incentive to learn: "The FIVE FUNDAMENTAL TRUTHS of TRADING" 1) Anything can happen. 2) You don't need to know what is going to happen next in order to make money. 3) There is a random distribution between wins & losses for any given set of variables that define an edge. 4) An edge is nothing more than an indication of a higher probability of one thing happening over another. 5) Every moment in the market is unique.