@wrbtrader There's a very well known trader on ET who did exactly that, quitting his job and going away to focus fully on developing a trading plan, he's very successful. Hint: he used to be a fireman. Are you a full time trader who did it on the side first? Do you know many people who did it like that and are very successful in trading now? If you have a family to support then save up expenses for at least 2-3 years and use that time to focus on trading. You made choices to have responsibilities, that's quite unrelated to the effort needed to be a good trader. Excuses don't matter. Would you run any other business part-time? "Hey, daytime I'm a mechanic but 2 hours every night I run a restaurant", does it sound like a successful venture? Your post got a bit too long for me to answer the many points... PS. I used to work while trading for a bit and I didn't like it. Focusing on menial tasks and replying to silly e-mails was taking much of my time and mental energy. If I had spent that time to improving my trading back then, I would've gotten further faster.
I agree d08, When people suggest daytrade/trade part-time on the side...I always roll my eyes in confusion. you can't actively trade part-time, in my opinion. Trading requires one's undivided attention. if you can't devote that time, then one should just buy and hold/invest for the long haul...otherwise you will just slowly bleed away your capital, eventually.
i have 2 accounts. 1 for swing trades the other for scalping and without a shadow of doubt my swing trades destroy my scalp account in terms of percentage gain
The issue with having a laundromat and not running it yourself is that it is a cash business and it is easy for employees to steal from you. My grandfather and then uncle have owned a laundromat since the late 60's and my uncle had issues with employee theft. Also, the majority of his income from the business comes from their wash/dry/fold service, not from the machines. All that being said, the business grossed about $150,000 last year. $50,000 of that is probably equipment/lease/electric expense, with the rest going to aunt and uncle. He is going to sell his business in a couple of years and I have considered buying it but the issue is I don't think I could find someone to run it for me. fan27
what if you installed closed circuit cameras above the cash register and watched from your browser? I have a relative who runs a cash based courier service and does this. He says it is a good deterrent for dishonest employees. But he assumes a certain amount of 'slippage' will always occur and is just a cost of doing cash business.
That is not a bad idea. My aunt installed locks on all of the coin laundry machines so her or my uncle are the only ones that can get to that money. Like I said though, the majority of their money comes from the wash/dry/fold service where they charge by the pound. Whoever works for you will need to be able to hustle with that. Perhaps the employee's pay could be "piece work" based. Anyhow, my uncle is selling the business in a couple of years when he retires and I might consider buying it. I was just thinking today after reading this thread that they have a back office and I could continue my work as a software developer/trader there while I keep an eye on the business. Plus, my grandfather started the business in the late 60's so it would be cool to keep it in the family. fan27
There are also long-term traders, true. But you're forgetting automated and semi-automated traders, there's a lot of code that needs to be written. Execution is another thing, these days with regulation changing often and there being many problems at exchanges, I wouldn't feel confident letting automation doing everything while I'm not around. I should also mention that I'm only considering the so-called serious traders who have concrete plans and targets.
I opened my first trading account in 2005 with $5000, and continued working full time, and saving something from every pay. On weekends I would read and study, everything from Graham’s Security Analysis to Ittelson’s Understanding Financial Statements and many many tomes in between. You can even put one of Cramer’s books in there. I was turning myself into a value investor, and doing just ok for about a 7 year time frame. I knew eventually trading full time was for me. I just love putting my brain in a pressure cooker. Fast forward to September 2012, I get fired from my $50,000 a year job, I have about $60,000 in my trading account (from passive trading and saving), and a house that’s 75% paid off. I take the leap to trading full time. I’m now in business for myself. Today, I swing trade full time, and couldn’t possibly have another business during the week. I certainly have the energy and time for a weekend business, but not really motivated to act. Mind you, growing a tree farm in the backyard sounds interesting. I do make money trading, with no side businesses, including no websites, and would never consider another career. If one has the knowledge, I would certainly encourage them.