I blew up , feels so bad

Discussion in 'Psychology' started by tickmagnet, Feb 15, 2009.

  1. They're not unreal if you have a genuine edge. It's just that having a genuine edge is statistically unlikely.
     
    #41     Feb 15, 2009
  2. ....therefore, if its statistical unlikely let's just assume the trader won't come across one.

    Susana
     
    #42     Feb 15, 2009
  3. This is an exceptional post, and deserves to be read repeatedly.
     
    #43     Feb 15, 2009
  4. Make it back? You just need a quick 660% gain :cool:

    In all seriousness, I suggest you study how higher drawdowns result in ever percentages that you need to gain in order to get back to break even. The key is to first not lose money; then you can worry about making money.

    A 10% loss means 11% to breakeven.
    A 20% loss means 25% to breakeven. (Between 20% and 30% is approx. where the curve tilts massively in our disfavor)
    A 30% loss means 51% to breakeven.
    A 50% loss means 100% to breakeven.
    A 80% loss means 400% to breakeven.

    Anything over 20% becomes very very hard.

    I reduce leverage on systems that are down more than 10% End Of Month and stop trading and reevaluate each system individually @ >25%.

    Just my 2c.
     
    #44     Feb 15, 2009
  5. BoSoxFan

    BoSoxFan


    If you did some pivot point analysis you'd see that the WEEKLY R1 for DRYS was $4.81..it got near that level on 2/2 and again last week it was retested on 2/11 through 2/13.

    Don't worry cut your losses and realize that you got over emotional and probably overtraded. Just take it as a learning experience. Trust me, I know from experience, i myself lost a HUGE amount on Bear last march.

    There's nothing like waking up on a monday morning (3/17/08), of course i'll never forget the day, and realize that you went from $50something to $3 a share on your position. PLUS a house call lol...and this wasn't a few thousand...it was a substantial amount. But i knew even then, that i love this "game"...you just have to..you have to learn from your mistakes.

    Do whatever it takes. Go back and plot the chart where you got in, look at the indicators (e.g. macd, stochastics, linear regression) look at your pivots points--where were they? if you know any candlestick patterns---look for them!! do u see any dojis, a hanging man, or maybe even an evening star. These are all things you MUST DO in order to become profitable or at least have an idea of where the market MIGHT go.

    Analyze, analyze and analyze some more. Don't give up, if you love the game, you'll just "dust" yourself off and try again.

    Best
     
    #45     Feb 15, 2009
  6. In the book "The Three Skills of Top Trading" the author said the game IS rigged:

    "These pools consisted of investors who would find an operator. Then they would enlist the help of customers' men, willing brokers who would put the word on the street that a stock was on the decline, going south fast. Then, when the value of the stock depreciated, the pool would scoop it up, running the stock price up again. They would then turn to their brokers (or the press) with doomsday news that would depress the stock anew, and the poll would purchase at bottom again."

    "Then you could start a rumor that the company was going to cut its dividend...Finally, when you had accumulated all the stock you could possibly accumulate came the phase known as the markup, leading to the breakout, before the pool liquidated at tremendous profit" (page 8)
     
    #46     Feb 15, 2009
  7. drcha

    drcha

    traderNik is right on.

    Yes, it feels really bad. I sympathize with you, because, like everyone else on this board, I know what it feels like to lose money. But--you'll live to trade again. And fortunately, it is only money. You don't have a terminal illness, nobody is torturing you, etc. It's going to be okay.

    See what you can learn from the experience.

    You can't change any of the external conditions of trading. If the conditions are indeed unfair, then you, like every other retail trader, will have to work around that. Are conditions unfair? I don't know--I don't honestly know whether the market is rigged.
    But I do know that it's possible to make money in it--rigged or not.

    Concentrate on trying to see yourself, because your own actions are the only thing that you can change. Stop and learn a little bit--about trading and about yourself. Take a break and read. Definitely learn money management (Alex Elder, Curtis Faith).
     
    #47     Feb 15, 2009
  8. Turn your thinking around.. Good luck on the comeback.

    [​IMG]
     
    #48     Feb 15, 2009
  9. kandlekid

    kandlekid

    my first post, but been lurking a while ...

    i dunno. i think that's still too risky.

    if blew out my equity acct last year. even had a prop firm behind me, etc, etc. i had 6K to loose, and i lost the majority of it (say 5K) in about 3 weeks.

    The reason ... most likely a combination of the following ...

    o position sizing ... i was trading 500 shares right out of the gate, went to 200 after 2 weeks, but it was too late.
    i should have started with 100 after paper trading for a while. of course, i ignored their advice about sizing at first.

    o stops were not easily entered and the instructors didn't use them.

    o rather high commissions ... $20/rt.

    frankly, i think you should paper trade for awhile. i've been paper trading e-minis for over a year now since my blow out, attempting to get a good strategy. many say paper trading is not the same as live, but until you've got a good strategy, why risk any capital at all ?
     
    #49     Feb 16, 2009
  10. IluvVol

    IluvVol

    why is everybody comforting this dude? He did not only make mistakes (we all make mistakes, hopefully the same one only once) but he STILL IS using excuses and blaming everyone else than himself for his failure. This does not sound like he/she is willing to learn but rather trying to blame others. No support from me here, ask others for tissues to wine around...start asking for help when you are actually ready to assume responsibility for your actions!!!

    So, in that regards I thank you for your chips and bet size ;-)




     
    #50     Feb 16, 2009