One thing I have noticed over and over again is how many losing traders have a strong "feeling" that this is what they want to be doing. They "feel" they don't want a boss. They "feel" they want to make x amount a day, on a consistent basis. and then they question the gods, "is this to much to ask?" They "feel" they want to sit in their pj's in front of a computer monitor, as a customer to a retail brokerage, and make their daily nut in solitude while the majority are required to interact with people and provide some type of service. Well, the joke is on you if you think this way. Your feelings and wishes have about as much, or precisely as much, relevance as the lotto players wish that they could just get lucky this one time.. "is that too much to ask?" It does not work that way. The legit way to view the markets, and the only way to succeed, is if you come in with some type of entrepreneurial insight, and the ability to generate such insight on a consistent basis. It is not about your feelings, or your desire to not have a boss. It is based on your best estimate, using your REASONING brain, that you have insight into the market process that has created a profitable opportunity. It has nothing to do with dimly following a trading plan, or "just finding a right plan and sticking to the rules". What a joke! Get real. The game is not that easy. If u play for fun and expect it to cost a bit for the amusement, great! Itâs a fun hobby. but, be careful about thinking this little hobby can pay your monthly nut. If you have no genuine, authentic ability to constantly generate entrepreneurial insights about markets, it is game over for you, and it was game over before you placed your first trade . Idiotic notions of "trading plans" and simple-minded 5 minute chart patterns while paying retail commissions does not count, that is slot machines. If you don't understand the entrepreneurial process but rather are just hoping you can stumble across some simpleton pattern that "If followed to the T" will lead you to financial freedom, dream on dude it will NEVER HAPPEN. U make money with that idea by selling the dream to other suckers, not by trading.
http://www.screencast.com/users/Spectre some videos, become formless mentally and let the price patterns create your form or plan, let the price variations themselves create survival algo's. ie don't impose your wishes on the market.
Basically agree with your post but some do have to talent to make it work. Some will succeed and some will enjoy the benefit of trading from home in their PJ's, with no boss looking over their shoulder. The odds are stacked heavily against you but if it is your dream......
"Plan your trade and trade with the plan"; you have to trade with one to know one. The plan is to simply put you in a right frame of mind to trade giving the right signal for entries and exits. If you stick with what you know and prepared for you are less likely to make mistakes such as over trading... As far as entrepreneur spirit, it is considered novelty, I have no doubt that it is but just give me good signal or good pattern, Iâll take that boring trade any day of the week. sg20
i was not refering to entrepreneurial spirit, but rather entrepreneurial insight. In other words, the ability to identify genuine profit opportunities.
<i>"It does not work that way. The legit way to view the markets, and the only way to succeed, is if you come in with some type of entrepreneurial insight, and the ability to generate such insight on a consistent basis. It is not about your feelings, or your desire to not have a boss. It is based on your best estimate, using your REASONING brain, that you have insight into the market process that has created a profitable opportunity."</i> Well, that's clear as mud. You spent a lot of time laying out the problem... care to offer any solutions to balance out your post? One of the biggest reasons for retail-trader failure by far, above almost all else is impatience. For example... If two traders with equal skill levels begin trading tomorrow, one who has ten ES contracts and makes +5 points in two turns by 10:30am est will gross $2,500 before costs for the effort. That trader is most likely to be quite satisfied with how the morning went. The second trader with an account balance 1/10th the size of our first trader and only able to turn one-lots, will take the exact same trades and yield +5pts as well. That would be $250 gross before costs for the effort, but same % profit return on capital, same execution of trades, identical everything except where the decimal point goes on gross profit figures. Thru the natural process of greed overcoming rational logic, the smaller account trader is not satisfied to quit right there. Why? Because a measely $250 isn't enough money. Nevermind that it is identical performance to ten-lot at $2,500 or hundred-lot at $25,000 profit. There is no difference in performance between all three. None whatsover. The sole difference is perception in the mind of small-account trader. They feel the need for +10pts ES ~ +20pts ES every day... in order to grow the small account fast enough to suit their timeline. Well, markets don't share impatience on timelines. Small account traders over-trade, make all manner of mistakes, go on tilt, blow out, repeat the process or end of story. Unrealistic expectations, or should we say emotional demands by fledgling traders cause more failure than just about anything else. The markets do not give a darn about needing to be full-time and paying bills six months from now. Markets don't care about needing to take a $5k account to $50k in six months to go full-time or else. Markets only care to reward the few who do enough things right at the expense of many who do too much wrong. 5min charts, simple patterns, trade plans, etc all work. Or they don't... depending on whom is working them. Let's keep that fundamental law of human nature = behavior in mind, it will never change.
Good point. ... now just take away the judgmental attitude, make your commentary as impersonal as the markets, and you'll have some good insight of your own.
I dont know about NEVER.. It took me five years of hard work before i could make a living by trading in my PJs with my laptop (without even getting out of bed if i feel like it!) using my retail IB account. But thinking that you can do this a few months after starting out is very naive... And most people (myself included) learn this the hard way.