How can you say "Trading is for people who could afford not to work and when you are broke and hungry it's not the thing you should be doing." Yes, this is a very difficult market, but with discipline to cover losers quickly, let winners ride, and be selective about entry points, a decent trader can make a living. Trading isn't for everyone - maybe it simply isn'y for you. In any case, I think your comment is unwarranted and reflects poorly upon you.
Why would they not approve you for bullets? Have you asked several times? It should not be a big deal. I was never a big bullet fan, but I have started to use them more. Shorting via bullets is helping my P&L a lot. I made most of my money today on the short side, as odd as that seems.
trade555, regarding your comment that you are "over 6 feet tall", I'm sure that should help you stock higher store shelves or prune trees, whichever you choose in your quest for "honest and respectable" work. Lots of firm owners (ie: HoldBros) are very scummy, as are some traders, but that doesn't mean the entire industry is.
Why would they not approve you for bullets? Have you asked several times? It should not be a big deal. I have asked 4 times. Can't even get an answer. The closest thng I hear is wait a little longer. What the F$#k. I only get what I need when I threaten to quit.
How can you say "Trading is for people who could afford not to work and when you are broke and hungry it's not the thing you should be doing." Yes, this is a very difficult market, but with discipline to cover losers quickly, let winners ride, and be selective about entry points, a decent trader can make a living. Trading isn't for everyone - maybe it simply isn't for you. In any case, I think your comment is unwarranted and reflects poorly upon you. I have been trading for three years. My first six months I was getting a pay check. Now I gross but break even after fees. I have bills piling, no income and a firm that just doesn't give a shit. It would be nice if they could give me some advice but I can't even talk to them. The thing is if I trade anylonger I will be sleeping on the street. If I want a paycheck I have to have 50K then I get 50% payout. This looks like I am screwed. Any advice I will appreciate.
Hmm... Yeah, it's a TOUGH and FRUSTRATING market nowadays bro. I hear ya. If you are asking for advice, may I suggest you ANALYZE your trades everyday. Do you do that? Print out your trades at the end of day and analyze them. But since it seems like you are scalping(??) it might not be practical to analyze every single trade. However, you should still be able to locate your big losers, big winners, breakeven trades. If you get rid of your big losers(if you have any) then your P/L should improve dramatically. I'm working on that. And if you held longer to your big winners then them might become even bigger winners. But it seems you are saying you gross positive, but net flat. Then maybe you should reduce the frequency of your trades? Just some suggestions. Hope it helps u! 99
Interesting comment about the difficulty of shorting as I am having the same problem. Are the rest of you having this problem getting filled on the short side?
shouldn't really be a problem. Nasdaq stocks are almost always possible to get a short except in extreme down movement, in which case you shouldn't want to get filled anyway. This just shows impatience and poor timing. Listed stocks, while frustrating to wait for, still should be shorted when it is possible with upticks. "Bullets" allow you to "short" more easily, but with proper timing, this should not be an issue. "Shorting" using "bullets" only allows you to chase a stock down, and incur additional expenses. I know it can be aggravating to get "shares ahead" messages, but those are the rules, and though for the past 2 months it seems as if any short is a good trade, this has been an aberration. There is plenty of money to be made just playing by the rules. And the "shares ahead" issue really will protect you over the long run. It is far more important to be able to exit a long trade gone bad when you have to than to be able to initiate a short trade.
here's an easy solution...quit and go else where where they will give you access to bullets. go to andover or generic if you don't want to put up capital.
Listed stocks, while frustrating to wait for, still should be shorted when it is possible with upticks. I must respectfully disagree. Often the stock will make a large move without ever upticking and you can never get in. Especially on mid-caps that move down, sideways, down, way down... Bullets have a high commission, and furthermore, the trader ends up trading more if the position is bulleted. A natural short is hard to get, so one is reluctant to cover. With a bullet, you can jump in and out as you please, racking up more commissions. I do appreciate shorting naturally, especially the cajones it takes to short a stock that is going up, but bullets have helped my p&l too much for me to remain anti-bullet. I am paying a lot of commission, but all that really matters is the bottom line.