I cannot trade, PERIOD. For a long while, even when I was losing/not making money, I could find some "reasons" and try to make something positive out of it. I started to day trade last year in a prop firm from febuary to june. Didn't really blow my 5k accout but had like 1 k left. I didn't feel all that happy but it was ok because i found out later that i got completely robbed by having a 1 dollar/100share commission. Ya, so buying and selling on 100 shares cost me 2 bucks!! I still managed to trade almost half a million shares during that half a year and not blowing my 5k completely. I stopped trading for like half a year and found a few profitable traders to rent an office to trade. They were all formal Swifttrade traders. They are all contrarians!! I see them average down all the time and take small profits. Their winning percentage is extremely high like 80 to 90 percent. They scalp and average down and make money 8 out of 10 days. I don't like their method and I don't think I can trade their method because when i started to day trade, I trade trend and averaging UP. Now I have no idea what is right and what is wrong!! I have to admit that i have no methods. Ya, it sounds pretty stupid but i just look at support and resistence and the market. If i feel that the market is ranging, i will go long on the support. So basically i make/lose money of rangin market and trend market. This monday and tuesday i made some money real quick trading range. On wednesday, i traded range the first few times and traded trend because i "imagine" that the market will go up so i keep on going long whenever spy is breaking new highs. On thrusday i was scared of trading trend so i was picking bottom the entire time and had a rediculous 5% winning percentage. On Friday i was averaging down and died real fast. The only thing mabbe im still "happy" is that there isnt a signle trade that killed me. its always a series of small losses without any winners. Last night before i slept, i feel like i have be so confused and lost. Because i have no idea what to do. What i learned was to trade trend, and everyone in my trading room is trading "counter-trend" and make money every month!! I looked at how they trade and i dont think i can learn from them. They hold on to "huge losses" and average more down. they have the discipline to make some money on "every pullback." I cant do either. They win almost every day but only when there is a stock going one direction without even a 10 precent pullback. Good thing about their max loss of the day is that they will be stopped out in days like that. To me, their method do have an EDGE. But its an edge i cant learn. How the heck do i trade trend when every single one of my collegues r going counter-trends? And you know that they will make money this month and i am just a friggin noob. I NEED SOME SERIOUS HELP. Any strategy that requires discipline of cutting small losses can fit into my tradying style. Thanks for reading this long and dull post!
Stop trading immediately. You don't know what you're doing, why piss away your money? Go back to the drawing board. P.S. What is your capitalization? If you're trying to make a living from trading as a business, you should -- next to having a competitive advantage and a solid business plan -- be well capitalized. Just like when you're trying to run a gas station, a restaurant or any other brick and mortar business.
Thanks for the reply. I try to make a living off it. I dont have much financial burden for now since im trading relatively small(max loss 50 dollars). and 100 shares at a time. I will only increase my share size when i see some consistency in my trades.
You might explore how helplessness has influenced other areas of your life. I sometimes test ideas with computer trading simulators.
I trade wmt, dis, hpq and sometimes xom. I don't know if those stocks r good for scalpers but those r the stocks people trade in my office and they r making money off them.
not dull at all, thanks for posting. If you know they are making money for a fact then put away your ego ask them exactly how they do it, what is their stratergy. You may find out it's not what you think they are doing. Adopt or die.
One of the best parts about trading prop or with other traders -- find out what others are doing to make money and do it until it doesnt work anymore.
It doesn't sound that bad to me. You settled on a style that you like and fits your personality. It's always helpful to learn from other traders, but there are many styles that work and it's about finding the one that fits you. Your approach of trading ranges and trends when they exist seems reasonable. I guess I was surprised when you kept averaging down Thursday and Friday since the market trended lower both days and had a few gaps higher. Only Friday's pop broke most mini-resistance levels. Stick to your style and execute it.