The only way to succeed in trading, is actually control of emotional levels of your own AND recognition of the other person's emotions taking your trade. The time to trade is the time your opponent is facepalming and crying home to his wife reciting "At least I have 2 kids and a loving wife" If your emotions are not in check, u'd be crying with him without a family except 1 sick parrot.
Incorrect, Sir! Your biggest tool is your BALLS and the torpedo they afterburn - Your biggest obstacle is the HERD's deafening "you can't" This is when you TAKE THE SWING=SHOT and enter the lacondan jungle's sole dulcet cave ALONE put a different way, "take the swing=shot when the brain says NO, the heart says NO but your soul demands it!" ------------------------------------------ the plight of the new trader ... Out on the highways and the by-ways all alone I'm still searching for, searching for my home Up in the morning, up in the morning out on the road And my head is aching and my hands are cold And I'm looking for the silver lining, silver lining in the clouds And I'm searching for and I'm searching for the philosophers stone And it's a hard road, Its a hard road daddy-o When my job is turning lead into gold http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7YL5n_GA_c&feature=related
Undercapitalization is IMO a big reason why traders fail - but maybe not in the way you mean. The problem is somebody starting out with a $10k account and a few months (or a year at the outside) of living expenses saved up, thinking that all they have to do is learn to use the software, give it a month or two to get up to speed and start making 500% a year at once. Most of these will go broke and drop out around years 2-3, before conquering the learning curve... If you are genuinely a good trader, lack of capital shouldn't be a problem. Use a $500-per-car margin broker for a while to build a bankroll, or borrow money from family, or get a few years of audited returns, start a fund/commodity pool and attract investor capital. I bet you could even find seed money on this site if you've got the audited track record to back you up, or join a prop firm. Of course the problem is that you have to know how to trade before these doors open.
It's a tough call due to all the reasons mentioned by the non-assholes. But a smart guy like you can do it, sure. Just takes a great deal of time and patience and it will cost you some money. I would, if I were a young guy again, try and keep your options open and work with people using your degree skills. Try and build on what you've been studying. I know it's a tough world but so is trading. Meanwhile I'd trade/ watch the markets during the night, looking at european futures (DAX, STOXX 50 FTSE etc )or US out of regular hours: Dow, S&P. Possibly forex. Or even asian markets as they will only get bigger. Keep your costs down, put the hours in and save some money and I'm sure you'll crack it. Good luck.
Your comments about how unfair the world is for the 'normal' guys is a joke compared how the world looked in the old times. It just states how green and unprepared you are for the battle. You know nothing. We're all hunters, we just don't hunt animals anymore, we hunt money. You will just have to prove in life that you can hunt better than somebody else. Wining how unfair the economy is isn't going to help you. European companies released stunning numbers last weeks and China's growth is still skyrocketing (for the moment). While you wine and stand on the sideline, somebody else takes the opportunity and makes it. You need to get your act together and do something about your thinking. If not you will end up frustrated, bitter, having almost no assets, no fun and a useless wasted life. Why ? Because you blamed it on the economy.
"In my opinion, trading is one of the only few ways left to thrive in this world." I concur.....one of the better "portable empire" careers left in this world!