Well, I'm thinking of quitting. I hit about 7 winners in a row recently. But, I can't get funding. I've tried every way I can think of: saving for years, asking friends and family, and unorthodox means. I have to be realistic that this may be the end of the road for me. I am still in consideration for funding. But, I feel it is less a probability. Now, I didn't think this would end with me winning as much as ever. I felt it would end differently which I thought could happen at any time. I would just lose my ability to read the market. But, my recent performance is as strong as ever. What has changed? What has changed is my perception. I've did an excellent job of ignoring reality. The world is too stupid to fund me, and I don't make enough to fund myself.. Think about it: by the time anyone realizes what I'm doing works then it will have quit working or I'll be long gone. My ability to convince someone that I have a working method is directly opposed to the probability that my methods really work. I just under estimated how important having capital was and how difficult it would be to get. If you don't have at least 50k then don't even thinking of wasting time to trade. And saving up 50k or 100k is darn hard. I make more then the average joe and spend less. I don't see it happening for me. Maybe I'll find something in me to continue on: I don't know. I feel sick lately and maybe I'm coming down with something. Maybe I'll get a second wind. Maybe I'll figure something out or maybe I can scrounge enough up to take a shot.. I don't know. The richest people are in the world are a fairly helpless lot in their own words. It is that weakness that is pathetic and disgust me. That we can't pay taxes, that we can't make the world a better place, that we can't. "It'd be a drop in the bucket". Pathetic. Maybe that's my incentive to keep trying.... To be clear, I'm not saying what they should do but that some of the wealthiest people walk around thinking they don't have any more ability to effect things then the guy down the street. That's what bother me.
Lucias, I'm not putting you down at all. But if you believe you can do something that others perceive as impossible, then the best solution is to be true to yourself, and just do it. But don't be surprised if you have to learn to do a lot of new things besides the one thing that you are good at. For instance, I created fully robotic trading software, and then, to my surprise, I had to attend trades shows, get brokers to call and request connection with my trading platform, create help files, and video tutorials, and then on top of all of that, convince people that "Yes, computers can actually pick the stocks and make buy/sell decisions, and then execute the trades, all 100% unattended". And I agree with you that sometime people can be a challenge. I always say "I'm a programmer, not a therapist". But in defense of the general public, they have been robbed for so long that it is understandable that they would be skeptical of something new. Many people say if it sounds to good to be true then it's not. Because many people believe that statement is true, it poses a challenge if you are introducing something new. As I said in the beginning, be true to yourself and just do it! Ed
My best advise is "go where your edge is the greatest". Wether that's running a business, gaining secondary education, investing, or just working a plain old vanilla job. If you can't make any money at something and your goal is to make money, try something else!
I know that it isn't the point that you are trying to make, but you actually really have been doing a great job of ignoring reality. Your performance has actually been a quite spotty. You are expecting people to throw money at you based simply on your personal guarantee that you know what you're doing. You have absolutely nothing to show them as an incentive. I'd like to take a minute to explain the legalities of what you are trying to do. You are going to need a disclosure document to manage OPM. These are the problems you'll run into. -You have no experience with discretionary account management. So that fact will need to be prominently displayed on your DD. -You have no proprietary performance history that is representative of your managed program. So you have to go out of your way to tell people that you have no real money performance. -Because you have no real numbers, you want to use hypothetical performance, but legally you must then disclose the performance of all personal trading accounts for the last five years. Specifically you must prominently display the following statements in bold exactly as stated. HYPOTHETICAL PERFORMANCE RESULTS HAVE MANY INHERENT LIMITATIONS, SOME OF WHICH ARE DESCRIBED BELOW. NO REPRESENTATION IS BEING MADE THAT ANY ACCOUNT WILL OR IS LIKELY TO ACHIEVE PROFITS OR LOSSES SIMILAR TO THOSE SHOWN. IN FACT, THERE ARE FREQUENTLY SHARP DIFFERENCES BETWEEN HYPOTHETICAL PERFORMANCE RESULTS AND THE ACTUAL RESULTS SUBSEQUENTLY ACHIEVED BY ANY PARTICULAR TRADING PROGRAM. ONE OF THE LIMITATIONS OF HYPOTHETICAL PERFORMANCE RESULTS IS THAT THEY ARE GENERALLY PREPARED WITH THE BENEFIT OF HINDSIGHT. IN ADDITION, HYPOTHETICAL TRADING DOES NOT INVOLVE FINANCIAL RISK, AND NO HYPOTHETICAL TRADING RECORD CAN COMPLETELY ACCOUNT FOR THE IMPACT OF FINANCIAL RISK IN ACTUAL TRADING. FOR EXAMPLE, THE ABILITY TO WITHSTAND LOSSES OR TO ADHERE TO A PARTICULAR TRADING PROGRAM IN SPITE OF TRADING LOSSES ARE MATERIAL POINTS WHICH CAN ALSO ADVERSELY AFFECT ACTUAL TRADING RESULTS. THERE ARE NUMEROUS OTHER FACTORS RELATED TO THE MARKETS IN GENERAL OR TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ANY SPECIFIC TRADING PROGRAM WHICH CANNOT BE FULLY ACCOUNTED FOR IN THE PREPARATION OF HYPOTHETICAL PERFORMANCE RESULTS AND ALL OF WHICH CAN ADVERSELY AFFECT ACTUAL TRADING RESULTS. (THE CTA) HAS HAD LITTLE OR NO EXPERIENCE IN TRADING ACTUAL ACCOUNTS FOR ITSELF OR FOR CUSTOMERS. BECAUSE THERE ARE NO ACTUAL TRADING RESULTS TO COMPARE TO THE HYPOTHETICAL PERFORMANCE RESULTS, CUSTOMERS SHOULD BE PARTICULARLY WARY OF PLACING UNDUE RELIANCE ON THESE HYPOTHETICAL PERFORMANCE RESULTS. Fact is Lucias, the regulators really want to make it as hard as possible for guys like you to attract money. If $50K is all you need to get going and that is too difficult for you to scrape together, then this really isn't for you. ANYBODY with a bit of drive can pull together $50K in a reasonable amount of time. I'm not trying to be mean, just trying to help you out a bit.
Okay... dunno what that was all about. But, here is my update: * My current prospective prop backer is still dragging his heels. He hasn't cut me off but he hasn't granted to fund me. I don't feel like he has the drive that I'd like to see. Communication has been less then I wanted and as a result I feel like that I need to change gears again. I don't want do it lightly but gotta change gears. * Due to this failed project, I had about 9 winning predictions trades that didn't go onto my record. * I took one trade on my simulated account last week and, also, matched it up in my NADEX account. It has been a while since I took any real money trades but I think my net return is around +$210 now. However, I was running low on funds and closed out my NADEX account temporarily. Honestly, I was unhappy about the recent premiums. I am debating opening it back up when I get my next pay check. I do have a real futures account now, as well, that I could try trading. *While, I didn't get the funding -- I feel I'm more on the right track. I need to keep practicing this reframing until I find success. I've tried a lot of non traditional and creative strategies for getting funding but no luck so far. Even so, I think this is where I need to concentrate my energies.
Alright I skimmed this thread. I'll give it to you straight. 1) you don't have an edge 2) you don't have the right mind for this 3) you don't have the capital 4) you don't have the discipline and money management 5) you don't even seem to be too passionate about this 6) you don't even seem like you like the markets you don't really have anything going for you. i would get out while you're solvent (if indeed you are solvent). you are only going to lose money. that's the straightest and most honest i can be with you. who knows maybe this will propel you forward and get you where you need to be, but right now i'm being honest about where you are currently. you have no business trading as far as i can tell...... sometimes i wonder who the 99% of traders that fail are, then i read this journal and i realized...that they are out there....most of them dont even bother to read/post/learn on ET but you seem to have found it and you are still failing
Anyone who would give Lucias a plug nickel is nuts. Lucias has *never* demonstated he can successfully trade real money. He operates only in the realm of the hypothetical and the make believe.
wildshoe.. >2) you don't have the right mind for this I don't know about that. I have the "right mind" to trade at a certain level of capitalization. But, I do struggle with the mentality required to take a shot with only tiny bankroll. Like Buffet, I do like to have a small savings at all times. It has served me well. If I could get my savings over that threshold then I'm okay with taking risk. It has proven difficult for me to save over the threshold. >3) you don't have the capital Give you that >5) you don't even seem to be too passionate about this That's the thing: when you've won as much as I have but not made anything tangible then it is difficult to remain passionate. I think it comes with experience. But, I've never been passionate. I see overt passion as a form of weakness. Even if not that, it is a form of energy drain. I'm thinking though: this is not just about the glory of the win any more. It goes beyond that. It is now about legacy. It is about timelessness and service. Most people live their life in division. They sit in front of a TV watching people moving around and doing all kinds of cool things where they themselves remain stationary. No more division.. just one continuous movement.
you are that person sitting in front of a tv watching people moving around go read the classic "market wizards" plenty of great traders there who blew up account after account, and finally with very small capitalization turned small accounts into fortunes you are not special, you are a dime a dozen papertrader. you are incredibly arrogant and have this "air" about you that you think the market "owes you something" you are going to get creamed if you ever do get capital, you'd be better off investing in your local knitting class, getting patient and humble, and returning to the markets knowing that you will lose, that you are a loser, and that you are an idiot, only then will you be able to have a shot and beating the market... confidence in amateur investors/traders is the cardinal sin... if you are approaching the markets for the first time (with real $) with confidence, and you are not a professional, you are going to get hurt...the wolves will gladly fade you and take your $
I wanted to update on the situation: NADEX: I closed out my real money account because I was running low on funds. I had a few winners before closing it out and I believe I netted around $200 to $250. I had only 1k in there (due to transfers at the end). Peak return was 150% on the account and net after all costs was around 20% to 25% which isn't bad at all. I decided to close it out so that I could focus on getting funding and due to the evaluation for the "prop" backer. Prop backer: Sorry to say but he didn't appear serious nor properly capitalized. We've parted ways. I don't think it was a mistake, and I think I learned a lot about my own abilities. I spent the 1 month attempting scalping and order flow trading. I learned a lot about myself. I learned that I can't trade 24/7 and be profitable (although I did today). I can only trade well when I understand the market or have an edge. And, I learned that when I start to lose then I should take a break for the day because it means that I'm not reading the market well or I'm tired. But, also, I learned that my abilities are as strong as ever when not hindered by fear. It is best to not need to trade. I learned also that I'm greedy from my nadex trading and it is not outright good or bad but depending on the market. In todays market, it is better not to be greedy. Collective2 System: I've had a tremendous run. I closed out over $5,200 in hypothetical profits just today which was a huge rush and this was after I made several order entry mistakes. I wasn't greedy though. Of course, I did take a lot of risk and came close to losing 3k on 1 trade. I know a lot of people here are negative on me (and everyone else). But, the fact is that out of all futures systems ever tracked at C2 that my system is in the top 4 spot. The stats don't lie. I did this without taking excessive risk too and with only a smallish sized account. I'm trading at near my best. I think there are several reasons for this: * I've started setting targets and not trying to hit home runs. I did well at hitting home runs and it works but it works better in some markets then others. * Of course, the volatility helps. * I'm not (too) fearful, angry, or needy. I only trade my best ideas. If I'm not confident then I'm out of the market. * I'm recognizing well when I'm wrong and then adjusting for being wrong. * I'm leveraging at a higher ratio which increases both the risk and reward. * I'm not afraid to experiment. * I'm not overworking myself like I was. I think trying to trade 2 instruments at same time that were similar but different was taking up all my energy. I'm resting better. I don't have to watch the market every moment of the day. * I've cut out the caffeine and sugar from my diet. Although, I am eating healthy carbs. I also make healthy substitutions whenever I can when I'm eating out. So, I'll say for example give me a water instead of a soda or hold the tartar sauce on a fish sandwich. * I trust my abilities and that is huge. * Likewise, it has helped me that I've quit reading all the negative sentiment here. --------- My primary goal is to get funding now and just to do my best and enjoy what I got.