Next Steps?

I do not know how starting a fund or joining one works.

Say you want to go solo. How much have you been making in a year on average with how much drawdown?
Let's say 10% a year with acceptable drawdowns.

Imma just throw arbitrary numbers, each person comes up with their own.
Say you need 2k a month + 2.5% to cover inflation + 1.5% to reinvest and to have some margin of error.
And then multiply by 2 to cover taxes (depends if you know how to avoid them and alse will depend on who gets elected and what rates they come up with in the future)

So with a 500k account => (2k*12 + 2.5% + 1.5%)*2 = 88k or 17.6% this is alot.
With a 1 million account => (24k + 4%)*2 = 128k or 12.8%.

To absorb volatility etc I would keep 2-3 years worth of expenses in my bank account and then the rest for investing with several brokers (not all eggs in the same basket).

The perfect scenario would be having a house all paid for and only needing money for food and electricity, and a big enough account (at least 500k).

With a 200k account to live with only 2k a month and not lose money over time to tax/inflation etc you'd need to make 64k or 32% - this probably comes up with big drawdowns. 32% just to live modestly...
And you cannot really handle drawdowns.

If you can keep making 60% in 6 months daytrading over several years then you'll be rich quick anyway and this won't matter.

Idk I'd just continue doing the same thing. Hey I heard some people in the "pro" sector that joined trading departments and hearing guys claiming "ye I make 10% a month with ups and downs" so they request their whole history and find out they're either not making money or even losing! And the "10% a month" only happened once so they randomly just used this because they are flawed noobs with anchor bias

To join a hedge fund I think you need stat math diplomas or a solid track record (but it's still not enough) so even thought I do not really know how it works I'd say building a solid track record cannot hurt both for you so you know you haven't just been lucky and also to get hired (maybe?) but if you are making 65% over 6 months you don't really want to work for someone.


Final answer:
> Go look at your returns since you started. I'd be willing to bet your "I've made some lost some" translates to "I have been losing over time" when we look into it

> You do not have enough capital to go full time independant trader unlss you have a holy grail

> If you have the holy grail (hint: you don't) you don't really want to work for a fund

==> If before 2020 you have been making money look at the average % return and use this to calculate what min account size you need to get started (and it probably would be a good idea to double that amount)

==> In either case (made money or not) see if you continue making 65% over 6 months in the next 2 years, there is no reason to be in a hurry, if you keep making that much money you'll be over a million and can surely quit your job with at least 2 years of living expenses in a bank account, and a large trading account. I'd scale the risk down, no need to take huge risks

==> If you do not keep making big returns daytrading but you have been making decent risk adjusted returns in the years before 2020 maybe you can use your track record to join a fund, and prepare for whatever tests they have

 

Wait until the COVID pandemic is fully behind us before giving up your job. Both the economy and the stock market is being propped up by the Feds pumping money into the system. If the money stops flowing we could be facing a deep recession.

 

so the consensus of this website is day trading is impossible?

 

Just because you're using numbers, doesn't mean you're doing math.

 

Not impossible, just not usually optimal.

 

You can trade from anywhere man, start it on the side, either build a 6 month track record to go prop. Trading is a eat what you kill type game. Some times you don't kill anything or worse you get slaughtered. Treat it like a business if your serious. If your not go gamble in Vegas. You get free drinks and the women are fire bruh.

 

if it aint broke do not fix it

you have made money trading in certain way so do not assume it will be the same or better if you change it substantially.

of course it may be better or same.....but you cannot assume that .....without trying it out

 

no it is doable but it is by most the most competitive of all ways of trading because it is also the most profitable so it is the most difficult.it took me 15 years to understand day trading and 'make the leap'