Oh Man, I'm Flat

Discussion in 'Forex' started by oldtime, May 8, 2013.

  1. Why did you change you handle? What was your handle? I used to be bhardy but decided I didn't want my name all over ET after I was attacked by Atticus over a choice to collect Employment Insurance while trading last spring. He was right. I got myself working and now I'm trading again.
     
    #71     May 11, 2013
  2. and that my friend is why I no longer trade ES exclusively

    nobody is that good

    I just got lucky

    I'm too old to bet that lightning will strike twice in the same place

    you can set up a nice little business spreading

    buy, sell, trade
     
    #72     May 11, 2013
  3. I don't know, the only ones I remember from the old days were bone (who was a bond trader) and nitro (who was a scalper.)
     
    #73     May 11, 2013
  4. Spreading is a strategy that depends on you having a lot of capital. I'm not in that position right now. Spreading in your case is quite simply diversification. However, if you over diversify you reduce yourself to a zero sum game, in fact a negative sum game after accounting for the spread and comissions.
     
    #74     May 11, 2013
  5. well heck if you overdo anything you will lose your ass, doesn't matter what it is
     
    #75     May 11, 2013
  6. My point is simply this: are you really providing yourself with a grand benefit, or in the long run are you in exactly the same position as me? You reduce your rate of loss, but you also kill your rate of growth. What's the difference between me risking $1000 100 times and you risking $100,000 distributed through multiple simultaneous trades, multiple times a month? If we aren't chosing the right direction, we both stand to lose $100,000.
     
    #76     May 11, 2013
  7. so please explain it to me

    this last position that just about made me want to quit trading and go raise chickens was

    aud.usd long
    eur.usd.short
    gbp.usd short
    usd.cad.cad

    there was a lot of adding and some subtracting on each individual pair until I finally got lucky on some long aud.usd

    and that position created the cross

    short eur.aud
    short eur.cad
    short gbp.aud
    short gbp.cad

    and everyday I had those crosses on my screen, just looking for red

    now I want to to go

    aud.cad long
    eur.cad short
    gbp.cad short
    usd.cad.long

    that creates for me the cross

    short eur.aud
    short eur.usd
    short gbp.aud
    short gbp.usd

    the difference is for me I'm trying to buy and sell on extremes at limits, and just throwing the towel in and adding on stops.

    it's all just position size

    the whole idea is to never let your largest loser also be your largest position (and it can happen before you know it.)
     
    #77     May 12, 2013
  8. Old time, I can't wrap my head around that mess right now. Instead I'm enjoying a nice performance of Mozart's requiem, awaiting my next delivery and relieved that I have a very simple system that is making a little extra money for me. I don't want to be pumped up on alcohol and dope stressing about my trading. Sorry.

    Keep it simple, stupid.
     
    #78     May 12, 2013
  9. mozarts requiem on a sunday morning?

    how bout a little telemann

    save the heavy stuff for when you need it
     
    #79     May 12, 2013
  10. the difference is, if I put on the cad spread, initially I am only 25% long usd

    if I put on the cross I am 50% long usd
     
    #80     May 12, 2013