I lost my deposit twice ($5k each time) at a prop before I made a 3rd attempt ($3k) and finally was able to find a system I was consistent with. You could say I am stubborn and coudn't accept defeat and probably would have lost all of my savings before quiting-but that's another story. If I was to do it again I would have worked another job at nights/weekends while I was learning just to keep my sanity and so that I didn't think I had to start making money NOW . You have enough psychological trauma involved while learning to trading that if you can eliminate this added stress it will affect your trading for the better. My #1 mistake was I always felt like I had to be trading if I was at my computer, regardless of what the market was telling me(maybe just because of my gambling personality) I had to learn to have a longer time frame for my trades. I would have rather lost deposit #1 and deposit #2 on one trade instead of getting shaken out 1000 times for small losses and letting the commissions kill me. When I had a longer time frame going into a trade, I was more patient in finding my entry points and found a comfort level that has worked for me. Scalping and Rebate trading took 10 years off my life (figuratively). Never again.
Anything is possible, especially in the options market. $5K in risk capital is plenty fine for pure speculation and leverage. By any means, NEVER feel inadequate. I actually recently received major props & thanks from someone who had read a previous thread of mine later last month on GE that was trending for a breakout. It grabbed my attention, because the DEC 35 strikes had an enormous block of 85000 contracts purchased. When you looked at the chart along with that trade, it really didnt take a rocket scientist to figure out what was going to happen in the next week. The calls were selling for .35 at the time I reported it on ET and you would have still been able to get in between .35-.40 for nearly 2 trading days. After a three day run on the GE stock, the calls were fetching $2.40. This individual purchased just 40 contracts for a little under $2K & ended up with nearly $10K at expiration as the calls were in the money & exercised. So there you go - its definitely possible! Now all I have to do for 2007 is start following my own research and threads. :eek:
whether you can become a successful trader does not just depend on the amount of your capital, But, the amount of them are really also important,maybe it is one of the most important factors to get success on investment.
you can make it with 5K - the questions are: - WHAT you trade (should mean: leverage - how much / or none at all. how volatile your chosen instrument is, etc.) - HOW you trade (intraday, longer term) - HOW you start - paper trading if still necessary, etc. but: "I'm tired of working for someone else..." is hopefully not your number one motivation. "... and this has been a passion for me for years ..." that sounds good - hopefully it's not only a passion but a burning desire - since that's what is absolutely necessary to make your way through the learning phase and put in everything necessary. trading is most likely going to feel a little bit different for you once you decide you want to make it a profession. anyway - best of luck to you!!
I'm not going to try to talk you out of it, but I wouldn't quit my day job with 5k and and little track record. Think about it. Even if you make 300% it's still only 15k and not enough to live on. Plus you have the opportunity cost of leaving your existing career. On the other hand, if you're willing to just consider the 5k as tuition, then it will be a learning experience. How old are you and how many mouths do you have to feed? Makes a difference.
Dont forget that he would not be trading with 5k he would most likely be getting leverage of 10:1 or 15:1