If a single loser washes out with two whole weeks of winners, you may want to consider going over your technique. You'll need to eventually accept the fact that you can't come out on top in every trade. It's so important to cut your losses immediately on a trade that's not working out. If you find yourself stuck in a losing trade, "hoping" it will go back up, you're doomed. Just sell it for a small loss (before it gets out of control) and go back to your game plan. If you cut your losses quickly and your winners out number your losers, you should be able to make money consistently -- that is, you won't give back two weeks of profits in a single losing trade. -Scalpa
Easy to say. What if it goes against you by 2 or 3% before you can move the mouse? Should you just yell "F#ck, I need to get out" and try to close it, or is it more likely that this is just a random temporary move? Of course, if it gradually keeps going against you, then hits your stop, mental or hard, you just get out and move on. But what if it moves way past your stop in just a few seconds (on a rather liquid stock, by the way)? It kinda sucks getting out to only to see it reverse in the following few minutes and to realize this was a little game played by a much bigger fish and you got screwed (or some temp panic effect)...
Well, Daniel_M is not an American so he doesn't exactly subscribe to touchy, feelly American style. If you are a girl I understand your post if not you could benefit from BOOT CAMP experience. Other words, the package is less important than what's inside.
If your trading a stock that's that volatile than you should prepare yourself for huge price swings in either direction. But if it's just a sudden, random drop, then you should definitely get out of it ASAP. There's no telling what news has just leaked. If you were just sucked in and went for the head fake, then you learn from it and move on. I've been suckered into a panick sell, only to see a reversal just moments later. I learn from it and move on. But to me, a 2-3% loss on a single trade isn't out of the ordinary. I know I will make consistent money in the longrun because my winners always out number my losers. Oh and tight stop orders are always a good idea. Later, -Scalpa
Birddog, You made a bad trade and most of the guys who post replies say you should move on, forget about it, part of the learning curve etc etc. They are quite right too, but only about the first part of the trade. When you bought some more then you crossed the line from unlucky to fucking idiot who deserves his loss. If this is the first time you've added to a losing trade then maybe some of the sympathetic posts are appropiate. But if you regularly add to losers then this is going to happen time and time again. I've been trading a long time and my biggest losses have come from fighting the market, adding to losers etc. In your post you say that 2 years ago you would have bought more, held it overnight and the blown out. Well never mind the overnight bit but two years later you are still adding to losers?????? Ignore the "feelgood" posts from the aphies of this world and face the facts...........................LOSERS ADD TO LOSERS !!
Having done this for 30 years, mainly in futures, I'll pass on the only thing that has stuck with me all this time. Set your trading rules and never violate them, particularly stop rules. If you have an opinion about a stock or future, it must be verified by what the market is doing. My biggest losses have come on trades when I found myself saying they can't be that stupid. Goog luck and dont give up
Have you ask yourself what you learned from your loss ? Sit down and write out your mistake to every detail. Than prepare a set of rules that will keep you from ever doing it again. Take some time off from trading, while you are most vulernable. Do manual labor for a week. Go cash a check at the bank for $1000, bring it home spread it out on your tading desk, touch it, smell it, and look long and hard at it, than go spend it. Remeber, it is ok to be wrong, but it is not ok to stay wrong. gbungard " Have a really good day forget about it, have a really bad day forget about it even quicker " Jessie Livermore
How many times have we heard that "he should have known better." If someone knows better, why don't they do better? Most all people know how to walk a straight line, but when drunk fail to do so. There is some much more to being successful in trading than just "knowing" what the right thing to do is. The best question to ask oneself is "why don't I always do what I know to be right?" 777
Most of what there is to say has already been said, but I'll add this - if all you lost was two weeks work, then you have an experience you can easily walk away from IF you learn from it - 1/26th of a year is nothing in the big picture Many in this market have been set back far more than two weeks
OR.... If you cut you losses quickly and you make more on the winners then you lose on the losers you could be right even 25 % of the time and end up in the black. Imagine how much you could make if you were correct 45%.... what about 50%. IMO, When One wins more then he loses I believe he is cutting his winners short...... Or he is a scalper. NKNY