Don't put too much blame on psychology for a perceived failure; the real question boils down to this -- do you really have an edge to begin with? Put it this way: how hard is it to hold a trade that instantly spikes higher the moment you go long, with little or no retracement? Now assume this particular setup has an 8 in 10 chance to net a 5% move within the same session, and that in any given week there are at least 5-6 opportunities. Ask yourself now, having discovered such a setup, do you think you'd still be flailing around, prematurely entering trades or chasing/forcing positions that did not fulfill all your parameters for entry? Or would you be confident and poised, waiting patiently on the sidelines to act swiftly and surely when your signal is triggered? You may be right in blaming your subconscious, but not for the reason you think -- it just may be your subconscious is the only part of you that is acknowledging the fact that you have no edge, and that one gamble is as good as the next. Does this make any sense? It may sound harsh, but that's exactly the kind of excuse I made for years before I owned up to the fact that I didn't really know what I was doing.
Very good point. But the OP is adamant that he knows what he is doing, he just is self destructive. But it certainly is a very valid question that ONLY the OP can truly know. And if he isn't honest with himself then he may never break the cycle he is in.
mental problems...happen all the time i would suggest you either go programming trading or give up the fact is that trading for living is extremely difficult
That's what I think! I have no problem following an established system of rules. I am psychologically comfortable riding a loser all the way to zero as long as the system has not given me an exit signal yet. My problem has been finding a system that is profitable enough to follow. It seems like 99% of ET has the opposite problem. "I can't follow my rules and I lose money!" Tell you what, I can follow your rules, so give them to me, and we'll split the profit. Geez.
Maybe you and the OP should join forces...his solid method combined with your willingness to follow a system to a tee. I ain't joking...you two should hash out some agreement. You can both thank me later edit: sorry I missed the last line of you post, you already proposed this joint venture.
the truth is in the absolute long run, trading is intensely difficult. i have seen many come and go in this business over the years, even people who have consistent records over a long period of time have been taken out of the game, not necessarily through blowing up in one shot but through attrition and bleeding to death very very very slowly. one who made 5 figures everyday for the longest period is now a bartender. In this game, you are always chasing your own tail. round and round you go. the smartest guy i know made money in the markets in an extremely fortuious period, left the business and never looked back. he came out way ahead of everyone else.. If you are making more than 300 dollars a day in your day job, do not trade for a living. Especially in daytrading, your discipline has to be insane, day in day out. This is no path to riches. The low barriers to entry in this business is the greatest illusion of them all
For a totally undisciplined trader they could perceive the amount of discipline as insane but once you know what amount of discipline it takes you just keep that course no matter what. Successful day trading is the magical balance of risk and caution. One finds this magical balance by experimenting with methods that involve all types of risk and discipline. The most common problem among new traders is not there inability to accept risk. It is there inability of respecting and using the proper amount of caution and discipline. It is like hiking on a trail that is three feet wide in the Rocky mountains. To your right is a rock wall going up several hundred feet. To your left is a one thousand foot cliff. The trail is rocky, uneven and steep, the wind is high and you know that just one wrong move can send you plummetting down to a certain death. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sRmlBOBq9v8 You have to believe horrible things can and will happen to you if you don't use caution.
its different... reading the market... and actually trading.. anyone can read the market ... not everyone can trade. you can read the market..? good go be a stock broker so you can tell people who buy and hold whats happening day to day... leave the day trading to the traders.