Hi as an intra-day trader, I am interested in the opinions and experiences of other intra-day traders. Most of my trading is mechanical, so does not require a great deal of attention, concentration or effort on my behalf during the trading day, as I just need to execute the mechanical signals that I receive through an audible beep from tradestation. I consider the main challenge of my trading to be the design, coding and modification of mechanical trading strategies which, I do on an out of trading hours basis. Therefore my trading days do not require me to screen watch and concentrate for long periods. In this sense my trading dyas could be said to be not very challenging or mentally stimulating. Does anybody feel the same as me? How do you feel about your particular style of day-trading? How big a challenge do you find active trading and how do you feel it challenges you? Do you find your style of day-trading to be mentally stimulating and engaging, or can you find it hard to concentrate, due to boredom? I have suggested that my day-trading activities are not particularly challenging to my brain and I can give attention to other things such as TV, magazines, Internet etc.................. As a light-hearted aside, do you think you would be able to carry out your day trading activities under the influence of alcohol (reduced ability to concentrate etc.), without letting it affect your trading performance? If so, how many pints of Carlsberg (4% alcohol), or units of alcohol do you think you could drink before your trading performance or results were impaired? (please note I am not advocating the use of alcohol while trading!, I'm just wondering if you think you could be just as successful with a reduced ability to concentrate and react. I myself drink alcoholic beverages on an infrequent basis, and do not intend to change my healthy habits!) Thanks a lot GW.
If you are somewhere in the Carribean and have a lot of nice babes around just don't drink so much you get to the point where you don't hear the beep or take off with one of the ladies and forget you were trading...
Trading performance impaired from alcoholic consumption? Ahh, pish-posh... I won't allow it... My auto-trading (I mostly auto-trade) is largely unaffected by my sobriety (or lack of ). But I can tell you this much, for my discretionary trading of SIFs, if there is no Jim Beam, and no music, I don't trade as well. After a few Jim Beams, and some music in the background that I can totally groove out on (luuuurve my iPod shuffle), and trading performance increases rapidly !!! I am more relaxed, I don't feel that I have to take every trade, and the boredom factor is eliminated by the groove-out session - and the occasional posting here!