This is meant as a means to write thoughts about trading. I am a former trader that is looking to start anew. I probably won't discuss specific trades as they would be of little importance. The mental side of trading has always been what I consider to be the biggest factor in trading success. Hoping to get setup within the next week or so with an account. I work full-time from home and will look to make a couple trades a day. (more if the trades are there) Ideally I can create consistency to transition to full-time trading again. My focus will be on the process itself.
Agree Bobby. Not always the case on some forums / social media. Been working on account details. Looks like should be able to re-enable an account I had. Also sent a message to a firm to inquire about fee structure. My homework is to review the platform manual so that I know it well and learn of any updates. Before I had a whole bunch of monitors. This time I'll narrow down the focus. One big screen + tablet. I will keep trading services to a minimum. The list to consider: TC2000 TradingView (have never used before but looks good) Finviz I will not bother with intra-day news sources at this point. It's a volatile market out there and we may be down 1000 tomorrow. I need to take things sequentially and not get too wrapped up in the commotion. Meanwhile, simulation trading to get a rough feel for everything again.
I've been using Xtrader Pro for 20 years. Too old to change. Newsquawk has saved me tons of money over the years.
Never heard of X Trader Pro but I do agree that staying with what you are comfortable with, makes sense. Even if it maybe not as new and slick as other platforms. I've used Newsquawk in the past. Thankfully there are plenty of news services available if you want something.
What sort of former trader - professional? Please explain a little on your background in this regards. Thx
I traded with a prop firm for nearly a decade full time including the financial crisis. Trade equities. Have tried futures, ETFs and some currencies but my go-to has been NA equities. They make the most sense to me. Looking to set myself up for long-term success. Part of that strategy will be putting thoughts down, both here and on paper.
Full day of observing the market and generating trading ideas. The majority of the ideas were in the oil sector. Some clean moves which are encouraging even though we are in unusual territory. I like being able to generate ideas that are my own, and watching them execute. Paper trading though is not the same, but it does help to validate ideas. I've realized that I am not a 'trade the first 2 hours and done' type of trader. I never was. Have some documentation to submit to get account set up. Meanwhile, I'll continue to work to generate ideas in a methodical fashion.
You'll need to crack the whip as great opportunities are right around the corner. Will you have a short term or long term exposure bias? We have 2 months to go before "Sell in May and go away". I'm hoping the bear mkt is not a very short term affair as one which may last a few months creates these 'lifetime opportunities'. I tend to hold due to circumstance usually months to years, but I'm also prone to sell out in 1 to 2 days if a trade I place doesn't behave a breakout as I expect. Last week for example I bought Friday morning and I sold following Monday morning.