Are you kidding? Of course trading is not gambling. Sure..you can certainly gamble at trading. But trading is NOT gambling. Do you think guys who consistently make money - I mean 5 years...7 years...10 years... running.... - are "lucky"? Come on...wake up and smell the coffee...There are some out there who are "gifted", for lack of a better word..and I can guarantee you that no matter what happens to the market, they will make money. That's not luck. Pure skillzz.
"...I don't think I'm gambling, well thats not 100% true. What I'm doing as a traer is I'm betting on myself. I'm putting my money on myself that I am going to know the exact thing to do at the right time" -- Lina Leventhal (Huge trader in the Euro Pit)
Positive expectation is derived from past data, the future is still uncertain... The definition of gambling is to make a bet on the FUTURE outcome of an uncertain event... Trading is the purest form of gambling there is... The ultimate game of risk! PEACE and good trading, Commisso
To risk is to dare.... When I trade, and I only trade options, I try to find the highest probability asset to roll into. I may look at ten stocks with great probabilities for a big move, but I'll only go with the one with the highest probability of explosive movement. In finance, no matter what you are playing, there is always a bit of speculation. If there was no risk, markets would be much more efficient than they are. The bottom line is that you are always reducing risk to dice thrown, unless you become a Jedi arbitrage master.
Gambling is when you participate in a game with no "edge." Playing blackjack correctly is NOT gambling, but playinr roulette or any other game is. Trading is similar...it is gambling for most people, and a true business/profession for those who understand the game (yes, it is just a game). Good Luck!! Don
Professionals who derive their income from trading have mastered two important fundamentals: 1. Risk Assessment. 2. Position Sizing Management. All other issues are trivial in my estimation.
I agree with you. "Positive expectation" ( we can't calculate it... ) doesn't mean that you're not gambling. We can't predict the future. The only thing we can do is to rely on past performance. The biggest difference between most casino games ( roulette ) and trading: in roulette the probability of win/loss is known, in trading probabilities are unknown. Yes, it is the purest form of gambling. Of course it doesn't mean that you can't win in the long run.