Where are his underwear? I think the percentage of people who go bust trading is about the same as any start-up business (about 90% supposedly). Winners take money from losers - it's the way of the world.
Dude, if you had taken those $100,000 ten, twenty, thirty or forty years ago and bought a few houses on the West or East coast you'd have at LEAST 10 times as much. Forget this bullshit backtesting garbage. It's really for amateurs $ dreaming and looking at the past and most likely with no $ to trade/invest.
Cant speak for Steve, BnB but it took me: 19 years and 3 blow outs, taking crappy jobs at night and on the weekends, so I could have my days free to train. Blank stares and derision from relatives, friends, and strangers when they asked what I did. Purchase of more snake-oil than I thought I'd ever fall for, "guru" worship, seminar attendance, more trading software than could be fit on 10 hard drives. On and on. And alot, ALOT of fun. Because NONE of that compares to the pure hell that is the majorities "stable" 9-5 life you mention as they slowly inch along the freeway in their metal coffins to a dead end job that Bush-Clinton-Bush-Clinton will sell off to China or India anyways to pay for their kids Gulfstream 5 as they collect $125k/hr on the after presidency lecture tour. I dont know you and have no idea how long you've been trading. Dont want to know. But I know this, there is no way you can successfully trade(ie says trader/investor on your 1040 form under occupation) unless you have suffered. Maybe you have not suffered enough yet? Or maybe you have. And trading is not for you. Doesnt make you a bad person. This has nothing to do with brains, desire, or even balls. It is just a pure grind. Trading is the last bastion of civilized brutality left. The purest legal one anyways. Greater the risk, the greater the reward. If everyone could trade, who would work? No political correctness here. Look at the heavyweights. Niederhoffer, John Henry et al. We are all just one trade away from humiliating ruin. If we allow it. Would you really trust a dentist with 6 months experience? Not likely. How bout the surgeon cutting open your heart? Only in trading can you be sold the idea that in 6 months you too can own Chicago and New York. Then just for kicks you can surf the financial waves of London, Frankfurt, and Hong Kong. Just trading a handful of stocks is a 80 hr week proposition. Never mind Hang Seng Futures. Trading is NOT a scam. It is a reminder to be ever vigilant in creating your destiny rather than crave surety in a world that gives none. Dont quit. Find what works and drive that blade to its hilt.
<b>"Just trading a handful of stocks is a 80 hr week proposition. Never mind Hang Seng Futures.</b> Truer words never spoken.
80? I think that's a bit extreme. 8:30-6:30 should be more than enough time for research, strategizing, and review... that's 50 hours... How are you able to usefully fill 80 hours of your week with stock trading related work? What is your daily grind like?
You could count the number of millionaires that made it legally and morally on your left nut.. trading's not so bad
I don't know anything about your trading situation but from your comments you are probably trading too hot, meaning too much risk in your portfolio, big drawdown, heat, etc. It is pretty easy to blow out of an account <100K if you are leveraged like in futures, options. The correct use of leverage is not discussed very much; the sharpe ratio has its critics as the factors such as standard deviation can only be known historically, but it is a good starting point to understand risk. Good luck with your trading/investing.
I'm always around it... I will go golfing or run errands, or do other stuff but I'm all over it the majority of each day... I've never counted the hours but I can't even begin to tell you how many nights I've been up til 3am looking at charts, researching, reading etc.