Hey guys I've progressed from having a system that I didn't have the stones to implement to being able to pull the trigger. My new problem is as follows: I have a system that I can expect that if I follow, to pull in 12-14 ticks a day but since I just started I'm trying to be smart about it and I'm only trading 1 lots. I'm trading the 5 year at $7.81 a tick. On a good day I'll finish up $50-$80 so all the books say that this is the way to go...slow and steady and yes when the time comes for 10 lots thatll be close to $700-$800 a day but a. How do you guys deal with it? And b. I'd like to think that there is no reason I can Not become a millionaire but I'd need to be trading 100 lots to get close which could be years away. So how do I get into the frame of mind to be cool going 8-3-2 and only have like $50 to show for it?
Stop thinking about becoming a millionare, concentrate on maximizing returns when the market is running hard your way. In otherwards, consider putting a little more in the pot when a trade is trending hard your way, just make sure you don't get cocky or "mrs market" will slap you like a red headed step child.
It is possible but you have to be making money on a risk-adjusted basis. Otherwise, it will never happen.
Trade one lot. Only. When your account size grows by a predetermined amount, like say your starting account size is $10,000 and you are trading 1 lot making $50-80 a day like you said. When your account size reaches $15,000 then trade two contracts. If you win every day that will be a minimum of 100 days ($50 a day * 100 days = $5,000). When your account size reaches $25,000 trade 3 contracts. At 2 contracts a day ($100 a day) this will be another 100 days ($100 a day * 100 days = $10,000). When your account size reaches $35,000 trade 4 contracts. At 3 contracts a day this will occur in about 67 days ($150 a day * 67 days = $10,050. This will have taken about a year (267 days which is just over the number of trading days in a year), during which time your account will have increased by $25,000. Pay your taxes and continue with this progression the following year. This assumes you make an average of $50 per day like you said. If your average is $50-80, then it will take less time. Err on the side of going slower rather than faster. When in doubt, use fewer contracts. This is how you do it. I don't know what the margin requirement is on your contracts, but stick with 1 until your system has a proven winning track record. People get in trouble cuz they're like "Hey I have a $5,000 account I'm gonna trade 5 or 10 ES at a time just cuz I can!" and they blow their accounts after a few bad trades.
For one thing I don't recommend trading futures if you have a certain account balance...like if you have 5,000 dollars in an account or even 10,000 futures may not be the best place to start. Going into forex is much better since trading 3 lots of eur/usd is much less risky than trading 3 contracts of ES. You can have a larger stop as well. If you have a system that gives you an edge, you have accomplished 25% of the problem...Now you have to implement it. And implementing it is difficult if you have your account fluctuating a lot with every tick. Do it the right way and you will eventually succeed.
Why on earth would he begin trading 3 ES contracts if he had a $10,000 account? Also, futures is regulated. Forex is a giant scam. I'm not seeing any reason to trade Forex.