What is the largest drawdown (not loss on a single trade - cummulative loss until you have made a profit again) you have encountered?
My largest drawdown was 8% and lasted 3 weeks. It was nerve wracking. My system made money consistently, then it didn't, then I wasn't sure, got nervous. Then the wind changed direction and 2 trades lifted me back to profit. I was stuck in a horizontal trading pattern looking for large break outs, which came good again, eventually!
i'd say day trading about 10% and end of day 15%+ Anyone suffers more than 25% D.D. is a gambler and will blow out.. Oh an anyone who has lost their whole account is NOT a good trader on the "learning curve" They are naive,ignorant gamblers who got what they deserved. Why you guys seem to think all good tradrs blow out is beyond me. If your risk is 1% per trade....you shouldn't see much more than 12% D.D. EVER It's that simple
LMAO how ignorant if you risk 1% per trade and dont have a solid edge to revert the negative expectancy, you'll blow up the entire bankroll very soon. to the OP: think about why so many wannabe trader fail at this? are they dumber or just plain ignorant?
It really depends on if you are just a systems trader or you trade yourself. I have seen some good strategies go through 50% - 75% D.D of their initial capital from their highs. therefore it is extremely important where in their equity curve you start trading them. Exceeding the historical DD should be where you stop trading them or decrease the load on them But if you merely trade yourself , you need to stop if you hit 50%.... IMHO