Yeah, I never believed that 95% percent of traders fail bs. I am on the plus side a few grand over 3+ years and I am nothing special. I mean if someone trades for 1 week and then calls it quits I guess they are in the "95%" but were they ever real traders.? To get the focus back on this threads specifics, I don't think futures are any easier or harder than equities or currency to make a living on for example.
Probably many ways to skin the cat......here's mine: I'm 65, retired from my construction business. Invested and traded part time until last couple of years when I started spending more time on it.....investment portfolio declined last year but trading has been going pretty well. I combine fundamentals with an eye on the charts. I do have a BBA which doesn't mean much except that some understanding of national and international economics is probably helpful in forecasting longer term trends. Also, it helps in guessing the impact that daily news has on the markets. So, with my seat of the pants trading method, I feel like I should learn and study the monetary system and economics as much as possible. Other people say all the information you need is in the charts, and if it works for them, I can't argue. When I do day trade, my method requires a lot attention, work, and stress. Stosh
What FCM? What successful futures only trader actually pays an overpriced account to do easy section 1256 taxes ? What losing futures trader actually waste even more money paying an accountant to do easy section 1256 taxes ?
Thanks for mentioning these books. I had heard of some of these titles, but had never considered purchasing any of them. Are there any from the list that you liked the best?
Glad to see so many earning a nice living, didn' t think there would be this many people responding. Keep up the good work.
I pull in about $35,000 A DAY trading the ES and YM, not bad for two hours of trading in the morning. forex-forex ------------ Trading Guru
The 95% story is a very stupid stat. In the stat are included persons who haven't study and didn't nothing to reach success..persons which traded without knowing what they were doing. This famous stat is like saying that 98% doctors fail including in the stat babies playing little doctor
Then you haven't been in Woodies room! Anyway, let's keep this on track. The question is who is making a good living daytrading futures, not who has ever had a profitable year. Lots of chat rooms out there, lots of guys trading 3k IB accounts, I beleive the 95%. So far there are a few people who seem credible that have replied. Any others? Thanks for all the serious replies. Any other type not needed.
Hypothetical trades don't count, unless you actually took them, got filled at the prices quoted and this is your only job. Never heard of anyone making a living from an advisory service unless of course it was the advisor!
Dorman Filing a tax return for Trader Tax Status under IRS regs is not like completing a EZ 1040 Short Form. There are many other schedules for those who elect this status to maximize their legitimate deductions, and the IRS scrutinizes these returns carefully. Your reply shows you are naive about these matters. Paying an accountant $750.00 who knows how to do it right is a small cost and if you can't afford that, than you probably can't afford to trade either.