OP, this is my last post on this thread because I have better things to do than trying to convince people that the earth isn't the center of the universe. My final recommendation is to look at what real traders have actually done to make money, and use that as your guide... instead of taking the word of a bunch of people who pose as traders on the internet.
"A good trader must have a personality that is always honest with himself?" http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/poll.php?s=&action=showresults&pollid=2434 http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=71024
Hi Guys, My how this thread has gone the last few hours. I appreciate everyone's input, I heard some good and differring opinions, which is what I was hoping to get. I am just a trader trying to better the system that I have come up with and try to earn some extra $$. I will read and reread these posts and go forward in a manner that I see fit. -chris
Hi Chris, I highly suggest you get a copy of Mark Douglasâs âTrading in the Zoneâ. I havenât read his first book so I canât comment on that one. He definitely talks about how to overcome issues with pulling the trigger on every setup (edge). He basically says in the beginning of trading you have to take every trade setup that comes along. Also you have to be able to write down what exactly is your edge. It canât be subjective like âI go long when I think the market is going upâ it has to be âwhen the 3 min bar closes above the 15 period MA I set a buy stop 2 ticks above the high of the bar that closed above the 15 period MA. In other words, something that either does or doesnât happen. Along with your buy stop you also have a profit target and a stop loss, and once in the trade you do nothing accept make sure either the target or stop gets hit, you donât change or modify them. His big thing is doing a sample size of at least 20 trades and committing to doing those 20 trades exactly how your trading plan say to. As you know it is a lot harder than it sounds. The idea is that by doing those 20 trades you are going to begin to face the reality of trading which is (drum roll please) although you have an edge you donât know which trades are going to be winners and losers. Itâs the uncertainty of the trading game that is difficult to manage. In a regular job you go to work you know you are going to get paid. I would suggest using a system where you can trade just 1 contract, that should relieve some of the stress. If you have a 2-point stop thatâs $100.00 on the ES plus commissions, worse case scenario over the 20 trades it cost you $2000.00 plus commissions. The chances of every trade being a loser are as likely as every trade being a winner. The point in doing this exercise is to be able to embrace the uncertainty and accept it. Sometimes the problem is related to attaching our self worth to money. When we have a winning trade we are flying high, the inverse of course is when we have a losing trade even a spatula canât pick us up off of the floor. I am getting tired and am going to bed, I am writing this to both you and me, if you know what I mean. Bruce
Because you are not truly confident in it. You have to choices. Work on your discipline, or automate it.
I didn't look back to check if anyone recommended this, but one book I find useful: Exceptional Trading: The Mind Game by Ruth Roosevelt The Trading Tribe by Ed Seykota. Start with Roosevelts book first, its cheaper and more interactive. She starts off with the premise that trades have limiting beliefs which limit their earnings and cause losses, in addition to the gyrations of the Markets.