OK let's start from there. The owner of a prop firm made $5,000 per day. Nice money, but a lot of us here have done the same or better. Many times. By your admission he has buddies who are knocking down ten to twenty times his rake. Why then is he wasting his time trying to run a prop, when focusing on scaling up his trading could - should - would make the same dough his big-time buddies in NYC are? Do you know why that is? I probably do, and will share it with anyone who cares next
who says a person is wasting time when teaching? if a good trader that makes consistantly 30k a day can collect 50-200 a month from 100 subscribers, who wouldn't want that extra income? All you have to do is get a mic and say what you are in why you are in it take about the charts. Its not a bad deal. Of course if you swinging a big line like some poeple you say that have 30m to play with then maybe they don't need to. trading style has a play in it to. people that can make 30-50k a day in equities would love the opportunity to make a website w/ chat and mic to collect extra income but of course you have to produce. Being that equities is probably the first instrument beginning traders start in, it makes it that much easier to get a subscriber base because I don't think a beginning trader will jump into trading derivatives. Talk to any finance professor, why are they teaching you if they can be making millions, usually htey have some type of consulting job on the side or their own business. I guess it comes down to the type of person you are.
In my opinion my boss opened the firm as a hobby and as something to do. Based on his net worth he is financially secure and just probably wanted to trade more relaxed. $5,000 was also a average number... he puts size on when there are opportunities. He trades over 1,000,000 shares sometimes. Most importantly, everything he provided was FREE... Training was free... No commissions... No initial contribution... No quote fees (NASDAQ/NYSE).... No software fees... He payed for the lease on the office... He payed for all the computers, monitors, TV's! $350,000 account for every trader! One reason he doesn't swing like his buddies in the city is that he is older than them and has like four kids = more responsibilites. He is in his late 30s so the risk-taking is not there anymore. Also, I've seen him make and loss $30,000 on sometimes. He co-wrote a book back in the 1990s "Electronic Day Trader" or something and he apparently lost half a million in one day. He used to trade size back then.
Quite simply, teaching another reinforces that which the instructor already knows. Every physician you have visited throughout your life learned under the very same paradigm - See one, Do one; Teach one. - Spydertrader
Yup... agreed 100% to all that plus the blah-blah-blah I'm 44yrs old/young. However said, it's relative to whether you are younger or older than that. Twenty years ago you might have almost interested me in the massive effort = grind it requires to make the highest echelons of trader performance. But today? No thanks. If you told me I could make $10mil in five years, but that would require living in NYC, Chi or any big city, I'd refuse without a second thought. Blasphemy, you say? Hell no. I'm old = wise enough to know my limitations. Working prop in a big city with high-pressure job and lifestyle not suited for me ain't worth it, at all. I'm capable of trading most anything, but greatly prefer the Russell 2000 futures (TF). It is scalable to a high enough degree for any retail trader. You can turn 5, 10 and even 20 contracts most of the time with acceptable slippage and complete fills. Might take some scaled-in entries to fill all 10 or 20, but it's doable. Now say you can average +2pts daily over a long period of time. That's +40pts TF monthly. On 10-lot it is $40,000 and on 20-lot it is $80,000 Either of those scenarios would be fine with 99% of the people who ever clicked into this forum from day one. Half that much, even 1/10th that much would be acceptable to 90% of the populace who ever wandered thru. Matter of fact, it's perfectly fine by me. ** Your former boss who ran the prop firm did not have that burning fire inside to do what his buddies did. For whatever reason(s) he just wasn't interested in leaping a bar set that high. Neither am I, neither are many if not most other traders. Here's a living example of what I mean: My girlfriend's youngest son Dylan is nearly 16yrs old. From the time he began to walk, fishing has been his primary passion. Now I've been an avid fisherman all my life, have forgotten more about fishing than most people will ever know. I've caught more fish in more ways in more places than most people alive. But I don't have one iota the consumptive drive for fishing that Dylan has. Matter of fact, right now he's taking my truck to a stretch of trout stream behind the house filled with trophy rainbow trout. It's all he has thought about since this time yesterday when he discovered that pool filled with lunkers. Dylan aspires to being a pro-bass circuit fisherman someday. He has the internal drive to do that. But not many people do... even those who otherwise love to fish and are damn good at it.
This has been the best answer thus far.. I still don't understand why you would charge people to listen to you if you're consistently making $30,000 a day. Doesn't seem like a good enough incentive for some extra income... but I could be wrong if it involves passion. I think one aspect that takes me aback is when traders advertise and solicit their training. Plus running a website and chat rooms is hard work... unless you have a programmer.
I assume your former boss started the prop firm as a hobby even though he didn't need the money. So, he gave 100% payout to the traders? He ran it as 100% charity operation with no personal desire to profit one dime from the venture at all?
Teaching is fine... but what about the fee? My former boss taught for free. "Why do "profitable" traders take the time to train people remotely and for a fee?"
Not many traders average +$30,000 per day. Ya see, there is this mistaken perception that traders either lose money or make zillions... no one exists in between. What about the guys/gals who average +$300 per day? Is there anyone here in this forum who would be happy to accomplish that? What about the guys/gals who average +$1,000 per day? Is there anyone here in this forum who would be happy to accomplish that? What about the guys/gals who average +$3,000 per day? Is there anyone here in this forum who would be happy to accomplish that?