I blew over 19k before becoming consistently profitable. If you are serious then you need a written plan to achieve your goals.
I'm 20 and I've lost over 5k USD already. I'm slowly starting to turn profitable already and you know why? I know how much I can lose. With an account your size, I'd say at most 10k USD, how can you trade options? My account is currently around 5k, and I'm trading FX because thats the only instrument I can trade now. I trade micro lots on FX (10 cents a tick) and sure it's small, but it builds your experience on reading market sentiment, price action etc. What you want now is experience, not money. Sure, you most probably will blow up your next account, but do it slowly. Learn as you lose. Thats how you start growing.
I find it almost laughable to hear my fellow newbie brethren claim that somehow one can gradually gain one's "edge" over time. From what I have been told by other experts, such an edge hardly ever comes gradually. On the contrary, it comes rather quickly and quite unexpectedly just when you think you finally bit the dust. Although it's never easy to define just what such an edge is, I will tell you this. It is far simpler than you might think or have been taught otherwise. Hint: who would have thought you could actually make money simply by religiously adhering to price actions (eg. support and resistance)?
Heh, it's different for everyone. The system I use came piecemeal from things I learned over a long period of time. Then it was refined from an entire year of staring at every minute of the market religiously. Yes, there were months where I didn't trade and just sat and stared at the market/patterns/price action going on. That's a litmus test for newbie traders too. If you can stare at the market for months and still enjoy what you are doing then you have a chance in this gig. Some of it is simple but requires adaptation, discipline, and common sense. Those 3 things I mentioned are difficult for the vast majority of people to master. "Easy" trades are made difficult by second guessing and/or lack of understanding of the market.
I find it laughable that one can properly test and learn a system or method with a sample size of 10 trades. How do you think an edge is developed? How do you think Livermore started making money? By observing price movements first. Of course, you're probably talking the lazy man way where you just take somebody elses system and cookie cutter it for yourself.
if you want to suvcceed in this bussiness: first you need sufficent fund, if your account is just around 3k~30k, that is not enough. you must fund your account at least above $50k. my suggestion, go back to school, get educated and get a good career, then rent an aprtment (do not buy house using mortgagae), stay there 3 to five years, you will end up with lots of cash, at the same time, after your regular job, practice and learn the market deligently. when your fund is enough big and your investment knowledge is sufficent enough and your trading skills are good, you can start to quit your job and enjoy the journey to RICH GUY. otherwise the chance for you to succeed in this business is slim, almost 100% you are doomed to failure. if you want to kill a prey, you need hone your knife first. the sharp knife includes sufficent fund, and the knowledge and skill you acquired....... wealth built upon deligence, not luck
He is exactly right. Take his advice. One of the main components to trader success is a large capital base. And don't trade options, trade stocks which are more forgiving. Use moving average setups with MACD confirmation to avoid big drawdowns. Keep reading everything you can. Stockmarketmentor.com would be a great starting place for someone in your shoes (I have no affiliation).
Why aren't you a winner? First, you've only been at this for 1 year. It takes, on average, 5 years for a trader to become successful - regardless of instrument. It took me 6 years. Second, you have no strategy or comprehension of risk. Risking no more than 10%, per trade, is way too much. Shows you haven't a clue. Huge losses make that even more apparent. Third, don't confuse a brains with a bull market. Your friends success resulted from a massive equity boom that made him rich selling premium short, right? Those conditions will not return for at least 3-5 years. You will not be able to replicate your friends success. Nor will your friend. Fourth, all instruments trade similar. Figure out why I said this. Re-evaluate your strategy. Some of the simplest strategies work the best. Use them. Fifth. go back to school (your parents are paying right?). That way, you've got room and board covered. Plus a back-up vocation. Take a reduced course load. Schedule classes so you've got 1-2 weekdays off. Use those days to study and papertrade the market until you're successful. Further, I'd recommend opening a FX paper account. That way, you can log the THOUSANDS of HOURS of live market screen time needed to achieve success. If you're not ready to invest 2,000 to 4,000 hours - reading posts, books, screen-time, paper-trading - then its time to re-evaluate. And those hours are not hyperbole. Right now, its obvious you're trying to get rich quick without a clue. You will lose every cent of that money if you continue. Having said all that, yes, its possible. The Question Is: How Bad Do you Want it??!??