Why would successful traders work for investment banks/prop firms/etc?

Discussion in 'Professional Trading' started by Specterx, Feb 14, 2008.


  1. no offense meant, man, but where is the evidence of this--- daytraders living large, making fortunes nowadays?

    yes, im sure there is one or two---- but they are few and far between. can you eek out a living? is it a blast to do? is it one of life's ultimate games? do i love it? absolutely! however its important to know the reality.

    EMRGLOBAL speaks the truth--- like it or not.

    EMRGLOBAL was there, he lived the life in the heyday and made a killing trading with the BEST daytraders of ALL TIME, now he travels the world doing whatever he wants. he knows of what he speaks, show some respect.

    surf
     
    #21     Feb 15, 2008
  2. I am not disrespecting anyone. Anything is possible, that is all that I am saying.

    Do I agree that market conditions are tough? heck yeah, but I also know that there will always be opportunities. You can make the same statements about anything in life...things are tough, and the success rates are not always high in certain endeavors, but people succeed. I am not saying people are living the high life from daytrading at all. Someone's perception of doing well could be a lot different than another's idea of being succcessful.

    If EMRGLOBAL was successful, that is great. In fact, I value some of his posts.
     
    #22     Feb 15, 2008

  3. Dancing around with glow stix is better than daytrading? :)
     
    #23     Feb 15, 2008



  4. sounds good to me.

    peace,

    surf
     
    #24     Feb 15, 2008
  5. Jimmy3

    Jimmy3

    Daytrading from home will kill you in a long run. You'll shoot yourself in a head :(
     
    #25     Feb 15, 2008
  6. Surf, you don't know what you are talking about! Don't you have some trend traders to debunk or something?

    None of the successful traders I know really live large. They live life on their own terms and are content, just quietly making small fortunes from the market. Most are on pace to have $1mm years this year, and two have already hit that number!
     
    #26     Feb 15, 2008
  7. EricP

    EricP

    Yikes, where to begin?

    Mschey is right about this one. Sorry, surf, you haven't got a clue. Trading will never be a business where a huge percentage of participants make a fortune. It never has, and it never will.

    However, a lot of traders that I know believe that we are in the midsts of the heyday of trading. That the current environment is the best that we've ever seen (and many of us have daytraded for 10+ years). As with Mschey, there are 6-9 traders that I know that will almost certainly exceed 1M in profits this year. Some are retail, some are prop, but all are independent 'self employed' traders, trading from home (i.e. not working for banks or hedge funds).

    The traders to whom I refer <b>could</b> travel the world, but they enjoy trading. Most of them wish that there were no 'holidays' like Presidents Day, which shuts down trading on a weekday.

    You'll likely never find much 'evidence' of traders 'making a fortune and living large'. The successful traders that I know see no benefit to publicize their success. That sort of thing is usually done by posers wanting to look successful, or those with something to sell (snakeoil, seminars, books, etc). The 'real deal' traders simply find no use in proving or providing 'evidence' of their trading success to others.
     
    #27     Feb 15, 2008
  8. You have to wonder about the motivations of a journalist who doesn't day-trade attempting to "debunk the myths" of daytrading on a trading chat board.
     
    #28     Feb 15, 2008
  9. haha. nice
     
    #29     Feb 15, 2008
  10. neke

    neke

    Isn't it too early in the year to be damn sure?
     
    #30     Feb 15, 2008