Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts everyone. Although a position trading forum could be useful for some, my feeling is that it is beyond the scope of this site. My personal opinion is that position trading is really another term for intermediate term investing, which tends to focus a lot on the actual thing that's being traded (e.g. picking the next winning stock), instead of the art and/or mechanics of daily trading (which encompasses much more than just finding the next opportunity). Position Trading can be done by anyone with a brokerage account and delayed web-based quotes, so I fear that a position trading forum will inevitably draw a fresh batch of new traders searching for the "next winning pick", which is not the culture here. Elite Trader has been, and always will be, a site for day traders, preferably those who are doing it for a living, or aspire to do so. That is why the broker ratings on the site only features firms that offer real-time trading platforms, and why the software ratings only include real-time products, not delayed or end-of-day. If I intended on catering to the position trading crowd, I would not just give them a forum, but would almost certainly create a totally new site that gives them a community of their own, complete with product ratings, discussion forums, articles, and sponsors that are more relevant to their skills and interests. Now if there was enough interest in something like that, it would be something I would seriously consider. Thanks again for the feedback.
Baron: I suggest you to seriously consider it. After visiting a few other online communities, it seems clear to me that only EliteTrader.com has the necessary conditions for creating such a community. Although EliteTrader.com was originally intended for the daytrading community it has undoubtly gathered traders from all walks of life. Not providing them with means of full expression and interaction would be a waste of opportunity. Moreover a daytrader's interest is not necessarily limited to the short term up and down swings of the instrument they are trading, and learning how to assess a long term perspective on their vehicle of trading will certainly improve their bottom line results. OPC
When I came to this forum, I missed the sign on the wall saying that Elite Trader is: "a site for day traders". I did notice a cold shoulder or two when attempting to discuss holding profitable positions overnight and longer. Of course I would enjoy "a forum dedicated to discussions about long term trend trading and related strategies." Although I don't see why that has to be limited to futures, as suggested in the first post of this thread. My two cents, Banker
Daytraders are essentially short term speculators or market makers. What this fellow seems to be looking for is a forum for short to intermediate speculators - not investors. I don't see the problem. I believe ET is a forum for speculators of all time frames. Perhaps I am wrong. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "The speculator is not an investor. His object is not to secure a steady return on his money at a good rate of interest, but to profit by either a rise or fall in the price of whatever he is speculating in" Jesse Livermore
Position Trading can be done by anyone with a brokerage account and delayed web-based quotes, so I fear that a position trading forum will inevitably draw a fresh batch of new traders searching for the "next winning pick", which is not the culture here. This is an excellent point and hard to refute. I have asked Baron to consider changing the name of the Strategy Trading forum to Strategy and Position Trading forum. By doing that, we can continue to have more focused discussions in a forum that is already open. Combining the two topics is consistent with the goals of both topics as most technical analysis-based trading strategies can be applied to any time frame. I know it is a matter of being able to provide a quality service to position traders as well as daytraders and Baron doesn't want to sacrifice quality by spreading himself too thin. If he chooses to add a forum or change the name of one, etc., great. If not we can continue to work within the framework that is provided. After all, the name of the forum doesn't make the discussion worthwhile, it is the contribution of the members. Everyone is more than welcome to put Position Trading topics in the Strategy Trading forum and I will do all I can to support them.
Baron has a point with regard to ET becoming a tip sheet, which is nearly impossible when focusing on daytrading. However, ET does welcome "short-term" traders, or "swing" traders if you like, and the opportunity for ET to become a tip sheet with regard to position trading is fundamentally no greater than it is in the swing trading community. In other words, the position traders are no more likely to discuss specific stocks than the swing traders are, just as nearly every trader here is loath to discuss the specifics of his strategy. If they were to do so, then it would seem logical to outlaw discussions of short-term trading as well. One possibility is to limit discussion of position trading - and even swing trading - to futures and ETFs, which many traders consider to be the easiest way to make money anyway, for a variety of reasons. The issue of tips - and all that that environment entails - would thus be moot. --Db
I also see this way. Only a small percentage of traders are interested in holding positions for the intermediate term, i.e., "sitting and waiting" tight. Therefore if a separate room is not granted, threads about very short term trading will overwhelm discussions about this different style of speculation, as is the case in E.T. Also, as EliteTrader.com has a considerable volume of membership, it sounds like it is the only community with potential to hold a forum about such a subject. The question is: where are the fellows from the commodity, interest rate and currency markets? Can they be described as "investors"? Possibly not. However they are certainly more concerned with the intermediate term trading. OPC
Moreover buying or selling has to do with the essence of trading. For every buyer has a seller, with a different opinion or strategy. Most traders are more than likely loath to share the specifics of his/her strategies. As far as tip sharing is concerned I think traders are the ones who are best entitled to discuss future developments. Or is that a prerrogative of an ivy degree academic who charges $1000 a month for their report? Price forecasting, just like any kind of knowledge, needs complete freedom of expression to develop to its fullest. OPC