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There is moderately consistent 'advice' around many forums to define limits on losses. One rule of thumb that makes approximate sense is 'never risk >1% of your trading account'. This sounds sensible, but is a matter of opinion. Many other have talked about 'blowing their accounts'. My...

Wallace, I have a similar function on the IB account. Would you like to give any details about how you use it?

How do you analyse your trading results? Do you analyse them at all beyond "am I profitable?". If you are interested in more detailed thinking about statistics, please have a look at my post here: http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/showthread.php?threadid=212087/

Attached file relates to attachment 3 discussed above

Attached file relates to attachment 2 discussed above

In order to ensure that I maintain some form of objectivity in trading I analyse my results statistically (i.e. with a mind to understanding how much 'randomness', or things beyond my control day to day can play a part). I have attached 3 files (ET onlly allows 1 file added per post so 2 are...

My largest drawdown was 8% and lasted 3 weeks. It was nerve wracking. My system made money consistently, then it didn't, then I wasn't sure, got nervous. Then the wind changed direction and 2 trades lifted me back to profit. I was stuck in a horizontal trading pattern looking for large...

What is the largest drawdown (not loss on a single trade - cummulative loss until you have made a profit again) you have encountered?

Of those (many) voters who aim for > $1/2m per annum, how many are actually or ever have earned this much. This is a lot of money. If you do earn this much, is it worth the risk and what do you spend it on?

sorry, how much per year?

Do you have a clear goal as to what would be 'enough' income, or do you vaguely want 'more'? What band / selection have you made a firm decision to aim at?

CFerret, this is a great journal. Can you post a summary of all your trades? It would be interesting for you to discuss your growth relative to your initial aims and to discuss any major drawdowns thus far. Perhaps you already have, but I've not yet read the whole thread.

Quite often ET posts discuss losses per trade. But this is not really what kills accounts; it is the summation of a number of these over time before the next 'big win'. This is akin to cash flow issues in most businesses which lead to bankruptcy. My question is simply "How much have you...

I'm not sure if this is the right place for this post - but it is a question about persistence (which is why I have placed this poll in psychology). How long have you been trading for? 1. < 1 year 2. 1-3 years 3. 3-5 years 4. 5-10 years 5. 10-15 years 6. > 15 years I realise this...

I also think this is a good idea. We are each individuals with little interaction with true "colleagues" in a work sense. Understanding why people choose to do what is important. Without understanding, we merely copy others without solid critical analysis. There are many courses that...

Kiwi, With reference to the 2 approaches you have given as examples my only point with regard to 'consistency' is the probability of account extinction. If your account is only £10K then in period 1 there is a strong chance of the account going broke. If your account is £10m then I...

Kiwi, I have been a trader for 4 years (not very long in my view). How long have you been trading online (please don't include buying and holding shares through paper methods)? What did you learn from Monte Carlo analysis and why did you abandon it? It might be helpful to other taders to...

I think Rayston makes good points. Here's what Kiwi Trader said: "If that still doesn't make sense (risk accepting trader vs risk adverse fund customers) then try annually 50,000 consistent annual (max 60,000, min 50,000) vs 500,000 inconsistent (max 1,000,000 min -500,000) I pick...

Don, Thanks for the quote relating to US regulation. Do you know anything about UK regulation? There are many 'spreadbet' companies in the UK offering tax free trading profits. Some people claim they can hang accounts and set each individual their own price (and hence restrict profits)...

How do you measure a trader's skill level? Well I can't see any other method than to reduce the question to the total profit in terms of "pips" and the maximum drawdown in "pips" too. This is then independent of: 1. Account size 2. Financial instrument traded For example, on...