Is he right?
Are you a successful at home day trader with no other source of income who began with modest means?
- Thread starter JTrades
- Start date
Is he right?
No, all it takes is patience, consistency, and knowing when to shutdown your computer and call it a day. I blew through a couple accounts before it finally clicked for me.
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Partially true. But, it's a very cynical statement.
Let me give you the long version.
The high amount of monies made in the market is from a large part of the population loosing money. The rate of success ebbs and flows.
The winning sample (10%, 5% 1%???) increases when the markets go thru a favorable environment. For example if you look at the long term chart from 2008-2014, it is almost a straight line. In hindsight, we know that this has produced a lot of success from buy and holders, dividend investors and volatility sellers. When that environment changes, it will shift the rate of success to other strategies. You have to anticpate the tide and shift strategies. Easier said than done.
In the long run, it could be a wash for all the players and produce a rate of success for a much even (incredibly) minute group.
However, I think you can come out ahead on an absolute basis (not relative) if you apply sound investing principles.
Let me give you the long version.
The high amount of monies made in the market is from a large part of the population loosing money. The rate of success ebbs and flows.
The winning sample (10%, 5% 1%???) increases when the markets go thru a favorable environment. For example if you look at the long term chart from 2008-2014, it is almost a straight line. In hindsight, we know that this has produced a lot of success from buy and holders, dividend investors and volatility sellers. When that environment changes, it will shift the rate of success to other strategies. You have to anticpate the tide and shift strategies. Easier said than done.
In the long run, it could be a wash for all the players and produce a rate of success for a much even (incredibly) minute group.
However, I think you can come out ahead on an absolute basis (not relative) if you apply sound investing principles.
No, he's not right. But if you look at the source of the statement and know his history here on ET you get a good laugh from such a naive statement. I'm in my 19th year of trading retail with no other earned income.
il
Ok, theres one out of how many? 1000x more laundromat or carwash owners get wealthy than retail day traders-- thats a fact. Get wealthy first, folks, then trade. The other way doesnt work!
Do you live above the poverty level?
Do you know why? The reason is capital is your tool. Enough capital, you may just last long enough for luck perserverance to earn you a fortune. Without the tool of lots of capital, lottery is better odds of living above poverty as a at home day trader.
Its not naive at all. I didnt say it was impossible. There are savants in every endeavor. I did say that i never met one outside of anonymous message board claims.
i will ask what was your capital base when you started. Please dont mislead. Thanks, surf
Ok, theres one out of how many? 1000x more laundromat or carwash owners get wealthy than retail day traders-- thats a fact. Get wealthy first, folks, then trade. The other way doesnt work!
Do you live above the poverty level?
Do you know why? The reason is capital is your tool. Enough capital, you may just last long enough for luck perserverance to earn you a fortune. Without the tool of lots of capital, lottery is better odds of living above poverty as a at home day trader.
Its not naive at all. I didnt say it was impossible. There are savants in every endeavor. I did say that i never met one outside of anonymous message board claims.
i will ask what was your capital base when you started. Please dont mislead. Thanks, surf
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I started with a $90K account with living expenses in the bank. I had a worst case drawdown to about $68K. These days I keep $150K in my day trading account and additional profits go into other longer term investments.
Thank you. Thats gotta be brutal, to earn the high returns needed to survive on the capital base---But admirable.
DHOHHI
Can you share us your technical background before becoming a trader and provide Sharpe ratios for those 19 years?
Actually not so difficult ... I started my 1st year with enough in the bank to cover living expenses. And I knew if I blew out I could have probably found another engineering job. But I had no desire to return to the politics of the corporate world. I also was pretty good at being conscious of my spending. I probably was a bit frugal for a couple years until I knew I could spend more and be highly confident that I would make enough $$$ to meet all my needs.