Global futures/daytrade4less.com I didn't go short no at 9350 no reversal signal, I'm very close to shorting again though.
Edit: Short @9375, with downside breakouts on the YM and ES.
Baggerlords Journal
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Global futures/daytrade4less.com I didn't go short no at 9350 no reversal signal, I'm very close to shorting again though.
Edit: Short @9375, with downside breakouts on the YM and ES.
Quote from steeldust:
are the margin rates less than whats posted from the cbot? or maybe you have more money that you think you have?
Daytrade margins are $500. I don't think there are any CBOT minimums for this. Still holding my short, not liking it but not much choice either. I know objectively it is likely to go down.
Baggerlord
I am surprised that you are trading again today. Last week you lost 75% of your account in one afternoon session and vowed to step back and watch the market with a detached perspective. You also didn't feel that you had any discipline problems while others were seeing different.
I see trading today as a lack of discipline on your part. Yes i know that your account suddenly allowed you to trade, but discipline is the ability to follow your plan, (both in individual trades and overall trading strategy) and your plan (in my mind) was to watch and learn for a couple of weeks.
Now I can also see that you are now in a YM trade that went against you by 35pts and seem to be resigned to sitting with this trade no matter what happens, although you said in an earlier post that your absolute maximum stop would be the most recent pivot. Well it already broke the most recent pivot at 9397. Again, this seems to me like another lack of discipline.
I am not trying to be negative here but I see a pattern repeating itself. A lack of discipline that I think you will try and justify if you have a winning day today, or this current trade is a winner. This is not a criticism of your methods but of your mindset. It is a problem I have struggled with (and still do). I really do believe that unless you admit you have a discipline problem and try and address it now you will be doomed to the same outcome as last week.
I am surprised that you are trading again today. Last week you lost 75% of your account in one afternoon session and vowed to step back and watch the market with a detached perspective. You also didn't feel that you had any discipline problems while others were seeing different.
I see trading today as a lack of discipline on your part. Yes i know that your account suddenly allowed you to trade, but discipline is the ability to follow your plan, (both in individual trades and overall trading strategy) and your plan (in my mind) was to watch and learn for a couple of weeks.
Now I can also see that you are now in a YM trade that went against you by 35pts and seem to be resigned to sitting with this trade no matter what happens, although you said in an earlier post that your absolute maximum stop would be the most recent pivot. Well it already broke the most recent pivot at 9397. Again, this seems to me like another lack of discipline.
I am not trying to be negative here but I see a pattern repeating itself. A lack of discipline that I think you will try and justify if you have a winning day today, or this current trade is a winner. This is not a criticism of your methods but of your mindset. It is a problem I have struggled with (and still do). I really do believe that unless you admit you have a discipline problem and try and address it now you will be doomed to the same outcome as last week.
I do have a stop, but it hasn't been hit yet. I'm trading different now, with bigger risk/reward. I feel that I have regained my discipline and feel perfectly comfortable trading today. Since my trading is really only between me and the market, that is all that concerns me. My plan was to stop for a few weeks once my account died, and that hasn't happened yet, when it does, I will.
Well looks like the magic numbers have put the market to sleep. Might be taking that break pretty quick here if something doesn't happen soon.
Closed out, down about $60 for the day. I have been doing some thinking. I have 2k in reserves, leaving my total trading capital at 2900. After that, it will take me about 4 months to save 1k at my current job. The cold hard fact is that I might very well lose my money very quickly trading futures. I am thinking that my wisest decision might be to switch to swing-trading stocks, no margin, with strict risk controls, like 2% a trade. This would be after a period of paper trading to make the transition. I can open a margin account with pointdirex with my 2k and be able to go long and short stocks at .005 a share. I wouldn't use the margin until I show some success. In the meanwhile I can papertrade futures and perhaps at some point refund my account. This way I can learn proper risk management and tecnique, in preperation for when I give up my ski bum career and get a real job with my degree. I am afraid that if I blow the last of my reserves I am going to end up losing interest in papertrading and give up the market altogether. Swing trading would also be more conducive to having a life, as I could go back to working just during the week. The more I learn about trading the more I realize that swing trading is my ideal method, but I don't have near the capital to do this with the minis. These are my thoughts right, now I would be interested in the opinions of some experience traders.
How about first learning how to swing trade.. then put your $ on the line.
You are totally undercapitilized and should quit trading all together until you are ready to play again.
IF you are gonna try to swing trade with $2000 then u need a reality check.
--MIKE
Mike,
You'll notice I said I would paper trade. You'll also see I would risk 2% of capital per trade. That means I would be trading like 20-30 shares at a time. My background is primarily in swingtrading. This is what I have studied the most, and have always been most interested in. I have been daytrading because I was too impatient for the slow gains of stocks. I am now realizing the route of the turtle may be best for me. Now that I have a little daytrading experience I know I am WAY undercapitalized for it, and unfortunately you can't trade 1/10 of a contract. I can trade small size with stocks, learn, and keep trading. This is my reasoning.
You'll notice I said I would paper trade. You'll also see I would risk 2% of capital per trade. That means I would be trading like 20-30 shares at a time. My background is primarily in swingtrading. This is what I have studied the most, and have always been most interested in. I have been daytrading because I was too impatient for the slow gains of stocks. I am now realizing the route of the turtle may be best for me. Now that I have a little daytrading experience I know I am WAY undercapitalized for it, and unfortunately you can't trade 1/10 of a contract. I can trade small size with stocks, learn, and keep trading. This is my reasoning.
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