Beginning Day Trader - Where do I start?
- Thread starter MGochuico
- Start date
Magna
Administrator
Nicodemus,
I wish somebody had been able to convince me how hard it is to make it when I started out. I would have prepared myself much better and saved several thousand dollars in the process.
Truer words have never been spoken. You must have seen my trading account balance early on.
I wish somebody had been able to convince me how hard it is to make it when I started out. I would have prepared myself much better and saved several thousand dollars in the process.
Truer words have never been spoken. You must have seen my trading account balance early on.
Does anyone know if there is a quota on the amount of shares or transactions that you must complete to trade remotely with Echotrade with a starting capital base of $10,000.
I checked out the link that Vinny1 posted, it seems like a pretty good deal. 5 - 1 leverage, I assume once you burn through the 10K, you are out!!
tradervic
I checked out the link that Vinny1 posted, it seems like a pretty good deal. 5 - 1 leverage, I assume once you burn through the 10K, you are out!!
tradervic
Might as well throw my 2 cents in...
in addition to the books ChrisRT suggested...I really like Pit Bull , by Marty Schwartz...
and in addition to neo's plan...I have also found that keeping a detailed trading log helps a ton...write down everything you can about your trading day...most important for me was writing down why I made the trade
also , a mistake I made was going too big...started off trading 1000 shares(not a lot to some, but just stupid for a rookie) of 25-50 dollar stocks was a bad move....keep it to something you can handle 100 or 200 share lots or whatever
and don't be afraid to ask...just having been on this board the past 6 months has helped me a lot...so thaks to all.
Trade what you see, not what you think.
in addition to the books ChrisRT suggested...I really like Pit Bull , by Marty Schwartz...
and in addition to neo's plan...I have also found that keeping a detailed trading log helps a ton...write down everything you can about your trading day...most important for me was writing down why I made the trade
also , a mistake I made was going too big...started off trading 1000 shares(not a lot to some, but just stupid for a rookie) of 25-50 dollar stocks was a bad move....keep it to something you can handle 100 or 200 share lots or whatever
and don't be afraid to ask...just having been on this board the past 6 months has helped me a lot...so thaks to all.
Trade what you see, not what you think.
Read reminiscences of a stock operator.
Set up a small account at one of the discount brokers like Datek or Scottrade so you have a streaming realtime data feed.
Download Medved Quote Tracker so you can watch stocks in realtime.
Use Stockcharts.om for your historical charts.
(Quote Tracker and StockCharts are free.)
Start papertrading in realtime.
Set up a small account at one of the discount brokers like Datek or Scottrade so you have a streaming realtime data feed.
Download Medved Quote Tracker so you can watch stocks in realtime.
Use Stockcharts.om for your historical charts.
(Quote Tracker and StockCharts are free.)
Start papertrading in realtime.
MG, =)
if i were just starting, knowing what i know now, this is exactly what i would do..
1.) Go to the book store and get 3 books..
"Trading for a living" by mark douglas.. this is a book that covers psychology.. you can read it before you start trading but probably wont appreciate it until you have experienced the emotions that come with the game..
"A beginners guide to day trading online" by toni hansen this book covers very basic ideas but is full of necessary info, not fluff.. it is well written, easy to understand and fun to read..
"The Stock Trader" by Tony Oz.. this book is really a 4 week trading journal by an excellent trader.. dont just read the book to see what happened each day.. but try to understand the mindset that is used to approach the market..
NEXT..
decide on your timeframe.. do you want to daytrade or swingtrade?
if you want to daytrade, then you need to sign up with a service that has realtime quotes with level II.. personally i use Qcharts and for the most part i am happy with them.. if you want to swingtrade, then you might get away with using whatever is offered by etrade..
if you decide to daytrade, you will need a broker with direct access to the market.. i have used Mytrack, Cyber and Interactivebrokers.. personally, i prefer interactive because they have a faster order entry interface and they are much cheaper..
if you decide to swingtrade, you can probably get away with etrade, but i wouldnt recommend it..
ok.. so now you know all about order execution, basic technical theory and some psychology.. youre set up with a direct access broker and you are ready to trade right? wrong! you need a strategy.. you have 2 choices here.. develop your own, or find someone who is willing to teach you theirs.. personally, i would rather duplicate success rather than try to create it on my own.. there are some very good online chat services that will teach you their approach to the market.. these include pristine.com, swingtrader.net, realitytrader.com and many others.. personally, i use and recommend realitytrader.. they have both daytrading and swingtrading services.. most of these services have a free trial so find one that appeals to you and take it for a spin.. i recommend that you just observe and try to understand what is going on the first few days that you are learning a new strategy.. make sure that you understand what is being done and why..
finally, once you understand your strategy.. begin trading 100 shares at a time.. your goal is not to make money at this point but to execute your strategy flawlessly.. once you are comfortable with what you are doing.. slowly increase your share size..
and the last thing.. when you fall down, get back up..
good luck on your new career =)
-qwik
if i were just starting, knowing what i know now, this is exactly what i would do..
1.) Go to the book store and get 3 books..
"Trading for a living" by mark douglas.. this is a book that covers psychology.. you can read it before you start trading but probably wont appreciate it until you have experienced the emotions that come with the game..
"A beginners guide to day trading online" by toni hansen this book covers very basic ideas but is full of necessary info, not fluff.. it is well written, easy to understand and fun to read..
"The Stock Trader" by Tony Oz.. this book is really a 4 week trading journal by an excellent trader.. dont just read the book to see what happened each day.. but try to understand the mindset that is used to approach the market..
NEXT..
decide on your timeframe.. do you want to daytrade or swingtrade?
if you want to daytrade, then you need to sign up with a service that has realtime quotes with level II.. personally i use Qcharts and for the most part i am happy with them.. if you want to swingtrade, then you might get away with using whatever is offered by etrade..
if you decide to daytrade, you will need a broker with direct access to the market.. i have used Mytrack, Cyber and Interactivebrokers.. personally, i prefer interactive because they have a faster order entry interface and they are much cheaper..
if you decide to swingtrade, you can probably get away with etrade, but i wouldnt recommend it..
ok.. so now you know all about order execution, basic technical theory and some psychology.. youre set up with a direct access broker and you are ready to trade right? wrong! you need a strategy.. you have 2 choices here.. develop your own, or find someone who is willing to teach you theirs.. personally, i would rather duplicate success rather than try to create it on my own.. there are some very good online chat services that will teach you their approach to the market.. these include pristine.com, swingtrader.net, realitytrader.com and many others.. personally, i use and recommend realitytrader.. they have both daytrading and swingtrading services.. most of these services have a free trial so find one that appeals to you and take it for a spin.. i recommend that you just observe and try to understand what is going on the first few days that you are learning a new strategy.. make sure that you understand what is being done and why..
finally, once you understand your strategy.. begin trading 100 shares at a time.. your goal is not to make money at this point but to execute your strategy flawlessly.. once you are comfortable with what you are doing.. slowly increase your share size..
and the last thing.. when you fall down, get back up..
good luck on your new career =)
-qwik
TRAYDER-
Ive been learning this stuff for like 3 years , reading articles on the net (you cant really get any books on the subject in Croatia and it takes them like month or two to get here from Amazon) printing them out etc. but you must take into account that I didnt have my own PC then (cybercaffe!), I didnt know jack about this ....
Then I stumbled into this small private channel om mIRC and I got a lot of great info (some more websites, some tutoring) but I had to be there for like a mont or two just watching and chatting as to make friends with the guys there.
And finally I came here, "met" great traders willing to share their knowledge.
BUT YOU?RE IN THE STATES, where tha "game" is played, you can get books in a couple of hours, you can meet real traders etc.
ALL IN ALL - Find someone willing to toutor you - you should be fine with thwe basics in like a month or two. BASICS!!! Then you can take a software and start watching. THEN you may start papertrading and finally....yes, you may consider placing your first trade. And as The Man Qwik says, then will you get to experience all thoose emotions, psych stuff, not sticking to your plan, changing software, setups blah blah blah blah
Good luck to you all newcomers and seniors!
Alex
QWIKTRADE-
I think the man should go with Interactive even if he wants to swing because we all know that entry/exit is very important thing. I never used any of the discout brokers but have heard some horror stories about orders not being filled for an hour or so, market orders etc. PLUS, he gets a 100 shares for 1$ (ONE BUCK!)-Cant beat that and its direct access.
Great advice Q!
Ive been learning this stuff for like 3 years , reading articles on the net (you cant really get any books on the subject in Croatia and it takes them like month or two to get here from Amazon) printing them out etc. but you must take into account that I didnt have my own PC then (cybercaffe!), I didnt know jack about this ....
Then I stumbled into this small private channel om mIRC and I got a lot of great info (some more websites, some tutoring) but I had to be there for like a mont or two just watching and chatting as to make friends with the guys there.
And finally I came here, "met" great traders willing to share their knowledge.
BUT YOU?RE IN THE STATES, where tha "game" is played, you can get books in a couple of hours, you can meet real traders etc.
ALL IN ALL - Find someone willing to toutor you - you should be fine with thwe basics in like a month or two. BASICS!!! Then you can take a software and start watching. THEN you may start papertrading and finally....yes, you may consider placing your first trade. And as The Man Qwik says, then will you get to experience all thoose emotions, psych stuff, not sticking to your plan, changing software, setups blah blah blah blah
Good luck to you all newcomers and seniors!
Alex
QWIKTRADE-
I think the man should go with Interactive even if he wants to swing because we all know that entry/exit is very important thing. I never used any of the discout brokers but have heard some horror stories about orders not being filled for an hour or so, market orders etc. PLUS, he gets a 100 shares for 1$ (ONE BUCK!)-Cant beat that and its direct access.
Great advice Q!
NEO_HR said:
"BUT YOU?RE IN THE STATES, where tha "game" is played, you can get books in a couple of hours, you can meet real traders etc. "
I am actually in Canada, which is almost the States, but I have never met or spoken to another stock trader. They seem to be a fairly rare breed here and I suspect also in smaller US cities. I rely on the internet just as much as someone in Croatia, although it is easier to find books here.
"BUT YOU?RE IN THE STATES, where tha "game" is played, you can get books in a couple of hours, you can meet real traders etc. "
I am actually in Canada, which is almost the States, but I have never met or spoken to another stock trader. They seem to be a fairly rare breed here and I suspect also in smaller US cities. I rely on the internet just as much as someone in Croatia, although it is easier to find books here.
