Day Trading ...help!

T

tradingmillions

Hi everyone,

I'm interested in becoming a day trader when I graduate from uni...and I found this firm that I would like to join...it's a stock trading firm and I've heard that they trade around 400-600 trades a day (similar to Swift trading)...I would really appreciate it if someone could tell me what sort of trading is involved (eg is it trading based on price volatility mainly?) ...and how much can a new trader earn in a day realistically? I've been investing in stocks for a while but never traded more than 10 times a day lol....would really appreciate some help...

Thanks X
 
Hi,

Have you ever seen the movie Grinders? Day trading is absolutely similar to the world of poker, because you're not only analyzing the hands you get (situations in a stock's movement), but you're also playing the other traders who are trying to play you.

It's a pretty brutal world to trade - i"ve only been doing it for a couple of months now and i am just BARELY profitable. A typical prop trader shouldn't expect to be making good money for at least 6 months to a year. It takes a lot of self-analysis to succeed, and you have to keep your own emotions in check as much as play what you see in front of you.

I keep lists of every trade I make, which translates into binders full of printouts. Every night I look over all of my trades and figure out what i could have done better, or even if I should have made that trade at all. Slowly and surely, I have ruled out situations that i trade, made some tweaks to trades that i like, and I'm finally feeling confident in my trading situation.

But I'm not expecting to pulL in a fantastic paycheque until the end of this year, because I'm trying to be patient and get myself to the point where I can have a good life-long run of trading. If you can't sit on making no money for at least six months, don't start trading until you're at the point where you can weather that - and work your @$$ off every day so that big payoff comes all the sooner.
 
so is day trading mainly based on price volatility? and news announcements? I actually think swing trading is probably better since you have more time to think about each trade...or mayb just sticking to investing?
I would love to become a trader but I need to get a mortgage soon to support myself and Im doubting that any bank would lend me on a "profit-share" income...
may i ask how much others made in their first year of trading?

Thanks for all the help guys! really appreciate it.
 
I don't think banks will lend against your day trading income as they always follow an asset based lending formula against your "stated" future earnings.

Now for the real question. Momentum is the main driver of inefficiences in the market that allow day traders to survive. Momentum comes from Greed (up) and Fear (down). let the market do that, you just follow the trend and get out at your exit points in the day.

My advice is the following.

Read Jack Schwager's Market Wizard (the original one) - get the rules into your mind and use them in short term trading on a small capital base. Once you are comfortable then dip into day trading, with a fraction of your capital base. Be confident in yourself and have something to fall back on if things go bad, don't try to revenge or overtrade.
 
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