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Do full-time forex traders exist or is it just make believe?
- Thread starter zbojnik
- Start date
Quote from SimpleTrades:
All it takes is one big loss and all your hard work has been eliminated - not just the profits, but also the original deposit. Whereas if you withdraw your profits, all you lose is the original deposit minus the margin requirement (in my case) plus slippage.
The thing about compounding is that each subsequent trade has an exponentially increasing potential loss. That's why Xspurt's suggestion that 40 pips a day to a $million is absurd except under extremely lucky circumstances. If you're compounding, an average of 40 pips per day can actually send your account to $0.
So in your case, if you had a $10k balance you'd risk that entire amount on each trade?
Quote from SimpleTrades:
If that were my deposit, and I used my current strategy: yes. Realize, however, that if I did that I would have a savings account/investments totalling $10000/.05 = 200,000.
Keep in mind however, that if you're in the habit of putting yourself in multiple trades at the same time, which is fine, your deposit will be adjusted accordingly to accommodate those multiple trades. The point is only that you deposit only enough to maintain your strategy, and no more.
Oldtime was giving me a hard time earlier because he thinks I am gambling. He wants me to construct a plan that would allow that $1000 deposit to last a lot longer. However, to do that would require a lot smaller lot sizes and tigher stops. That's not my strategy. I am leaving most of my money out of the trading account and depositing only enough to service one trade that can sit there for several weeks while I go off to work where I can't watch my trade performance all of the time.
I want that $1000 to last forever, eternally, withdrawing enough of your profits to pay bills and taxes. If you did it my way, you sweep 50% of the account each month over and above 1k. and yes, you would have to trade extremely small starting with just 1k. If that isn't your strategy you are one of the few trading forex who is truly undercapitalized, and there is no excuse for thatQuote from SimpleTrades:
Keep in mind however, that if you're in the habit of putting yourself in multiple trades at the same time, which is fine, your deposit will be adjusted accordingly to accommodate those multiple trades. The point is only that you deposit only enough to maintain your strategy, and no more.
Oldtime was giving me a hard time earlier because he thinks I am gambling. He wants me to construct a plan that would allow that $1000 deposit to last a lot longer. However, to do that would require a lot smaller lot sizes and tigher stops. That's not my strategy. I am leaving most of my money out of the trading account and depositing only enough to service one trade that can sit there for several weeks while I go off to work where I can't watch my trade performance all of the time.
now how does that compare to, everytime I have 1k, i send it to forex and just trade it until it is gone? oh well
that is my baseball betting plan, I never worry about it becuase I sort of expect to lose the whole account each year (I'd have to be pretty damn good not to, because there is no money management, it's all just guessing.)
Quote from oldtime:
now how does that compare to, everytime I have 1k, i send it to forex and just trade it until it is gone? oh well
Oldtime, you're simply not understanding. I'm sorry your mind can't handle this. $1000 is not my only money and I don't see the point of putting more than $1000 at a time in my forex account. I am only risking what I am prepared to lose and I trade accordingly. The fact that you risk only 3% of your account, for example, on a trade is absolutely identical to what I am doing. The difference is however that you leave the other 97% in your trading account. I don't. I leave only enough in my trading account to service that 3%. I make longer term trades.
Trade until its gone? Sure, why not? In the meantime, I will have pulled a lot more in profit out of the account than $1000.
maybe the reason I can't comprehend is because when I was a broker I saw a lot of options and commodity traders do exactly what you are doing and I saw how they ended upQuote from SimpleTrades:
Oldtime, you're simply not understanding. I'm sorry your mind can't handle this. $1000 is not my only money and I don't see the point of putting more than $1000 at a time in my forex account. I am only risking what I am prepared to lose and I trade accordingly. The fact that you risk only 3% of your account, for example, on a trade is absolutely identical to what I am doing. The difference is however that you leave the other 97% in your trading account. I don't. I leave only enough in my trading account to service that 3%. I make longer term trades.
Trade until its gone? Sure, why not? In the meantime, I will have pulled a lot more in profit out of the account than $1000.
Quote from oldtime:
maybe the reason I can't comprehend is because when I was a broker I saw a lot of options and commodity traders do exactly what you are doing and I saw how they ended up
That's because most behave like Marketsurfer behaved. They win big; spend big; and its gone. I am saving and investing everything I win. This will continue whether I am earning $50/trade or $5000/trade.
20 round trades now in 2013. 87% return all saved, trading account still has $1054.40
pick a number, any number, let's say 10% of total liquid net worth and commit it to trading
and that is how much money you have to trade for the rest of your life
if it doesn't work out, you tried and you failed, and you don't throw any good money after bad
if it works out, that trading account will be a lot more than 10%
in my case, it ended up darn near 100%
(actually, it took me a long time to put together a 30k trading account, and by then I had another 30k in my IRA)
when I started trading full time, no more earned income to contribute to the IRA
one of the larger mistakes I made in life was liquidating the IRA and paying all the taxes to pay off a divorce
because oh how in love I was with the trading account at the time and I didn't want to touch it
I manage a little money for friends and family (for free) and they all have IRA's, man that is nice, make a change anytime, no taxes.
trading is a little more serious than just being a good guesser
I just lucked out with forex and got on the right side of some very big trades before I knew what I was doing
I wouldn't put those same trades on now that I have little more knowledge
making a small business out of forex is quite enjoyable to me
athough most days I think it is going to be the death of me
and that is how much money you have to trade for the rest of your life
if it doesn't work out, you tried and you failed, and you don't throw any good money after bad
if it works out, that trading account will be a lot more than 10%
in my case, it ended up darn near 100%
(actually, it took me a long time to put together a 30k trading account, and by then I had another 30k in my IRA)
when I started trading full time, no more earned income to contribute to the IRA
one of the larger mistakes I made in life was liquidating the IRA and paying all the taxes to pay off a divorce
because oh how in love I was with the trading account at the time and I didn't want to touch it
I manage a little money for friends and family (for free) and they all have IRA's, man that is nice, make a change anytime, no taxes.
trading is a little more serious than just being a good guesser
I just lucked out with forex and got on the right side of some very big trades before I knew what I was doing
I wouldn't put those same trades on now that I have little more knowledge
making a small business out of forex is quite enjoyable to me
athough most days I think it is going to be the death of me