Quote from Get In Get Out:
Is trading the mini sps your only source of income for the past 3 years? Also wanted to know how much you originally started with 3 years ago? What is a good broker and trading platform to use? Does a trader watch the streaming s&p mini chart all day non-stop from 9:30-4:00PM all day long? Do u scalp 1 to 2 points all day? New at this and trying to get the right answers...Thanx
I understand why you're asking these questions. Still--the only "right" answer you're going to get is the one you find out for yourself, otherwise you'll waste a lot of time getting whipsawed between different idealogies, methods and viewpoints.
Being told that scalping is stupid or that it's the only way to go is already confusing enough for a newbie, but the worst thing you can do, THE WORST, is hitch on to some advertised method here and follow along...looking for someone else to provide strict rules for entries, exits and management. People waste years doing this.
As the other poster said:
1) Even though most of the stuff you read will be useless, read as much as you can because there are gems hidden in every few hundred pages and threads.
2) Open an account and play with the simulator. EXPERIMENT AND SEE WHAT'S RIGHT FOR YOU. You need to actually experience gunning for 1-2 points multiple times a day, and then trying to hold for intraday swings. Feel the difference in psychology and risk management.
3) Put in the screen time. If you're young and free of responsibilities, I strongly recommend you do this full-time. Get an evening job at a call center or a restaurant or whatever. While you're practicing, save up $15k and then start trading with 1-2 contracts real money.
Again--I understand that you're trying to start on the best foot possible. The best thing you can do is read as much as you can while practicing. That's all.
You can get a free top-notch simulator from Mirus Futures.