Hitting new lows...

dsq · Mar 6, 2008

"I dont really know what is the cause of this."

Fear...shorting is as easy or easier than buying but most people cant get their mind around it.When you see stocks explode up in 5mins you know they will pull back on that move.We all see this when we are long a stock that is rallying nicely and we think to ourselves 'wow,i should sell now cuz i know its gonna pullback a little on this upmove'.However we rarely pay heed to that voice and our thoughts are soon confirmed.

Stocks also drop faster than they rise.Try shorting just 50 shares of something.

pavlov0032 · Mar 6, 2008

how you expect to have wining long positions in a bear market?

should shorted all the subprime and went long on metals and energy.

Quote from IzzyfoShizzy:

After being up about 11% for 2007, i am down an unbelievable 21% as of now. and all of the bad trades that caused this happened in virtually one week. this market is eating me alive and i have no idea what the hell to do next.

i was considering making some riskier moves and putting all of my money into one stock at a time and hoping to climb my way back up that way. however, the only thing holding me back is the fear that i will make another damn bad trade which will cause me to fall even deeper.

i badly need some advice or inspiration. i dont want to quit. i lost alot of money and im pissed... but i want to use that anger and make it all back.

IzzyfoShizzy · Mar 6, 2008

Quote from pavlov0032:

how you expect to have wining long positions in a bear market?

should shorted all the subprime and went long on metals and energy.

its easy to look back and see what i should have done differently, but theres nothing i can do about that now. i need to figure out what i should do starting tomorrow.

StockApprentice · Mar 7, 2008

Quote from IzzyfoShizzy:

its easy to look back and see what i should have done differently, but theres nothing i can do about that now. i need to figure out what i should do starting tomorrow.

All cycles take much longer to unravel than we expect... or at least that's been my experience. I fully expected the market to collapse at the beginning of last year. I reasoned that people couldn't be foolish enough to continue buying in the face of an obvious recession. My timing was wrong... and actually I have yet to be proven correct.

My point? There are plenty of opportunities to short if you want them. If you don't know how, or you don't know alternative ways to make money when the market falls (ie: put options, futures) then you should stop trading and force yourself to learn for the next year. Otherwise, you'll just be throwing your money away.

I'm not being an ass. I have little money and have learned this recommendation the hard way. PATIENCE is a virtue that is difficult.

IzzyfoShizzy · Mar 7, 2008

Quote from StockApprentice:

If you don't know how, or you don't know alternative ways to make money when the market falls (ie: put options, futures) then you should stop trading and force yourself to learn for the next year. Otherwise, you'll just be throwing your money away.

I'm not being an ass. I have little money and have learned this recommendation the hard way. PATIENCE is a virtue that is difficult.

What better way to really learn and understand it than through real experience?

pavlov0032 · Mar 7, 2008

Quote from IzzyfoShizzy:

its easy to look back and see what i should have done differently, but theres nothing i can do about that now. i need to figure out what i should do starting tomorrow.

buy gold,silver, copper <comodities/meta;s> futures, or gold ETF GLD , nat gas mini and just sit on them.

StockApprentice · Mar 7, 2008

Quote from IzzyfoShizzy:

What better way to really learn and understand it than through real experience?

I actually agree... and giving you my recommendation. There is nothing like real experience... but expect to pay for it.. and dearly.

Even if you're like me, and only blow out a couple of times (rather than losing more than your account) then you still have significant opportunity costs. For me, it's hard to be sitting in a small apartment during the summer, rarely going out to eat, or doing what many other youngsters my age are doing. My friends? Well, they have expensive cars, decent houses, etc... me? not hardly a cent to my name.

Yep. I learned a lot all right... a lot of what not to do. Do I know how to make money? Maybe.. if I could only control myself and narrow my focus.. and stop thinking about this.. and that.. and over analyzing.... maybe I'd make money.

Or maybe I wouldn't. The question is, would you rather keep the money you have and learn as much as you can? Or would you rather piss it away trying to be a one in a hundred chance?

Take the time, learn. Learn how to manage risk to the utmost degree. Learn how to manage yourself. That will be your holy grail.

Me, I'd rather piss it away... cus I never think I'm going to lose the money. I always think the gain is greater than the potential for loss. I always think I can cut my losses. The markets can be as addicting as any casino.

With all of the money I've pissed away or made for my broker I could be sitting pretty... and probably better than most of my friends... but nope.. it was 'tuition'.. a return on investment I'll probably never be able to claim.

Maybe one day I'll be wealthy and look back on these 7 years as my learning years... then again, I might continue on this path indefinitely.

ammo · Mar 7, 2008

"ignorance of risk soon leads to failure"

no matter how well you pick em,you have to define the risk, u didn't buy the wrong stocks, they were losing trades that you didn't manage properly, take a few days off and get your head straight,thats the most important tool in the shed

Apsll · Mar 7, 2008

I am new to this forum, but I am successfully trading this bear market with a bounce strategy that I designed to scan for stocks that are trending down but are geting ready for a bounce.

You can do this by searching for volume anomalies and wait for the price to react. This is a very short term approach and could require some day trading.

Just trying to help break your losing streak.

IzzyfoShizzy · Mar 25, 2008

just want to keep you guys updated on whats going on. I just made back half of all my losses this year today. Thats right, all in just one day. It may have been luck, but at this point i dont care. My confidence is back, hopefully I will continue to inch higher and get out of the red soon.

I shorted BGP monday afternoon near its high, and covered today near its low.

I also bought SEED a couple days ago and sold it at about a 40% profit.

Thanks to all of your advice about money management, I got out of these trades at the right times and locked in my profits. Thanks alot guys. Hopefully I can continue to absorb knowledge from you ETers out there.