how did you do when first started trading

I started trading in 1993, trying to short my own employer's stock.

No inside knowledge. No technical analysis. Just "Hey, look how high it is! It doesn't belong up there! I'll short it and make money."

But I wasn't content to do that alone. I also would look in the newspaper for stocks trading under $3, with the assumption that "All they have to do is come up $3 in value, and I'll double my money!"

I didn't need to look up what the companies did, or their financial condition. After all, companies rarely go out of business, right??

Looking back on those days, I can't believe I didn't blow up the account. :) But somehow, I managed to finish even for the year, in spite of the results of such ignorant decision making.

And I even made money in 1994 and 1995. But by 1996, I put it all in mutuals, since I realized the bubble economy was rising faster than my ability to trade.

I decided to try trading again last autumn, but hopefully I'm older and wiser than 10 years ago.

I'm sure I'm at least one of those! :D
 
Only those with the trading 'gene' can expect to make money in the first several months of trading (this of course excludes the late '90s when any idiot could buy anything and make money).

Do yourself a favor. Start with some education. Visit one of the trading expos and pick a program you like, then post a 'want' ad on Elite, and buy the materials second hand. In the meantime read all the great books on trading.

Also, don't keep all your trading capital in your account at a time. A few bad days can eat it up pretty fast. If you have to start sending the broker checks it will make you reconsider your strategy!

Finally, dig in for the long-term. The market loves to eat rookies.

Cheer,

kp
 
Quote from Marc to Market:

In June of 2002, I blew my entire account ($40K) and also 75% of a $20K loan that my father gave me. I turned that remaining $5K into $50K in a single week flipping Worldcom.
More...

Now that's trading!

BTW, do you still have any of the $50K left? :D

kp
 
Hey Frank
I know how you feel! I papertraded for a year using tradestation.
which I think has to be the best software out there. I sit at the
computer most of the day.I have tried every strategy that you could possibly think of. I t wasn't until I subscribed to www.
intraday trades that I started becoming consistantly profitable
in the stocks. This subscription gave me the confidence to start
trading with money. He charges $99 a month, and shows you
how to trade. not just buy her sell here, he explains every thing in detail. I only needed a month to watch his system. I t is
quite profitable. I t does require a little common sense on your part though. In a subscription service , he can't tell you
whoops! time to get out. You have to develope a feel for the market on your own. Some time you want out before lunch .
some time the end of the day. The system is simple. If a stock
is in a strong uptrend,and takes a one day pullback against
the linear regression with out bending that lg line, buy it
tommorrow morning after it has cleared the 8:40 reversal
period. It should have made a high and has come back to it's own high. There is something magic about this. but wait till it trades
above it's high, this is critical! He likes to use an initial %4 stop.
but I can't do that. I simply watch the 20ma and the 55ma. to
get a feel for the market. no shorter than a 60 minute chart to feel
the trend, and average your pricbars to decide an exit. DON'T
be greedy, if a stock has averaged .40 for the last few bars,
and momentum is slowing, get out! try to trade a basket of
stocks, not just one. this spreads the risk, and leaves you coming
out in the plus just about every day.I am not trying to sell
someones subscription service but I have spent some heavy bucks on courses and none of them have actually taught me how
to trade. for the price , this is reccomended
 
I'll bet you still ware bell bottoms - right? And I'd bet that one of your dreams is to be a regular on American bandstand - right? And my guess is that you drive a '67 VW Bug. How do I know all of these things? Because you seem to be the kind of guy who is always late for the party.

Your bell bottoms will be back in style before a newbie can just show up and turn a buck in the market. It's over, frank123.

Have you not read any of the threads on ET? Yes, a living can still be made day trading stocks - by sharp, experienced traders who really know what they are doing...and even most of them are not having an easy time of it.

Spend the weekend reading all the sad stories on this board. Yes, there are any number of success tales as well,,,but I don't think you will find any two-month wonders. Basically, the people who made it did so in the good old days, learning how to trade when it was not as hard, and then made the adjustment when things got tough.

Now dig deeper. Go back to the "good old days". Make note of the so called winners, and see how many are around today.

Keep your day job. Start sleeping in mornings again. And save the stories about the sheep skin for the panty-waist crowd.

The party's over.
 
Quote from tampa:

I'll bet you still ware bell bottoms - right? And I'd bet that one of your dreams is to be a regular on American bandstand - right? And my guess is that you drive a '67 VW Bug. How do I know all of these things? Because you seem to be the kind of guy who is always late for the party.

Your bell bottoms will be back in style before a newbie can just show up and turn a buck in the market. It's over, frank123.

Have you not read any of the threads on ET? Yes, a living can still be made day trading stocks - by sharp, experienced traders who really know what they are doing...and even most of them are not having an easy time of it.

Spend the weekend reading all the sad stories on this board. Yes, there are any number of success tales as well,,,but I don't think you will find any two-month wonders. Basically, the people who made it did so in the good old days, learning how to trade when it was not as hard, and then made the adjustment when things got tough.

Now dig deeper. Go back to the "good old days". Make note of the so called winners, and see how many are around today.

Keep your day job. Start sleeping in mornings again. And save the stories about the sheep skin for the panty-waist crowd.

The party's over.
More...

FUNNY GUY. FUNNY .THIS IS FUNNY. OH SO TRUE. AND FUNNY :D
 
In my opinion any newbie who enters this business by daytrading is already behind the eightball. The shorter the timeframe, the more you are just swimming in the chop, slapping around trying to stay afloat. It is extremely difficult to succeed, although there are a few talented swimmers who can do it after a lot of failures.

Unless one wants to scalp...which is NOT trading in my opinion...one is much better off pulling back to a wider time horizon and giving trades time to develop. I know it is difficult for many daytraders to understand that if they haven't had the experience. But take it from one who made the transition and finally become consistently profitable.
 
Quote from Marc to Market:



What does any of this have to do with thinking and acting like a trader? Do you even know what scalping is? It's a type of trading that requires very little brain activity. Therefore, you could do it on three hours sleep or even hung over. This may sound ludicrous, but it's 100% true. Since you're a fellow New Yorker, I'm sure you heard the recent story about Yankees Pitcher David Wells pitching his perfect game when he was half drunk and hung over. How's this any different?

And I don't especially appreciate you putting words in my mouth: I never said I have little experience nor did I say I watch the markets 1/2 of the time (the truth is I don't watch the "markets" any of the time). I've been trading since the spring of 2001. In June of 2002, I blew my entire account ($40K) and also 75% of a $20K loan that my father gave me. I turned that remaining $5K into $50K in a single week flipping Worldcom. But you don't believe that either, right?

Marc
More...

I don't have an opinion on that one way or the other. I just don't believe that you make $15g a week, consistently, in 2003 trading stocks on 3 hrs sleep (especially for scalping you need to be very alert) from home with one monitor and a cable modem in a $100 g or whatever it is retail account with 1.5 yrs or so experience. BTW, teamates who played with Wells the day of the perfect game said that he was not drunk at all (and that he apparently has a history of imbelishing or worse-perhaps you two have a lot in common).
 
Quote from lindq:

In my opinion any newbie who enters this business by daytrading is already behind the eightball. The shorter the timeframe, the more you are just swimming in the chop, slapping around trying to stay afloat. It is extremely difficult to succeed, although there are a few talented swimmers who can do it after a lot of failures.

Unless one wants to scalp...which is NOT trading in my opinion...one is much better off pulling back to a wider time horizon and giving trades time to develop. I know it is difficult for many daytraders to understand that if they haven't had the experience. But take it from one who made the transition and finally become consistently profitable.
More...

Its true, especially nowadays, that this is where the best money is. The ranges are bigger, and the commissions are lower.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top