How much income do you need from trading?

chart pig said:
Dude. He has a very good point. Don't belittle it because he is succeeding.
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I'm succeeding too now. I'm trading full time. Its my main job now and I'm doing well. But my point is that I couldn't become successful when I had the psychological pressure of paying my mortgage while learning to trade. You need to be ok with losing money or barely breaking-even and not be desperate to pay the mortgage. While you're learning, the money needs to not matter. Or the psychology kills you. There's a journey a trader makes from losing money, to breaking even, to making a small profit, to making enough to barely live off, to making a comfortable living. And its a difficult journey which is made harder if you've got the psychological pressure of NEEDING money. It won't work while you're learning to trade. The psychology will kill your progress. That's the point I'm making.
 
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reach4thelasers said:
I'm succeeding too now. I'm trading full time. Its my main job now and I'm doing well. But my point is that I couldn't become successful when I had the psychological pressure of paying my mortgage while learning to trade. You need to be ok with losing money or barely breaking-even and not be desperate to pay the mortgage. While you're learning, the money needs to not matter. Or the psychology kills you. There's a journey a trader makes from losing money, to breaking even, to making a small profit, to making enough to barely live off, to making a comfortable living. And its a difficult journey which is made harder if you've got the psychological pressure of NEEDING money. It won't work while you're learning to trade. The psychology will kill your progress. That's the point I'm making.
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We are both new to the site so no need to steal the OP's thread. I agree with your points, they are valid. Each trader is different. Sometimes extreme pressure improves a person's game. IDK his specifics, I was only commenting that each trader's journey is unique. -Trade well.
 
I started the thread mainly because when I transitioned from the wolf mentality of survival, to knowing I can actually make in this game, I started to realize for me at least, definable goals or profit targets seem to work the best to keep my life in balance. Then I started to think about others who are near retirement (not me), who take these huge risks and shoot themselves in the foot. That led me to think that most retail traders are probably better served taking calculated risks. For one it might be targeting a mortgage payment for example, another perhaps a car, these are small things that would go far to help most people. I do not fall into that category myself though, for me, I plan to work upwards eventually. This thread also assumes that you have a reliable trading system already.
 
TheBigShort said:
There is only different classes of poverty my friend. When I was 14 I remeber I would think to myself how can I earn just an extra $100 a month. Have less wants and you will wonder where all this extra money is coming from
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A little different for me. I wanted more and I got a lot more than I initially wanted.
 
reach4thelasers said:
You need to be ok with losing money or barely breaking-even and not be desperate to pay the mortgage. While you're learning, the money needs to not matter. Or the psychology kills you.
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You are correct, and wrong.
If your mind is not on trading -- on the market -- then you will be handicapped by the loss of that portion of your brain not devoted to the task at hand. You are absolutely correct in that.

But if you think that having your bills paid will save you from the Deer-In-The-Headlights apoplexy of a bad market move, you are way, way, way wrong.

There is only one way to come to the market with a mind totally ON the market: mental discipline. Maybe you can do it with training -- the much maligned Simulation path (undertaken by surgeons, soldiers, firefighters, electric grid operators...but laughingly disparaged here on ET as if they know better). Maybe you simply package The Rest Of The World into a small capsule, and go to work. Maybe you've *decided* that your mortgage, groceries, heat, cable.... are all taken care of, and you're now worry-free??? Ugh! That last one is thin ice -- because if you trade long enough, The Unexpected WILL happen, and if you don't have the mental cojones to deal with it? You're sunk. And you're going to "blame" the market/cable-provider/ex-wife/snowstorm/toothache/Trump/.... for what YOU should've been prepared for.

"The psychology kills you..." Wrong wrong wrong. Be prepared. Do your job. Have an exit. Trade your plan. Be responsible to the market, and to your account, or you will disappear in a poof one day. If the rest of the world burns to the ground, keep your mind on the market and your account. Period.

If you find yourself a Deer-In-The-Headlights, blame the guy in the mirror.
 
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