I Have Done It Again

Quote from woundedknee:

Are you saying Mark Douglas, the trading shrink, had to file bankruptcy?
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Douglas isn't a shrink.

He's a guy who was a broker, and trader, who fucked up. In the process he did a good job of identifying the way fear screws up traders. Not being at all scientific he does a poorer job of identifying how one should fix the issues.
 
The interesting thing about this story was the ability to build up followed by the collapse.

OP, why do you think you collapsed? Why were you able to build the money in the first place? What was the difference? Could you operate in one mode and avoid slipping into the other?
 
Trading has many components. Every trader has different strengths and weaknesses
eg. some traders are alot better than others at identifying resistance/support. Other traders are alot better than other traders, at knowing when to take partial profits


Have you thought of creating a trading team, where you have another trader keeping an eye on your discipline, as you clearly have the gift of making money.
 
I know this sounds crazy, but there's a GREAT section in the book Super Systems II, the second book in the texas hold 'em series by Doyle Brunson.

Read the section by Mike "Crazy Man" Caro. There are many psychological issues in poker that are VERY APLICABLE to trading. The ability to see the game as one continuous event through time, and the fact that there is ALWAYS another hand coming is CRITICAL!

The same applies in trading. The ability to see the big picture and proceed from there is ESSENTIAL.

Great post by optioncoach also. Trading is a dangerous game for the gambler, and there are many that consider themselves traders that are doing nothing more than gambling.

I have always said, in the end trading is a game of knowing yourself. You will find things out about yourself (if you survive long enough) that you never knew. In my opinion trading is as much a reality of self-actualization/enlightenment as anything else.

Time in the trade is the greatest teacher; but the student must be open to the experience and must survive long enough to learn the lesson.

O.P. obviously didn't have the last set of CRITICAL skills and hence his/her demise. (if the story is true, regarless it's still a good one that many can learn from)

Know thyself, that's the skill that pays the bills.

Good Luck!
 
Quote from abaker:

Have you thought of creating a trading team, where you have another trader keeping an eye on your discipline, as you clearly have the gift of making money.
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No one has the gift of making UNDUE profits without taking UNDUE risks.
 
One of my rules in my business which I had to learn the hard way is this. People don't change. And what was even harder to learn is I don't change. Which simply means if someone screwed up a job in the past they will probably screw up in the future, if they were excellent in the past they will probably be excellent in the future. It's hard enough to do this when working with other people but it's damn hard when working with yourself or at least it has been with me.
I know there are a thousand examples of people changing but there are billions of examples of people staying/doing the same.
 
Without knowing your trading details and preferred styles and methods, on the face of it, based on the March 1st to April timeframe you mentioned, I would say you are better at, and prefer being short, but you may have kept getting short, too soon and too large a position size, into the rally.

In short, you may have to consider the merits of 'changing gears' to allow for differing market conditions, ie, one size does not fit all.

Also, if you prefer to be short, learn to recognize when to step-aside and wait for the market to be in a condition that is more conducive for shorting.

Anyhow, amazing run...repeat part 'A', side-step part 'B'. Or possibly even reverse part 'B'.
 
it definitely sounds like you were gambling. to take 25K to 235K is phenomenal, thats a 840% return. and then to lose it all definitely means gambling. You probably risked too much one or two trades.
why the fuck would you not be carefull when you are up that much? With those kind of returns, you could have other people begging you to trade with their money. market has been going up since then, you probably got out too fast.

can you tell me which stock or stocks did this to you. and how much money you had in each?
 
There is a way not to trade but still make 100%-risk-free money from trading.

Just teach me your trading methods, and if I use them and make money, I promise you 10% of what I earn using your methods!
 
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