I'm 21 years old, couldn't enter University, planning to trade full-time.

[tradingcomputer]

I am a non-firm trained newbie retail trader. I am thinking to quit my day job and do trading full time... need to reconsider my plan after reading this post.

If you are not educated in higher math, computers, or stats-- the ONLY way to make it is to joun a prop firm that will provide leverage and teach edges. If you are educated, you can join hedge funds , institutions, etc and learn under a mentor if they think u are a smart cookie.

With the prop firm u may have to out up first loss capital, but its way smarter than the stupid DIY 10,000 hour way -- which just ends up making you poor and desperate friendless and angry. unless u get lucky.

EVERY verified succesful trader on elite worked for a firm first or still did. No one DIYd with evidence-- lots of keyboard cowboys pretenders and stealth vendors trying to convince you otherwise but after 13 years on this forum, i have never seen evidence of a non firm trained trader ever being succesful.

 

[marketsurfer]

I am a non-firm trained newbie retail trader. I am thinking to quit my day job and do trading full time... need to reconsider my plan after reading this post.

I don't mean to discourage u. Its just not smart to quit unless u have true edge and plenty of capital.( yours or firm) OR another source of income.

Wait until you prove yourself prior to quitting your job. I retired from my job at 27 to trade AND run my business. So before you quit develop other sources of income then u should be ok. Good luck!

 

[d08]

I am a non-firm trained newbie retail trader. I am thinking to quit my day job and do trading full time... need to reconsider my plan after reading this post.

Your main problem is focusing on what others, who you don't know at all, are telling you. There's a certain amount of stubbornness needed to get through the hard times and because you lack this, I side with marketsurfer on this.
I got a lot of doubt and sarcasm when I was starting, I'm glad I didn't value the opinion of those people.

 

[tradingcomputer]

I don't mean to discourage u. Its just not smart to quit unless u have true edge and plenty of capital.( yours or firm) OR another source of income.

Wait until you prove yourself prior to quitting your job. I retired from my job at 27 to trade AND run my business. So before you quit develop other sources of income then u should be ok. Good luck!

Thanks, yeah, agreed with you. It is not wise to add more pressure if I don't have any other income source. It just the amount of work required to start an algorithmic trading system is enormous, it is much more than full time work. I can do this now as I am on annual leave during Xmas break.

Your main problem is focusing on what others, who you don't know at all, are telling you. There's a certain amount of stubbornness needed to get through the hard times and because you lack this, I side with marketsurfer on this.
I got a lot of doubt and sarcasm when I was starting, I'm glad I didn't value the opinion of those people.

Thanks for your encouragement, I just need to balance the risk. It is a lot of things to learn, especially around trading knowledge. And a lot of work before having an automated system running (and profitable). I have been developing this algo trading for a few months.

 

[lawrence-lugar]

Your main problem is focusing on what others, who you don't know at all, are telling you.
I got a lot of doubt and sarcasm when I was starting, I'm glad I didn't value the opinion of those people.

I agree d08,
Although I do value the opinions and advice of others when I first started....my best lessons where ultimately gained from my own adventures/experience.

 

[d08]

Thanks for your encouragement, I just need to balance the risk. It is a lot of things to learn, especially around trading knowledge. And a lot of work before having an automated system running (and profitable). I have been developing this algo trading for a few months.

Algos come and algos go, you can't rely on just one algo as your trading career. There have been others on ET who did this and they do regret it now.

As for working while trading, it's quite unlikely to be successful. Do you hear about professional sports people who are working 9-5 jobs and running up and down the court in the evening?
I'm not suggesting you quite your job without having any savings or a solid trading plan but once you have both, you should focus on one thing only.

 

[Vindago]

Hmmm, before you quit your job, I would suggest you gain some experience (at least a couple of years, yes becoming a trader takes time...), prove that you can be consistently profitable and build up enough capital to be able to live some time without the need to earn money trading.

What aspiring traders need to understand is that it takes time and more time to figure thing out about trading and that if you are not patient you will never make it. IMHO

VO

 

[tradingcomputer]

I agree d08,
Although I do value the opinions and advice of others when I first started....my best lessons where ultimately gained from my own adventures/experience.

Yeah, only yourself understand your strength and weakness, so you can navigate with focus to improve your weakness by learning and by experience.

Algos come and algos go, you can't rely on just one algo as your trading career. There have been others on ET who did this and they do regret it now.

As for working while trading, it's quite unlikely to be successful. Do you hear about professional sports people who are working 9-5 jobs and running up and down the court in the evening?
I'm not suggesting you quite your job without having any savings or a solid trading plan but once you have both, you should focus on one thing only.

It is not just one algo, multiple algos that can adapt by themselves.

I believe I have a reasonably sound plan, details in the thread below, not solid yet, once it is proven working, then I am ready to do it full time.
http://www.elitetrader.com/et/index...titative-analysis-vs-machine-learning.296651/

Hmmm, before you quit your job, I would suggest you gain some experience (at least a couple of years, yes becoming a trader takes time...), prove that you can be consistently profitable and build up enough capital to be able to live some time without the need to earn money trading.

What aspiring traders need to understand is that it takes time and more time to figure thing out about trading and that if you are not patient you will never make it. IMHO

VO

It is just hard to progress quick if doing it part time. 2 to 4 hours per day, very slowly progressing.