In my opinion, trading is one of the only few ways left to thrive in this world.

Quote from maxpi:

The world economy should revive, it nearly always does. Trading is a great option in life but it does not lead to emotional maturity, quite the opposite probably. It might be best to pursue a career, work with [and against] people, mature and establish yourself, but I would never, ever, stop studying trading. Trading is the ultimate ace in the hole, just make sure you have the capital and you have the skill and you won't have to be so dependent on super-fickle employment... and remember WIN stands for Work is Nonprofit...

The only way to succeed in trading, is actually control of emotional levels of your own AND recognition of the other person's emotions taking your trade.
The time to trade is the time your opponent is facepalming and crying home to his wife reciting "At least I have 2 kids and a loving wife"

If your emotions are not in check, u'd be crying with him without a family except 1 sick parrot.
 
Quote from ammo:

if you are a trader,your biggest tool is your brain, and your biggest obstacle,your ego,OP should start figuring how to squelch it as soon as possible,number one reason for a traders failure is holding a losing position, 99% of the time, that was the ego overriding the brain


Incorrect, Sir! :) :)


Your biggest tool is your BALLS and the torpedo they afterburn -

Your biggest obstacle is the HERD's deafening "you can't"

This is when you TAKE THE SWING=SHOT and enter the lacondan jungle's sole dulcet cave ALONE

put a different way, "take the swing=shot when the brain says NO, the heart says NO but your soul demands it!"

------------------------------------------

the plight of the new trader ... :)

Out on the highways and the by-ways all alone
I'm still searching for, searching for my home
Up in the morning, up in the morning out on the road
And my head is aching and my hands are cold
And I'm looking for the silver lining, silver lining in the clouds
And I'm searching for and
I'm searching for the philosophers stone
And it's a hard road, Its a hard road daddy-o
When my job is turning lead into gold

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7YL5n_GA_c&feature=related
 
Quote from d-rock1080:

I have found the biggest roadblock for me is lack of capital. In my opinion, the amount of money in an account should not matter and should never change the strategic approach. For example, the amount invested per trade should be a % of total assets. Leverage should never change with total assets and neither should stops, etc. I am making money, but with such a small account I think there is a psychological barrier. You should know what I am talking about if you started with a small account.

Undercapitalization is IMO a big reason why traders fail - but maybe not in the way you mean.

The problem is somebody starting out with a $10k account and a few months (or a year at the outside) of living expenses saved up, thinking that all they have to do is learn to use the software, give it a month or two to get up to speed and start making 500% a year at once. Most of these will go broke and drop out around years 2-3, before conquering the learning curve...

If you are genuinely a good trader, lack of capital shouldn't be a problem. Use a $500-per-car margin broker for a while to build a bankroll, or borrow money from family, or get a few years of audited returns, start a fund/commodity pool and attract investor capital. I bet you could even find seed money on this site if you've got the audited track record to back you up, or join a prop firm. Of course the problem is that you have to know how to trade before these doors open.
 
Quote from d-rock1080:

"I have found the biggest roadblock for me is lack of capital. In my opinion, the amount of money in an account should not matter and should never change the strategic approach. For example, the amount invested per trade should be a % of total assets. Leverage should never change with total assets and neither should stops, etc. I am making money, but with such a small account I think there is a psychological barrier. You should know what I am talking about if you started with a small account."


"Today was another milestone. I am now up over 100% from $700 a few weeks ago." (Jinxu)


If you can really have a good trading system and risk management, you can build your fortune slowly. Jinxu post his trades everyday recently and you can see he is quite successful this couple weeks when the market was actually not quite easy to trade with. If he can keep doing like this without big DD, imagine how soon he can reach his 10K which would provide a much bigger buffer for his future success to the 100K and beyond.
Bottom line is that you find/develop/invent a robust/solid/profitable strategy/system and have a conservative risk/money management.
 
It's a tough call due to all the reasons mentioned by the non-assholes. But a smart guy like you can do it, sure. Just takes a great deal of time and patience and it will cost you some money. I would, if I were a young guy again, try and keep your options open and work with people using your degree skills. Try and build on what you've been studying. I know it's a tough world but so is trading. Meanwhile I'd trade/ watch the markets during the night, looking at european futures (DAX, STOXX 50 FTSE etc )or US out of regular hours: Dow, S&P. Possibly forex. Or even asian markets as they will only get bigger. Keep your costs down, put the hours in and save some money and I'm sure you'll crack it. Good luck.
 
Your comments about how unfair the world is for the 'normal' guys is a joke compared how the world looked in the old times.

It just states how green and unprepared you are for the battle. You know nothing. We're all hunters, we just don't hunt animals anymore, we hunt money. You will just have to prove in life that you can hunt better than somebody else. Wining how unfair the economy is isn't going to help you. European companies released stunning numbers last weeks and China's growth is still skyrocketing (for the moment). While you wine and stand on the sideline, somebody else takes the opportunity and makes it.

You need to get your act together and do something about your thinking. If not you will end up frustrated, bitter, having almost no assets, no fun and a useless wasted life.

Why ? Because you blamed it on the economy.
 
"In my opinion, trading is one of the only few ways left to thrive in this world."


I concur.....one of the better "portable empire" careers left in this world! :cool:
 
Quote from TradeMetal:

Your comments about how unfair the world is for the 'normal' guys is a joke compared how the world looked in the old times.

It just states how green and unprepared you are for the battle. You know nothing. We're all hunters, we just don't hunt animals anymore, we hunt money. You will just have to prove in life that you can hunt better than somebody else. Wining how unfair the economy is isn't going to help you. European companies released stunning numbers last weeks and China's growth is still skyrocketing (for the moment). While you wine and stand on the sideline, somebody else takes the opportunity and makes it.

You need to get your act together and do something about your thinking. If not you will end up frustrated, bitter, having almost no assets, no fun and a useless wasted life.

Why ? Because you blamed it on the economy.

maybe you did mean wine rather than whine but I don't think you know the poster that well.
 
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