Is a great trader just a trader who finds a great strategy?

Even great strategies will have an inevitable string of drawdowns that mess with the trader's head. Is the strategy broken or just drawdowns? Either case, it affects your confidence.


Good traders know the difference and will have allocated so little % of their total equity that they will ride it out
 
Quote from YeahIknow:

If so could anyone be a great trader? or does it take a lot more besides the strategy?
More...

Strategy is important, but without the proper mindset ( trader psychology ), discipline, and money management you are destined to failure.
 
You can work hard at training your mind to have the right "stuff" to trade successfully but it certainly doesnt hurt to have good genetics when it comes to emotional control.
 
Quote from dandxg:

Strategy is important, but without the proper mindset ( trader psychology ), discipline, and money management you are destined to failure.
More...

But without an edge, the rest is pointless.
The rest can ruin an edge, but edge always comes first.
 
Quote from YeahIknow:
If so could anyone be a great trader? or does it take a lot more besides the strategy?
More...
It takes more than that, it takes brass balls.

563377975_6eca8d6e16.jpg
 
i think the consensus is a great trader needs to have psychology and edge, one that he discovered through hours of screen time.


after all, if a great trader was stuck with a crappy edge trying to squeeze money out of a rock, he really wouldn't be that great of a trader if he didn't realize he had a crappy edge
 
I agree you need an edge. Otherwise you could be the a psychologically gifted trader, who's crap at trading, as they dont have an edge.
 
Geek skills and brass balls probably is better than a slight edge and money management..... why not just get a job in a corporation if you have only a slight edge, at least you would have variety of social contacts...
 
Quote from YeahIknow:

If so could anyone be a great trader? or does it take a lot more besides the strategy?
More...
NO.

There is a popular misconception...
That a trader becomes successful when he "finds a strategy".

Why is this FALSE?

Because...
Any profitable strategy only works for a finite amount of time...
Whether it's days or weeks or months or years.

A great trader has the TALENT + EXPERIENCE + INFRASTRUCTURE...
To keep evolving his strategies...
Coming up with new ones...
And dropping approaches that stop working.

"Staying ahead of the curve"...
Is a lot like crossing a raging river by jumping from rock to rock.

In other words...
You have to come up with 100s and 1000s of good ideas...
Over the course of a career.

This is very, very hard to do in the long run...
Even Specialist Firms loaded with talent and money and connections are worth < $0.10 on the dollar today.

When I see young traders looking for a "holy grail"...
I just shake my head at the futility.

The best thing to do...
Is get a hardcore education in Math, Computers, Engineering, or even Philosophy.
Each of these disciplines FORCES you to think LOGICALLY...
Something Economics or CFA or any business program does NOT do.

If you have a hardcore education...
You will know exactly what I am talking about...
The others will not understand.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top