Yes to a point, and let me give you a hint, it has nothing to do with charts.
Maverick74 and marketsurfer's TopstepTrader Combine (daily trade reports and journal)
- Thread starter TST_Hoag
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Yes to a point, and let me give you a hint, it has nothing to do with charts.
I don't want to populate this thread with off-topic discussion, but edges don't exist into perpetuity. There is no static edge unless you are a liquidity provider or something of that nature. Everyone has to adapt and use their experience to make judgement calls. Experience is only gained through thousands of hour of concentrated effort. Even if you are automated, there is an art to idea generation, adaptation, execution. This is the craft!
There aren't any shortcuts bro! No excuses for being lazy either
Quote from Shanb:
I don't want to populate this thread with off-topic discussion, but edges don't exist into perpetuity. There is no static edge unless you are a liquidity provider or something of that nature. Everyone has to adapt and use their experience to make judgement calls. Experience is only gained through thousands of hour of concentrated effort. Even if you are automated, there is an art to idea generation, adaptation, execution. This is the craft!
There aren't any shortcuts bro! No excuses for being lazy either
I don't disagree. Fixed system edges are doomed to fail. I do see your point, thanks for explaining it in a clear fashion, surf
Quote from Shanb:
I don't want to populate this thread with off-topic discussion, but edges don't exist into perpetuity. There is no static edge unless you are a liquidity provider or something of that nature. Everyone has to adapt and use their experience to make judgement calls. Experience is only gained through thousands of hour of concentrated effort. Even if you are automated, there is an art to idea generation, adaptation, execution. This is the craft!
There aren't any shortcuts bro! No excuses for being lazy either
way too late for off-topic avoidance... and the mods will clear the clutter if they see fit
The only constant in all market action from the beginning of time until now and forever until the end is this: price contracts, and expands. It does so in predictable, measureable fashion amidst the otherwise random noise.
Now, using that constant market behavior and building an edge from it is the only basis for consistent edge forever. Learning to navigate the endless market cycles of low, medium and high volatility is where 10,000+ hours of experience comes into effect.
This was real money Surf. It says for last week my win% overall was 80%. However, I will need to concentrate on performance for the combine and go for longer targets if I want to meet my goal.
Quote from marketsurfer:
I am expecting 100% wins from that joker. He rarely loses, just ask him.
surf
Adapting to a set of rules to pass a 10 day sim test may not accurately reflect how one will trade in a live account. Trading habits (good and bad) develop over time. Given the current parameters, austinp is facing the same predicament as the prior three CL traders who eventually got funded by passing the combine on the final day. However, to say that one develops "bad trading habits that they will never get rid of" by taking a 10 day sim test is an overstatement. By that logic, the prior CL traders should have blown out their daily risk by now in the live combine, especially after "gunning the close" on their final day of sim.
The current solution already addressed is the custom combine, whereby a trader lowers their required P&L amount by adding to another criteria of the performance metrics. (Example, reduced overall P&L in exchange for a greater overall number of winning day %).
Regarding time limits, Patak responded on the Q&A thread. The two points were to either remove the time limit, or to allow traders to enter positions on every available trading day within their respective combines, thus maximizing the amount of days one can trade during the combine to either reduce their net average and/or work their way out of a draw.
Here's the quote:
Well, my youtube channel has 98 live-trading videos recorded in real-time for the past 1.5 years and my blog has 3+ years of several hundred posts with several thousand chart captures thru that time. I'd say my overall style of trading won't be permanently changed by this brief, ten-day combine effort
With six sessions left remaining, I see three possible outcomes:
#1: Flame out, bomb out and dead in the water
#2: Meet all qualifications
#3: Meet some qualifications, invited to repeat the process
At this time I'm not going to look past or think beyond the next six sessions of operation. Then I'll comment further at the end. Meanwhile, I have a specific plan of operation that I'll execute every day.
I squandered two gravy sessions in CL getting my feet under me and worked too hard and not smart in the remaining two congestive sessions. Spent some bits of time today getting my charts and T4 platform set for accuracy.
I'm going to use 2 different trade ladders for order entry... one ladder for trade orders with OCO stops at fill and one ladder for stop order adjustments. That will remove the thinking part in fast tapes and prevent most if not all keystroke errors.
Now it's simply time to execute. That's it. Either I adhere to operating a structured plan or I fail to. We'll see what happens at the end.
I will say I'm impressed with the manner in which MP seems willing to work with aspiring traders in honest effort to move them from demo to live mode. Everything I've seen and read so far about customization, I like. Obviously the bar for entry cannot be laid flat on the ground for everyone who can fog a mirror to step over. The idea that barriers of entry can be arranged in different ways shows me sincerity in the offer to work with traders funded.
I agree that outright trading is basically trading market momentum (inertia), but there are options to manage trades. For example if we risk 5 and it moves 5 ITM, we can move stop to b/e and have no risk to initial capital anymore, but potentially unlimited upside.
Having said that (for the sake of objectivity) I mostly scalp momentum in FX myself.