Mentorship (4th year still not profitable)

[tomorton]

Naturally, the setup worked very fine in that chart, but if someone have payed a bit attention woud have noted that the mistical setup was in fact a moving average crossover and any trend follower system would haver worked as well.
The same works for systems that uses the "mean reversion strategy".

This is such a perceptive post, beyond essential to read and digest.

All the fuss and argument over whether MA cross-over strategies work or whether double tops and head-and-shoulders and pin bars work and whether the Turtle system works any more - its all BS. It serves no purpose except to inflate the misplaced emphasis on entry patterns and to bolster the impression that there is an infinite number of systems and if only we could find the right one then that would stop us losing.

In fact almost any system that truly follows trends and almost any system that truly acknowledges reversals will work. What stops then being profitable is either inconsistent application by the trader or the laborious complications that vendors insert to make clients think they are getting something of real and unique value.

 

[NeoTrader]

Curious, the trading books became more useful for me just when I started to search for flaws in the systems or in the way the content is presented.
A thing that particularly makes me laugh is when some pundit talks about his infallible system and you read just to find that the infallible system is some variation of a well-know trend follower
Recently, I was watching a webinar from the guy that suposedly introduced the Ichimoku Clouds in Brazil (I'm from Brazil) and he was tallking about all the japanese wisdom and the mistic behind the Ichimoku and then he shows a setup (in a chart from one day that a stock went up from the open to the close, without large pullbacks).
Naturally, the setup worked very fine in that chart, but if someone have payed a bit attention woud have noted that the mistical setup was in fact a moving average crossover and any trend follower system would haver worked as well.
The same works for systems that uses the "mean reversion strategy".
The problem with me the time I read many books and watched many webinars is that I renewed my hopes that with that new knowledge I would be able to predict the market future. And hopes is a thing that the market is used to punish.

"A esperança é a última que morre!" Without it, we do nothing... I think the key thing is IN WHAT this hope is based.

 

[themickey]

As other members mention here. The best things right now it to stop everything for a while. I know it is hard but the more we try at this point the more we dig our hole. This is a kind of addiction that is closely related to gambling addiction. I know it doesn't sound sexy at the moment but most trader present those sign.

Life is wonderful, don't let greed suck your life. Try for 7 days to do one special actions for someone else like buy a special gift to someone you know, help someone in the street, give food to someone who is starving, any actions that is not related to yourself interest. It will help to recover quickly and learning the right way what you need to learn.

Best of luck my friend.

Kind of agree with this but very hard to do for them as losing traders often try too hard by participating at the expense of being grounded and becoming less self absorbed.
There is a spiritual element to trading, probably would make for an ideal life school for troubled teenagers and dysfunctional adults.

 

[Humpy]

Something that rather stuck in my mind of all the bull and bluster I have read over the years is how Rockefellar gave 10% of his earnings to his local church to use for the local poor etc. I expect he was popular guy when he returned.

 

[just21]

They didn’t even know that. I would pass on the trade. They would make a quick 5 grand and go home

That's what Tom Baldwin did in the treasury bond futures just before the figure came out. He would take the largest orders.

 

[just21]

To work prop, do you need to be on their premises to trade?

Www.towertradinggroup.com Dublin office are looking for remote futures traders.

 

[timdug]

You sure that the indexes you mentioned are mean reverting? If you can find a true mean reverting series with low enough cost, you can make lots of $$$

Added to this, if you find 2 products that are correlated by 0.85 or more- you can spread trade those two products when they are on extremes of their correlation. So essentially when the correlation is out of whack by -2.5 standard deviations- buy one and sell the other.

I think if you have something that back tests on a product well over 3 years- then trade that strategy manually on that one product.
You will never find a stray that works across more than 3 products all the time.
I think you have probably found some good stuff but probably didn’t know when you had found it and what you should have done with it when you found it.
Pm me and we can have a chat over Skype.

 

[timdug]

I love it when people bring out the 90% of traders fail stat. For 2 reasons.
1. Because it’s true and is more like 95%.
2. Because the 5% that make it are in the 5% because they goose to be. The 95% of failures chose to give up.

So when you say to yourself- fuck it- I tried but I’m not able to do it- you are the only person saying you can’t do it.
If you are listening to others- then you are badly supported in Your life goals.
If you have personal friends and family that believe in you and who are willing to support your goals- then you are already becoming part of the 5%. If you blow up 2 accounts and learn from your mistakes- you should start a third.

Quitters (the95%) all have one thing in commom- the decide to quit. The decide to not try different paths, the decide not to find a mentor, not to apply to a prop firm trainee program. They decide not to get up and trade the early morning opens.

You'll find many successful traders say it's taken them well over a decade to the achieve their desired results. You should already know this if you were doing actual due diligence and research on this field and performance results.



I'm sure all of us would have LOVED to have a successful mentor to help show the way. The reality is they have ZERO reason to spend their time helping you, when they have already paid their dues in years of toiling for a working method.




Are you listening to yourself? Why on Earth would anyone trust a stranger on the net with information gained only by blood, sweat, and many tears? Anyone being given any special info would be all the more likely to spill the beans since they didn't have to go through the time and pain of developing it.



That means nothing to a successful trader who has already put in the work- it's assumed you already are putting in crazy hours to learn.




A key aspect of those who succeed is having persistence- sticking with learning regardless of the number of failures experienced. You are basically throwing in the towel and pleading for help - that's a bad sign.

Sacrificing your life? Again are you listening to what you're saying- what good is learning how to trade if it comes at the cost of your life? That reeks of emotional desperation. Trading is not for everyone and at some point you either succeed, or move on to greener fields.

You haven't even considered what you would give in return. Willingness to succeed? That would barely work in a real job interview. If it took you 15 long years to figure out how to trade, what could someone offer you to have you spend time as a tutor teaching them and potentially compromising your own system?

The key is figuring out a "generic" system that can be tailored for the current market that can deal with market changes- not some "holy grail" static system that aces all back testing. You need to have leaps of intuition and I think some luck with careful observation to spot recurring natural patterns of support and resistance that you can form your system around.

Look at the stats- over 90% of those who try don't succeed. Either you can beat the odds and make it on your own, or if lucky, you have a relative/friend who might assist in guiding you. You can't expect a stranger to help teach you what cost them so much of their own personal sacrifice.

 

[timdug]

Totally agree- a good mentor will not want any money.
Don’t fall for the slate of retail trading courses. That said- there are some GREAT programs out there.
The Amplify Trading 3 month/9 week program is exceptional for technical and fundamental analysis, trading psychology and entry and exit strategies.

1. Yes... most mentors for hire are mostly posers and hustlers.

2. Most winning traders I know had mentors and allies along the way.

I respect your views and I am not going to go back and forth on this

The poster asking for help has been given quite a few ideas to consider

 

[timdug]

I think you are already now moving into the out of the 90% and into the 10%.
Keep the faith.

Thank you all for taking your time to reply. Sorry for not replying earlier but I've every single post and truly appreciate it. I am talking to a few members.
I am beyond thankful that they help me knowing I can give nothing in return and only become their competition (which I hope to!).

I have sent a few prop firms e-mails and will continue to learn as suggested, also picked up a few books, and lots ideas which I will test and study one by one. I will keep everyone posted on my journey and I will make it

Thank you all.