motely fool says 95% onfday traders out in 6 months

[KevinK]

Quote from ElectricSavant:

lol..Kevin knows me and my edits and how I like to trade...ohhh too funny. May I add that the observant qualities that Kevin display's is another mark of a good trader....

 

[newguy1]

I agree.

Quote from FuturesTrader71:

I believe that statement and all others like it are vague and lead to easy misinterpretation. The word "trader" implies many things and cannot be statistically represented by one number. I also disagree with a lot of Fool information and see them as salesmen more than "traders" or "investors".

I think when this subject is being discussed, it would serve the audience better to specify what "trader" they are referring to. I learned in a prop shop where that statistic doesn't stand. It was more like 7 of 10 "traders" make it in the first few years. "Traders" in this case means someone who has made the conscious decision to be or become a professional and will make the commitment to it. The "traders" I'm referring to are not undercapitalized and have a price structure that supports their learning curve and profitability, etc etc.

I get contacted by many people who want to take part in the exciting world of trading. The first thing I tell them is that they can take their $5k to Vegas and gamble if they want illusions of grandeur and excitement. This is a business. A highly competitive business with a broad range of ways to make and lose money. Those who approach it as just that, a business, stand a good chance of making it if they focus on the risk more than the profit.

I don't know who the Fools interviewed or polled, but I would imagine that many of those "traders" are also fools.

My 2 cents. Best wishes to all.

 

[MyOwnBoss]

I'm joining up with a prop firm soon. I am determined to make it as a trader. Here are my thoughts before I go into battle. My apologies if I sound like Stuart Smalley from the old Saturday Night Live skits...

I will be realistic about my trading and I know I will have to take losses before I can begin to have winning trades.

I will keep my losses small and will get out of trades quickly if they aren't going well to preserve my capital.

I will never double down on a loss.

This will be a slow tedious process at first. It may take 10 years until I can begin to look at Jaguars (even though they look like Ford Contours now).

I will listen to the suggestions of others especially the traders that consistently make money day in and day out.

I will read the tape every day and study past trades and winning trades of others to learn.

I will share knowledge with others and will never claim to know everything there is to know.

I am well aware of the trader failure rate and accept those odds. I know from my past experiences that I will move in a positive direction if I try my hardest and ask intelligent questions and review my results on a regular basis.

Gotta hop, time to walk the dog and then hit the hay.

 

[risktaker]

All easy to say hard to do. Nothing the other 95% didn't say/do and they still bowed out. Wrong time to even bother with this gig. What the markets need is LESS daytraders and hedge funds and more investors. The remaining traders, robots and hedge funds are sucking the crap out of this market, hence the shitty volatility and road to nowhere. Not a promising environment for anybody to start in.

Quote from MyOwnBoss:

I'm joining up with a prop firm soon. I am determined to make it as a trader. Here are my thoughts before I go into battle. My apologies if I sound like Stuart Smalley from the old Saturday Night Live skits...

I will be realistic about my trading and I know I will have to take losses before I can begin to have winning trades.

I will keep my losses small and will get out of trades quickly if they aren't going well to preserve my capital.

I will never double down on a loss.

This will be a slow tedious process at first. It may take 10 years until I can begin to look at Jaguars (even though they look like Ford Contours now).

I will listen to the suggestions of others especially the traders that consistently make money day in and day out.

I will read the tape every day and study past trades and winning trades of others to learn.

I will share knowledge with others and will never claim to know everything there is to know.

I am well aware of the trader failure rate and accept those odds. I know from my past experiences that I will move in a positive direction if I try my hardest and ask intelligent questions and review my results on a regular basis.

Gotta hop, time to walk the dog and then hit the hay.

 

[Choad]

Sounds like you're good enough, you're smart enough, and dog-gone it, people like you!

Quote from MyOwnBoss:

I'm joining up with a prop firm soon. I am determined to make it as a trader. Here are my thoughts before I go into battle. My apologies if I sound like Stuart Smalley from the old Saturday Night Live skits...

I will be realistic about my trading and I know I will have to take losses before I can begin to have winning trades.

I will keep my losses small and will get out of trades quickly if they aren't going well to preserve my capital.

I will never double down on a loss.

This will be a slow tedious process at first. It may take 10 years until I can begin to look at Jaguars (even though they look like Ford Contours now).

I will listen to the suggestions of others especially the traders that consistently make money day in and day out.

I will read the tape every day and study past trades and winning trades of others to learn.

I will share knowledge with others and will never claim to know everything there is to know.

I am well aware of the trader failure rate and accept those odds. I know from my past experiences that I will move in a positive direction if I try my hardest and ask intelligent questions and review my results on a regular basis.

Gotta hop, time to walk the dog and then hit the hay.

 

[MyOwnBoss]

Risktaker,

If you can't beat 'em join 'em. I came to the conclusion that buy and hold is actually buy and hope. A sideways market is a trader's market, so longer term investors should use caution in these times. JMO.

Later,

MyOwnBoss

 

[jason_l]

Quote from MyOwnBoss:

This will be a slow tedious process at first. It may take 10 years until I can begin to look at Jaguars (even though they look like Ford Contours now).

Stick with the real Jag - the XJ.. the "contour" looking ones are beginner jags I had an XJ8 for a while, and it was amazing how many people didn't realize that they still made the big jag! Every week I'd get a comment "I love those old jags!" - it was brand new!