Trading systems and methods
You haven't really mentioned anything about your trading system or approach, but I'll be happy to give a few pointers if you're interested.
The key thing with day trading, IMO, is to be disciplined enough to wait for the right opportunity and only then to execute. I still struggle with this for sure. But if you can eliminate all those early entries and impulsive trades you'll go a long way.
Regardless of your approach one thing we can't escape as traders is math.
If your risk/reward is 1:3, you can still make money if your win rate is below 50%. Meaning you don't need to be a fantastic trader as long as you make sure that for every 5 or 10 points your risk you're taking home 15 or 30 points. Hell, even with a 1:2 ratio you can get ahead with a low win rate.
Now, if your R/R is 1:1 or even worse, you're risking 10 to make 5, you need a 80-90 % win rate. If you drop below 70 %, you're toast.
Which is more difficult?
Psychologically, a high win rate may feel better, but I think it's more difficult to be consistent this way. This is a subject for debate of course.
The best is a higher win rate and a positively skewed R/R if possible, but that's Elite Trading.
Bottom line: If your R/R is proper you can still get by even if you don't get it right more than 50 % of the time. The key to accomplish this is to simply wait for the prime set-ups.
You haven't really mentioned anything about your trading system or approach, but I'll be happy to give a few pointers if you're interested.
The key thing with day trading, IMO, is to be disciplined enough to wait for the right opportunity and only then to execute. I still struggle with this for sure. But if you can eliminate all those early entries and impulsive trades you'll go a long way.
Regardless of your approach one thing we can't escape as traders is math.
If your risk/reward is 1:3, you can still make money if your win rate is below 50%. Meaning you don't need to be a fantastic trader as long as you make sure that for every 5 or 10 points your risk you're taking home 15 or 30 points. Hell, even with a 1:2 ratio you can get ahead with a low win rate.
Now, if your R/R is 1:1 or even worse, you're risking 10 to make 5, you need a 80-90 % win rate. If you drop below 70 %, you're toast.
Which is more difficult?
Psychologically, a high win rate may feel better, but I think it's more difficult to be consistent this way. This is a subject for debate of course.
The best is a higher win rate and a positively skewed R/R if possible, but that's Elite Trading.
Bottom line: If your R/R is proper you can still get by even if you don't get it right more than 50 % of the time. The key to accomplish this is to simply wait for the prime set-ups.
