my target is 5% per trade - is this realistic
- Thread starter trc49492
- Start date
I would say trade the structure of each trade rather than a fixed % each time. For example, if S/R is 8% away, go for that, if 3% then go for that as well.
I don't think there is anything wrong with target trading as opposed to letting trades run. It all depends on the psych of the person trading. Personally, I usually trade for targets unless a market is really moving strong in one direction.
Jay
I don't think there is anything wrong with target trading as opposed to letting trades run. It all depends on the psych of the person trading. Personally, I usually trade for targets unless a market is really moving strong in one direction.
Jay
Here's another way to look at things:
As an individual trader, you must realize that eventually you will do better to shed any preconceived notion of what "realistic" means in regards to returns -- you are not some multi-billion dollar fund encumbered by size or the risk of outflows. Strip the opm away from the best traders at the top funds and instead give them 50K to make a living from; you can bet that they're going to be hitting it out of the ballpark with numbers no one on this forum would believe possible. Liquidity and the leverage provide this potential each and every day.
Try to look at any trade from the market's point of view -- it doesn't really care what percentage of your account you are going to make or lose on any given move. When you "allow" yourself to take a 5% profit, just realize that you could have just as easily taken 10%, or 25%, or 50% etc -- whether you put on 10 or 100 lots will not affect the market one bit. What this means eventually is: when you're ready and able, you can (and should) kiss the concept of realistic goodbye. Honor risk and concentrate on preserving capital as you explore your methods, but know that you will eventually need to seize the best opportunities with both fists. Picture yourself and your position as a fly on the back of an elephant, and everything falls into perspective.
As an individual trader, you must realize that eventually you will do better to shed any preconceived notion of what "realistic" means in regards to returns -- you are not some multi-billion dollar fund encumbered by size or the risk of outflows. Strip the opm away from the best traders at the top funds and instead give them 50K to make a living from; you can bet that they're going to be hitting it out of the ballpark with numbers no one on this forum would believe possible. Liquidity and the leverage provide this potential each and every day.
Try to look at any trade from the market's point of view -- it doesn't really care what percentage of your account you are going to make or lose on any given move. When you "allow" yourself to take a 5% profit, just realize that you could have just as easily taken 10%, or 25%, or 50% etc -- whether you put on 10 or 100 lots will not affect the market one bit. What this means eventually is: when you're ready and able, you can (and should) kiss the concept of realistic goodbye. Honor risk and concentrate on preserving capital as you explore your methods, but know that you will eventually need to seize the best opportunities with both fists. Picture yourself and your position as a fly on the back of an elephant, and everything falls into perspective.
Thanks for the perspective Illiquid...udaman!
I've heard of alot of traders that shoot for yearly gains of small percentages, but I always figured they are those very wealthy traders who makes a fortune off of those small percentages too. I don't know about the stock stuff, am just a futures trader, mainly with the grains, and looking for a percentage return isn't a factor with my trading, even though I use to have a bad habit of grabbing the 25%- to 50% profits and missing the real $$$ with my swing-trades. My account is building at about a rate of 50% per month I'd guess, except one month which it went down this year..anyway...for what it's worth, I think it far more important to put your own system together, backtest and refine it until you know it's reliability, kind of like building your own 'cash machine'. When you try to focus on many markets, your 'focus' becomes scattered, and you'll feel the lost feeling of being in a big unfriendly city...Markets are like people,..each different.. become a master of one market first, like knowing a long term friend... If you can do that, and find the system that 'attunes' with it....then you'll Not need Many cash-machines to become successful... The markets do not just go up and down at random, there are secrets behind their predictable movements, learn these and you'll come to know the reversals before they happen. Hope this helps...
If i have a system that consistently return money everyday, no matter how little, i'll be the happiest man alive.
The smallest movement in the market is 1 tick. Okay, i'll settle for a system that returns 1 tick per lot per day.
In fact, i'll even settle for $1 per lot per day.
As long as you get consistently profitable u can easily scale up the leverage/bet-size to get your million.
By the way don't bother to listen to Skalpz, he used to be the famous forum spammer Coinz and he posts crap.
Take over the world...get real! Money is hardly my God... There are alot of traders who are really doing well with the markets, I'm only making peanuts in comparison, and uncle sam takes a big bite out of it too, actually, I'm getting more selective with my trades, only taking the stronger swings, and only doing two to four trades a month, and am flat the market alot too.. but the point here, isn't what I'm doing.....the point IS the 'finding' of a reliable system with trading...