Profitable trader trade-log. After years.

Quote from bespoke:

so you're gonna present a company your track record for the past few months but disregard the rest from the past 4 years? lol.

this is why a few months means nothing

people are so easily fooled by randomness
More...

Oh it would have been a lot more had I not had my ass handed to me for the past 3 years. I lost in futures, I lost in stocks, I lost in daytrading until the final 2 months. But by that time I needed a leg up. Options gave me that, plus I didn't have to watch the market every day.


Yup that's exactly what i'm going to do. Actually, I know how the market moves and why. The market does the same thing over and over and moves in a certain way about 70-80% of the time. I use 4 types of S&R to gauge this. IF that ever fails for me, I just go back to fundamentals which are extremely reliable for me due to only 3-5% of stocks qualifying. The problem with that is it pretty much only works in bull markets. Someone in the market wizards book used nearly the exact same method as I do. When asked about stops he said he simply doesn't need them. I knew exactly what he was talking about. It's true, but the strategy is a PITA in bear markets. It's still profitable though.

176 trades. What's going to happen in the next 176 trades? I don't know either. My guess is the same that happened the first 176.
 
Quote from nebulous:

Don't sweat being cut by one hr department. IMHO you want to express that you've been trading and have a positive track record in your cover letter. Probably best to use your positive record is a demonstration of your interest and commitment.

Your results have been good lately - congratulations for that - but as someone else expressed, boasting too loudly about turning 130% on $800 is not going to get you taken seriously on a trading desk. You have to show humility, that you understand that there's difference between turning 100+% on 1k and 1mm and that a 3-4 month track record isn't very long.

You also need to remember your audience. If you're applying at intitutional managers or retail brokerage then you can talk down day trading. If you're applying to ibanks or prop firms, then I wouldn't recommend slagging day trading - where do you think the biggest and most successful day traders are....

Hope this didn't come off negative. Hope some of its helpful. Good luck in the job hunt.
More...

Thanks. I appreciate it. You're right though. I put myself in their shoes and it's not a huge deal. We'll see though :) At least I'll hopefully be doing what I enjoy.
 
if you are looking for a job as an 'equity research' then your street hustling daytrading experience is pretty much useless to these research side of the business.

these firms receive hundreds of applications from colleges. they also look at your connections which has nothing to do with your skills or gpa.






Quote from athlonmank8:

I'm doing this to make a point and **finishing up with a question**. ANYONE can be profitable. Money Management is as close to the "Holy Grail" as you're going to get. Is it worth it? Why not find something better to do. Or at least not daytrade. I could have better spent my years of college worrying about how much I made or lost for the day. That could be part of the reason for my sometimes severe anxiety issues.

I have never been this consistently profitable. Daytrading ruined me a while back. But I learned A TON. IMO that's one of the only ways you're going to get a handle on the market and true feel. Since the age of 15 I have been buying and selling this stuff. 3-4 years ago I began trading and just recently have become as profitable as I care to be (i'm 23) (it's all relative as far as $$$ is concerned. 100 is the same as 500 as long as I'm right.)


Started with approx 800 (college student here). Alright, TA and FUNDAMENTALS...... 130% so far (drawn down from 180%) since sept. Drawdown was partly due to my effort to try and prove the Black-Scholes model incorrect (didn't work as planned...but still trying :) ). Still holding USO as a hedge for my gas to work.

The biggest % return on a stock being DRYS (~100%) using nothing more than a few BASIC fundamental principles ( no technicals).


Now the kicker:

The funniest part is that I was pretty much "turned down" by HR @ RW Baird for a decent internship in equity research because they're looking for a 3.5 and I have a 3.3.

Is this normal?

***My question is.....should I mention this performance to them? Not even sure how I present it to them. In a cover letter? Call up HR and let them know that my GPA and resume don't mean anything?
More...
 
man at 23 years old your a veteran hustling in the street.

this gig of trading your account and own money is like hustling.

most dudes quit this gig after a few years an get real job and real business and trade on the sideline business.

the ones who stay in this business for the long run start their own hedge fund or get clients.



Quote from athlonmank8:

lol 3-4 years as a college student, I lost about 6 grand daytrading. I paid for tuition through working and had enough saved up over the summer again to go at it. All I had in the bank I put down 800 and sent it to 2200. It's come back down about 15%. Changing accounts right now for cheaper commissions.

No one owes me anything. That's the point. Is this game eve worth it? What do you want out of trading?

You post a friggin trading log on here. have learned a TON these last few years. Day in and day out i've done this crap. None of you guys really owe me anything. I came here for advice on my situation.
More...
 
Quote from athlonmank8:

Still holding USO as a hedge for my gas to work.
[/B]
More...

Sweet. Hedge is workin. I told a few ppl I was doing this and they looked at me like I was stupid. Kinda nerdy, but 1.70 gas is nice.
 
Quote from tradersboredom:

if you are looking for a job as an 'equity research' then your street hustling daytrading experience is pretty much useless to these research side of the business.

these firms receive hundreds of applications from colleges. they also look at your connections which has nothing to do with your skills or gpa.
More...

I don't have any of those. Family's kinda broke :) hah
 
Keep at it Athlon. You remind me myself many many years ago when I was in college.

All the advice I have to give is nothing is free in life, you have to WORK HARD (harder than the next guy), have an unquenchable thirst for knowledge and information (read everything you can get your hands on, industry periodicals, blogs, websites, investing books, etc.), and don't gamble. Simply only do an investment if you have a clear and rational thesis. If you are just randomly emotionally putting trades on, you will blow up.

Good luck and wish you the best.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top