Promotion or Trade?

Quote from HispaTrader:

NihabaAshi, thank you for laying out the options and sharing your experience with me. Please see my options below.

FT79, thanks for sharing your experience, it is helpful. I will not be putting myself in a situation that totally relies on my trading to pay the bills. Like many on the site have already mentioned, I think the pressure is enormous for someone trying to trade for a living, but has not achieved consistent profitability. Right now, quitting my job is not an option.

First of all, let me say that I have no debt and my mortgage is paid off. I have enough savings to support myself for 2 years and can start with a $75K-$100K trading account. I trade futures.

So here are the options I am considering:

1. Keep my current job and continue to trade as I am doing, trading part-time. Currently, I am trading during the morning, 3 days a week. I was hoping to increase my trading exposure.

2. Keep my current situation as described in #1, and take a leave absense in the fall from October to January. During this time, I will not receive a salary, but I'll have a job to go back too. The goal would be to determine if trading is really for me. Right now, I think trading full-time, if profitable, would be the best job for me.

3.. Keep my current job, but work part-time. Even part-time, my salary is quite good. I would then trade 3 full days a week.

4.. Take the promotion and stop daytrading. Focus on trading off of 120M/daily/weekly charts. This will allow me to continue to grow my trading account.

The great thing is that my boss will support me in whatever I do, but he will be definitely disappointed if I turn down the manager position. I consider myself fortunate to be able to pursue my trading while maintaining a great job. It reduces the risk and pressure substantially and allows me to ease into the trading profession.

Again, I do not plan to quit my job outright. I don't think that is a prudent thing to do given my trading experience. The only thing I lose by not taking the promotion is the promotion itself and approximately a 15-20% pay increase. If I take the promotion, I will not be doing it for the money, but for the job itself.

One other thing that I struggle with is this. When traders become profitable, do they typically continue to daytrade or do they "graduate" to swing/position trading, holding positions for days to weeks? In which case, holding another full-time job is possible. I am not sure if I am correct here or not.

Thanks again to all.
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your optimism is encouraging. it reminds me of myself in 1993-5. however, and seriously keep this in mind this job is VERY difficult right now. Traders can barely crack 50-80 year, most are at and around break even this year. if you can handle that, then i say give it a shot. if not, keep it as a fun hobby. just my opinion.
 
Hi Michael,

I strongly believe I have the right mind-set for trading and believe that that is what will get me to become a consistent winning trader sooner rather than later. I truly believe that having a successful "game" is 80% mental and 20% strategy. I also believe that most people fail as traders because they do not understand this. They focus on setups and not risk management and psychology.

Thanks for your input.
 
HispaTrader,

Did you mention your age? Are you married with a Family? Sorry don't mean to get personal, but its important.

If you posted this earlier, I apologize, I am going to look into your posts deeper now.

Michael B.



Quote from HispaTrader:

Hi Michael,

I strongly believe I have the right mind-set for trading and believe that that is what will get me to become a consistent winning trader sooner rather than later. I truly believe that having a successful "game" is 80% mental and 20% strategy. I also believe that most people fail as traders because they do not understand this. They focus on setups and not risk management and psychology.

Thanks for your input.
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Hispa,

I like this one:

4.. Take the promotion and stop daytrading. Focus on trading off of 120M/daily/weekly charts. This will allow me to continue to grow my trading account.

I believe you know what is the correct choice..listen to that little voice at night before you go to sleep...get a glass of water and drink half of it then go to sleep...in the morning wake up and the first thing you do, is to drink the other half of water out of your half full glass on the bedstand. Then write down your thoughts ok?

Hope this helps.

I wish you the very best in Trading, in whatever path you decide to take.

Michael B.
 
Take the promotion.

Start daytrading when you retire or cannot work anymore. Or take ElectricSavant's suggestion and swing trade longer timeframes.

Stable income > Potential income.

During weekends, backtest your strategies. If it really works in all tests then go ahead and trade. Nothing is more important than having cashflow while learning trading.
 
Hi there Hispatrader. I just went out and found a job for a trading firm. I'm a Computer Science guy by degree.

This particular firm pays salary while you're in training, so the question of good job vs. trading passion was moot for me.

Maybe you ought to do the same? If you're a good Engineer you shouldn't have too much trouble getting a job with a good trading firm, even if it's only on a trial basis (as long as you've got the passion/drive to learn - since you should already have the problem solving skills.)
 
I work a full time job and trade EOD(end of day). The fact that I love my job and make good money is very comforting and allows me to trade "with no baggage or hangups". I have traded full time and part time. And without a doubt my part time trading returns have clobbered my full time returns. Last two years I am up over 20% both years...while holding down a full time gig.


Good luck!
 
Quote from HispaTrader:

I am an Engineer for a well-known telecommunications company and have been offerred a technical manager position. This has been my career since I graduated from college. ....
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Think you can get to Senior VP or corporate board at that company, or will the promotion deinitely lead strongly down that path ? If you are on a promotion track and/or you wont be sure until to tackle this job then stick with it .... only leave the industry if you truly feel your path there is dead or will languish.
 
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