They are realistic (for me) and based on real trades but I will never give any information about myself. First because of my privacy and second to avoid bashers and pissing contests.
The examples are still moderate. I agree that statements can only be reliable if backed by a decent track record.
When I started to trade I never believed it was possible to make even 100% a year. But that statement was made before I had any real knowledge about daytrading. Later when my knowledge grew over the years I realized it was possible. And I also achieved it later.
Tradingresults are a result of optimizing a number of elements that have influence on your return. Some of these elements are:
- Invested capital
- Margin
- % of winners and losers
- Average profit/loss per trade
- Withdrawal of profits
- Compounding
- Drawdown
- Recovery time after drawdown
- Etc…
If you forget one of the elements that influences the returns, it can have a big negative impact on your return.
A simple example of this is “compounding”. Using, or not using, it will make an enormous difference in return. If a trader does even not know compounding has an influence, or even does not know compounding exists, he will never understand where the returns come from that he does not believe. In that case his unbelieve is a result of lack of knowledge.
Daytrading is very difficult, and most failures are a result of lack of knowledge.
I tested a compounding system with an identical but non compounding one. Under my specific conditions the profit with compounding was $15,105 and without compounding the same trades would give $3,895 profit. So compounding gave 3.87 times higher return with the same signals to trade.
