Talent/Giftedness In Trading

Fundlord

Fundlord

I was watching an interview with Jack D Schwager, author of the "market wizards" and he said that everyone can probably make a decent return and improve their trading but only a few gifted people will make millions/billions in the markets.

Just like not everyone will become Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, Floyd Mayweather. TALENT + HARD WORK + A LITTLE LUCK IS NEEDED TO REACH THE VERY VERY TOP.

Jesse Livermore is the closest I can think of a talented trader, gifted at birth. Ran away from home, started trading in his early teens and made and lost fortunes. Wrote his own ticket through the markets. Just had a natural intuition for the whole thing.

In sports talent is spotted by being the best among your competition, but among trading
is it just the guy who has the most money ?

If you were looking for basketball talent you would observe who can dunk, shoot 3s, assist and have great game intelligence.

If you were searching for the next trading star what would you look for?

Someone who can take losses well ?
Someone who can take big risks at the right time ?
Someone who can reverse positions on a dime ?
Someone who is just right at calling market direction seemingly all the time ?
Someone who has perfect emotional control ?
Someone who is tenacious, never letting anything affect them ?
Someone who is great with numbers/maths ?
Someone who is a pscychopath and only cares about making money in the markets ? (Livermore's life was the markets hence he committed suicide when he couldn't play the game the way he wanted to anymore)

What are the traits that really make someone a "gifted trader" who could go the distance.

I have always just been interested in the nature vs nurture debate.
 
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Fundlord said:
I have to disagree I know a guy who has a math degree, strategic poker player, A's in math his whole life couldn't make a single profitable trade. Too afraid to take risks, not being able to admit he's wrong and just blew out. Never returned to trading.
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did his education in mathematics disadvantage him, better off math illiterate?

you know where i'm going here :)

your suggestion math literacy is useless, or at best even..well ;)
 
jimmiebarton said:
did his education in mathematics disadvantage him, better off math illiterate?

you know where i'm going here :)

your suggestion math literacy is useless, or at best even..well ;)
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I asked him did he think it helped and he said no. It did nothing for him as a trader, Im sure it might have helped him in some analyst or quant role but as a trader speculating on prices in the short/medium turn nope.

Math was my worst subject in school after foreign languages and I did pretty well for myself in the markets. ;)

This is more about intuition/talent not upbringing or education
 
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It begins with the ability to flawlessly execute a mechanical system, preferably one which the trader has developed himself. Once this becomes a matter of course, the trader finds that he is able to make decisions that observers might classify as subjective, but they are more a consequence of following the same routine over and over again and doing it perfectly, no longer having to think about it consciously. Like driving. Or skiing. Or tennis.

Once the trader has reached a level where he can make subjective decisions and maintain his results, the intuitive level is not a great leap. But it doesn't just "come". One must go through all these preliminary steps first. If one cannot execute his plan perfectly, he'll never be able to make consistently-profitable subjective decisions. If he has no plan to start with, then he's pretty much just hanging around until he fails.
 
dbphoenix said:
It begins with the ability to flawlessly execute a mechanical system, preferably one which the trader has developed himself. Once this becomes a matter of course, the trader finds that he is able to make decisions that observers might classify as subjective, but they are more a consequence of following the same routine over and over again and doing it perfectly, no longer having to think about it consciously. Like driving. Or skiing. Or tennis.

Once the trader has reached a level where he can make subjective decisions and maintain his results, the intuitive level is not a great leap. But it doesn't just "come". One must go through all these preliminary steps first. If one cannot execute his plan perfectly, he'll never be able to make consistently-profitable subjective decisions. If he has no plan to start with, then he's pretty much just hanging around until he fails.
More...

Unconscious competence. I saw a prop trader discuss this, he put it in an analogy that a 6 year old will have to think so hard about tying their shoe but an adult will just do it and not think about it.
 
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