Trading schools-good or bad?

A

airspeed

I am fairly new to this site so if this has been covered here before, please excuse me...I'll keep this short.

Is there any way of judging "schools" that "teach" daytrading and other short term trading? I've been a buy and hold value stock picker for 16 years...Read so much Graham and Dodd that I can almost recite key points word for word.

As I'm retired, I have a lot of time to devote to learning and I figure I'm going to go through several thou dealing with the learning curve at the School of Hard Knocks. OR I could go to a reputable school, drop a few thou there and shorten that learning curve. Either way, I'm gonna be down several thousand dollars...but I have made allowances for this in my risk capital account so it is no biggie.

I briefly considered one of the online offerings but I would rather be in real classroom environment.

Does anyone have any first or second hand info on one of the gazillion trading schools out there? Sure would appreciate it. Thanks! Best regards, Jim
 
Forget schools, get the tradingmarkets book of trading patterns, and just loose money the way we all have. That's the way to learn. Its the only way. But expect to loose 10-30k, maybe more.
 
If you plan to daytrade at home and not in a trading room, then forget the classroom environment.

- Find a chatroom, which go on average for about $200 a month. A lot of these chatrooms not only teach you how to trade but show you how to trade as the action unfolds. The peer support is great too.
- If you want to be smart and not lose too much money at least in the beginning until you have any clue what you're doing, then go find a direct access broker that does $1 or so commissions (i.e. IB or Tradescape). Only trade 5 to 10 shares to get the feel of trading. Forget demos, they are like playing video games and don't have the real feel of combat. Trade for a few months, increasing the number of shares as your experience grows and as you feel more comfortable. You're not in it to make money, yet, you're in it to learn. Why put all your chips on the table if you don't know how to play the game?
- One more thing, you're going to have to learn how to lose everyday, but at least not as much as an investor :)
 
One thing to consider about trading schools is that they have a specific method of trading that might not turn out to be fit your personality, time horizon, etc. There are plenty of different styles of trading, and they're not right for every individual. So what if you plop down a few thousand, plus spend $ on travel, room & board to stay there, plus give up an entire week, and the style of trading they teach just isn't for you?
 
Good posts re: trying out different schools for different trading styles. Every trader has their own unique approach, with several basics in common.

It's a good idea to experiment, both by trying out various ideas you read in books, chart patterns, and various training & educational resources.

No one provider has "all the answers for everyone", traders vary, and should plan on trying several approaches before finding one that fits their temperament.

Personally, I like using cup breakouts, 2-day highs, stochastic reversals, and doing 3- to 10-minute round trip trades for +5/8 to + 1 1/4, with a 3/8 max stop loss. On 100- to 300-share trades of stocks like EBAY PSFT AMAT KLAC SONS SEBL LLTC VTSS XLNX GSPN. This is not for everyone, some like to swing trade etc.. so, practice & experiment, that's a good start.


from Hawaii, Ken
http://www.Daytrading-University.com
 
There is no one real answer I can give here. Every human is different so what works for someone might not work for someone else. What I can recommend is just learn. Surround yourself with good traders. I attend a lot of seminars, meet traders with outstanding track records and just pick their brains. (see some of the interviews on my website for an example

http://communities.msn.com/rtharpsland

The one thing to remember is to have real determination that you want to be a successful trader and never quit till you reach that success.

rtharp
 
Originally posted by greydeath101
<- Find a chatroom, which go on average for about $200 a month. A lot of these chatrooms not only teach you how to trade but show you how to trade as the action unfolds. The peer support is great too. >

Which ones would you recommend?

Any suggestions on books?
More...
 
Just a quick note. If you are asking around about schools
for trading than subconcieously you already are having
doubts/second thoughts. Get this, a fact - schools are a
business. A big business. Same goes actually for U's and community colleges - same are ok, great - some are shit.
What you learn anywhere is up to you...Trading is different
cause it can't be tought 100 percent or given as a black
or white issue. Its very subjective and filled with fear and
greed. You can't possibly overcome this by lecures and
books. Books can cover 40-50% of all materials that can be
thought. i.e. technical analysis, fundementals of stocks,
futures, currencies and micro and macro economics etc, etc.
 
Does anyone have any first or second hand info on one of the gazillion trading schools out there? Sure would appreciate it. Thanks! Best regards, Jim [/B][/QUOTE]

Jim,

I just read a day trading book today by Greg Capra and he says (take it with a grain of salt) that 3 good schools are:

1. http://www.pristine.com (Greg's)
2. Cornerstone Securities (connected with Broadway Trading)
3. http://www.daytrading.com

Brooks
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top