What is the best way to learn how to day trade?

[piezoe]

Quote from Frits:

Because us humans need something to hold on to. In trading there is no such thing, coz the market does what it does. It moves random.

What you need to learn is to accept that markets move a random and mentally that is hard for some people. In fact, some will never learn to do so. When I'm talking about 10% knowledge and trading on the basis of letting your profits run I'm talking about things like:
- Not going long when the market is already up 1.1%. Because the major part of your upward potential is already gone. How often does the market go up 2% or more? It can happen, but it's not likely to happen. (yes I've seen the fluctuations lately, we had a record in the Dow of four days with a swing of more than 400 points. It can happen, but it's not that we set a record every year).
- Not going short when the market is up 1.6%. Because your downward potential might look enormous, but it's not likely that after being up 1.6% a market in such a positive sentiment will close at 0.3% It can happen, but it's not likely.

These are clear examples, but there are other examples that ask for more explanation. But as mentioned this is the stuff you learn on the job.

Nevertheless you don't have to agree. I'm just sharing info and what you do with it is for you to decide.

Shaka ,

Frits

If the market was nothing but random price movement its mean price averaged over time would approach a horizontal line. No one, on average could make any money. Obviously the market is not random! The market is not predictable with a probability of 1, and the market appears to contain within price movement a random component, but the market is NOT random. It is utter nonsense to say "the market is random".

You wrote: "- Not going short when the market is up 1.6%. Because your downward potential might look enormous, but it's not likely that after being up 1.6% a market in such a positive sentiment will close at 0.3% It can happen, but it's not likely."

without commenting on the correctness of that statement by you, I ask you: could what you wrote have any validity if the market was random?

[I don't want to be too hard on you, because it appears that your first language is not English. You may not understand the meaning of the word "random". ]

 

[gotta_trade]

Quote from daytradelearner:

What is the best way to learn how to day trade? I am new to day trading and would like to learn.

Do the opposite of what everyone else is doing.

 

[Buy1Sell2]

Quote from gotta_trade:

Do the opposite of what everyone else is doing.

FALSE

 

[the1]

As much seat time as possible. Think of it as trying to learn how to fly a plane or graduate from law school, or do an MBA, whatever. It's measured in years not months or weeks but if you can master the craft the rewards are immense.

 

[ammo]

http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/attachment.php?s=&postid=3281107 .....not a daytrader but you could start by looking at the volume spikes on past days charts and look at the candle action at the time,on this day the turns were always 2 reds and a green or 2 greens and a red candle accompanied with a volume spike at each turn

 

[pavlov0032]

if you want to learn day trade successfully check out Bano on youtube

http://www.youtube.com/user/banotradingraw


then shoot him an email and join his chat..

hi got mad skillz

 

[Petrobras]

buy 1. you keep saying FALSE. Like you know what your talking about. I see you trading 1 contract with 50 index points as a stop loss!

correct me if I'm wrong on that risk management and technique ^ in your es journal

and your not day trading your swing trading. I consider day trading being in and out per each liquid movement a stock makes (for instance todays nearly 20 index point drop on a straight line $spy es #f) This move takes 30 mins and your out (I'm not saying you catch the whole move, but def take SOME and GET out)

Real trade . Today. 8/25 short the spiders(or index or futures) at around 950 at the market. (when the intraday range breaks to the downside). Risk no more then. 20 SPY and stay one your line (2index points)

Trade never really goes against you as all real day traders trade like (and think like)

stay on the trendline for profits around 1160 to 1170 .(your call when you think price is changing)

also stay on the trendline for the initial stop loss because the motion was clearly down into the opening range

stay in cash for the next setup (or come back in the afternoon)

 

[Frits]

Quote from piezoe:

If the market was nothing but random price movement its mean price averaged over time would approach a horizontal line. No one, on average could make any money. Obviously the market is not random! The market is not predictable with a probability of 1, and the market appears to contain within price movement a random component, but the market is NOT random. It is utter nonsense to say "the market is random".

You wrote: "- Not going short when the market is up 1.6%. Because your downward potential might look enormous, but it's not likely that after being up 1.6% a market in such a positive sentiment will close at 0.3% It can happen, but it's not likely."

without commenting on the correctness of that statement by you, I ask you: could what you wrote have any validity if the market was random?

[I don't want to be too hard on you, because it appears that your first language is not English. You may not understand the meaning of the word "random". ]

As a native English speaker I thought you would understand the meaning of "random".... "lacking any definite plan or order or purpose; governed by or depending on chance" And as I mentioned in my example after being up 1.6% it is not likely the market will come down to 0.3% It can happen, but depending on chance it is not likely. There is no rule that the market is NOT going to close at 0.3% Neither is there a rule that when the market is already up 2% it can't close at +3.5% Again, there is no rule, plan, order, etc. It's just a matter of chance.

What is your problem...? Nevermind, I don't wanna know! It appears that failed traders have nothing to do but bashing other peoples info/advice. Could that be out of frustration? If you are profitable then just stick to your own plan and just ignore me.

Now I will not respond to any more of these stupid posts. So please if you want me to respond show some more intelligence.

Besides that as I've stated before. I'm just sharing info. You may agree or you may not agree, I realy don't care. As long as I'm profitable it's all fine with me. A trading strategy that is built on markets moving at random... Now can it get any worse? And still making profits !

I wish you good luck in your trading Mr/Ms "fortuneteller"!

Shaka ,

Frits

 

[bone]

Quote from Frits:

It appears that failed traders have nothing to do but bashing other peoples info/advice. Could that be out of frustration? If you are profitable then just stick to your own plan and just ignore me.

Now I will not respond to any more of these stupid posts. So please if you want me to respond show some more intelligence.

Besides that as I've stated before. I'm just sharing info. You may agree or you may not agree, I realy don't care. As long as I'm profitable it's all fine with me. A trading strategy that is built on markets moving at random... Now can it get any worse? And still making profits !

I wish you good luck in your trading Mr/Ms "fortuneteller"!

Shaka ,

Frits

Pearls of wisdom dispensed by Frits, explaining his background and credentials for all things trading:

"Frits Altenburg

The Rockwell Trading Scam

Besides my work I trade futures as a hobby. I feel mandatory to share this story with my fellow futures traders. Takes about 10 minutes to read and will save you heaps of dollars. But more important it will save you from becoming a mental wreck.

Tuesday 13th October 2009 I joined Rockwell Trading from Austin Texas USA. Today it’s Sunday 31st October 2010 and I haven’t made 1 US Dollar profit through the Rockwell Strategies in the past 12 months. Further on in this story you’ll find some actual results of the 6 weeks I administered ALL of their trades (shadow trading). I think it is time to share MY personal story about the, in MY opinion Rockwell Trading Scam. From here on I will refer to Rockwell Trading as RWT."

His blogs go on and on about how he lost money trading through Rockwell... http://www.daytradingscam.com/ "

Another Gem of a quote from Frits:

"It surprises me that whole tribes of traders still have the illusion that by using technical analysis they are able to predict the direction of the market.

Whenever you enter the market you have a 50% that it goes up and a 50% chance that it goes down.

P.s. this advice was for free"

Some feedback from other ET'ers in a closed thread to Frits' take on all things trading:

"Where the hell did you pull that statistic from?

another failed trader not willing to take accountability for his failures. To say TA does not work is just an ignorant statement.

I apologize, I meant to say "Frits' favorite site". There you and your ilk can condemn TA after failing to find the holy grail in some snake oil salesman's system.

I guess the stupidity of your first post triggered a neuroplastic process, thus changing my neural connections and subsequently temporarily relieving me of my grammatical skills. It is just difficult to process such ignorant comments, made by someone who clearly does not know what he is talking about.

I did not know that you've posted your strategy in this thread. You cannot assume a profitable trader would want to wade through 68 pages of garbage.

I want to emphasize that this post is not really directed at you personally, but at your kind. I've seen far too many arrogant, ignorant posters on this board over the years. At some point I have to speak up.
If you would only spend a small portion of your time actually thinking rationally about how to approach the market as you spend berating concepts you do not grasp, perhaps you would be able to become profitable.

Maybe you could form a TA study group with marketsurfer, you both could learn how to trade....

That advice was free too! "

 

[cookding]

I just skim thru this book last night. If you get this one book "The very latest E-mini trading" by Michael J. Gutmann, it will be the cross section distillation of the best information flowing out there regarding day trading ES emini. That one book will be equivalent to thousands dollars of education costs. Would and can I trade like that? No. So here we have the best material, but they would be useless in my trading because my brain cannot handle it.

Material from another author Al Brooks (I cannot read his book to save my life... still on page 30) does give me some concepts for generating ideas that seems to work out well. I still think I would lose my pants if I trade like him.

I suspect the key to success in day trading is to the extend you are (1) able to discern "current" market bias AND (2) read what the big players are doing. I would ultimately want to be able to front run the big players like some high frequency traders. So far I don't know enough to achieve that effect but whatever extend I can do in that direction, that much confidence I have in my day trading.

If you don't know the current trend, you are on the wrong train. If you can't read the big guys, you don't have a setup.

Can someone suggest a good free chatroom for trading ES so I would know when the world is on fire? Thanks. I used to know some but the best one seems to become inactive because moderator left.