Quote from Funster:
Nothing.
The market is definatly there as a tool for major players to f@@@ as many people as possible. Poker is easy by comparison !
Quote from DHOHHI:
Why get upset by losses? They are part of the game. It's NORMAL! Do you think a major league baseball teams expects to win ALL their games? Hell no! Those that CAN deal with emotions without losing their cool I think transition into their next trade more effectively. Do I get all giddy when I make money? No ... and by the same token I don't get all depressed when I lose $$$. It has nothing to do with anything read in a trading psychology book ...
) decided to fail on me several times in a row ! On the plus side I haven't broken anything. 
Quote from Funster:
Dave,
No disrespect, but I first used to have your positive attitude some years ago. Yes, little old me sitting here with my pot can regularly take a little money off the wall street giants sitting at the centre of the curve both in information and speed just by following a few choice "high probability" set ups that I had thoroughly back tested etc.
Now I realise the truth of the markets: If you have some kind of edge no one else can get (speed, lower commissions, inside info) then you have a positive expectancy. Anything else is random.
In fact, whille a pit is in any way related to your chosen market the expectancy is worse than random, to pay for the edge the pit traders have.
So if you have spent a great deal of time coming out ahead with your indicators/patterns that any joe can follow you had better know that you are gambling and when to quit, just like roulette. This is just like a business that has a low barrier to entry. You have got to expect decent profits to be eroded away by the high competition caused because it is easy to get into.
Don't forget the basic laws of probablity boil down to just this: being right between 30% and 70% of the time is tantamount to nothing more than random returns. It makes me laugh, therefore, when someone says "I have this pattern and it is right 50% of the time !" Just toss a coin for the same result.
I used to think money management was the key. However, a more recent theory I have (which I admit is a little "out there") is that this whole concept is a Wall Street conspiracy, from specialists to brokers. After all if they want to be kept in a job every day it is far better for them to trickle feed on your money bit by bit rather than take it all in one go.
Oh, and I forgot the biggest winners in all of this on a risk adjusted basis. The exchanges. And the CME is just about the greediest one in the world !
And yes, I have had a bad day. My highly accurate patterns (up to 50%) decided to fail on me several times in a row ! On the plus side I haven't broken anything.
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Quote from Funster:
Dave,
No disrespect, but I first used to have your positive attitude some years ago. Yes, little old me sitting here with my pot can regularly take a little money off the wall street giants sitting at the centre of the curve both in information and speed just by following a few choice "high probability" set ups that I had thoroughly back tested etc.
Now I realise the truth of the markets: If you have some kind of edge no one else can get (speed, lower commissions, inside info) then you have a positive expectancy. Anything else is random.
In fact, whille a pit is in any way related to your chosen market the expectancy is worse than random, to pay for the edge the pit traders have.
So if you have spent a great deal of time coming out ahead with your indicators/patterns that any joe can follow you had better know that you are gambling and when to quit, just like roulette. This is just like a business that has a low barrier to entry. You have got to expect decent profits to be eroded away by the high competition caused because it is easy to get into.
Don't forget the basic laws of probablity boil down to just this: being right between 30% and 70% of the time is tantamount to nothing more than random returns. It makes me laugh, therefore, when someone says "I have this pattern and it is right 50% of the time !" Just toss a coin for the same result.
I used to think money management was the key. However, a more recent theory I have (which I admit is a little "out there") is that this whole concept is a Wall Street conspiracy, from specialists to brokers. After all if they want to be kept in a job every day it is far better for them to trickle feed on your money bit by bit rather than take it all in one go.
Oh, and I forgot the biggest winners in all of this on a risk adjusted basis. The exchanges. And the CME is just about the greediest one in the world !
And yes, I have had a bad day. My highly accurate patterns (up to 50%) decided to fail on me several times in a row ! On the plus side I haven't broken anything.
![]()