When is the right time to quit your job and trade full time?

jinxu said:
A little history. I am a experienced trader. Went back into the work force a year ago to build up money. I already have a developed trading system going on. I work for the fed and dislike everything about my job and just want to quit and trade. Trading is my main passion. No family. In my 20's.

I can make more money by trading full time then working at my current job. My job is mundane and I feel like I'm wasting my brain power and soul on stupid office shit. My job duties and requirements conflict with any possibility of trading part time while working. I do not want to trade while working and there's so simple way to trade off a mobile as it's impossible to check it often without coworkers getting nosy.

I'm consider quitting and going back to full time trading. Good? Bad? Pros and Cons?
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You said you went back to the work force to build up money and now you're considering quitting your job...

1) Did you accomplish your goal of achieving the desired capital you need to trade and did you accumulate enough savings support your personal lifestyle that you have with your current job (e.g. medical/dental benefits and so on) for a minimum of 1- 2 years ?

Private medical/health/dental insurance is very expensive for those that are self-employed as a trader. I say this because you said you have no family and you're single. Crap happens that you can not control that doesn't care if you're young and healthy.

2) Have you considered trading full time during your vacation to determine the performance of your "developed system" as a full time trader with real money to ensure you really are ready to trade ?

3) Have you considered a leave of absence although I know that's tough to get with only a year under your belt at the FED ?

*4) Trade active markets that don't conflict with your FED job. Lots of active markets out there for such that trades outside the work hours of the FED.

You're young and single (no family)...shouldn't be a problem for you to get up early by a few hours or go to bed later by a few hours to trade actively in other markets without having to worry about trading while at the FED unless you have health issues that prevents such.

*5) I know others in your situation and they all came to a similar solution...keep your current FED job, immediately start looking for another job that you prefer and trade active markets that don't conflict with their new job.

Simply, quitting your FED job that has great benefits with no proven (real-money) backup plan will be a disaster. If your developed method was proven with real money...you would have already been trading it in other active markets before/after your FED work hours to ensure you're ready to quit your job.

P.S. You've had this discussion before here at ET in the past several years ago. You had a working (developed) system too back then. What happened to that developed method ?
 
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wrbtrader said:
You said you went back to the work force to build up money and now you're considering quitting your job...

1) Did you accomplish your goal of achieving the desired capital you need to trade and did you accumulate enough savings support your personal lifestyle that you have with your current job (e.g. medical/dental benefits and so on) for a minimum of 1- 2 years ?

Private medical/health/dental insurance is very expensive for those that are self-employed as a trader. I say this because you said you have no family and you're single. Crap happens that you can not control that doesn't care if you're young and healthy.

2) Have you considered trading full time during your vacation to determine the performance of your "developed system" as a full time trader with real money to ensure you really are ready to trade ?

3) Have you considered a leave of absence although I know that's tough to get with only a year under your belt at the FED ?

*4) Trade active markets that don't conflict with your FED job. Lots of active markets out there for such that trades outside the work hours of the FED.

You're young and single (no family)...shouldn't be a problem for you to get up early by a few hours or go to bed later by a few hours to trade actively in other markets without having to worry about trading while at the FED unless you have health issues that prevents such.

*5) I know others in your situation and they all came to a similar solution...keep your current FED job, immediately start looking for another job that you prefer and trade active markets that don't conflict with their new job.

Simply, quitting your FED job that has great benefits with no proven (real-money) backup plan will be a disaster. If your developed method was proven with real money...you would have already been trading it in other active markets before/after your FED work hours to ensure you're ready to quit your job.

P.S. You've had this discussion before here at ET in the past several years ago. You had a working (developed) system too back then. What happened to that developed method ?
More...
-I've consider taking time off. Maybe requesting a few hours off each day. However to the Fed, an employee that is taking a lot of time off for is kind of suspicious.
-I'm not gonna use my vacation time to try to trade. I don't think it's necessary to take time off to 'test' it. There should be rules to your trading system and you should know enough weather the rules would work by just looking at your back data.
-I'm not gonna trade after hour by staying up late or getting up real early. I'm pay well enough and don't need the additional stress just to try to make a few extra dollars.
-I'm considering Obamacare will take care of my future health needs. Unless there is a problem with that???
-Develop system is still the same as before. There may be some new strategies that been added.
 
jinxu said:
-I've consider taking time off. Maybe requesting a few hours off each day. However to the Fed, an employee that is taking a lot of time off for is kind of suspicious.
-I'm not gonna use my vacation time to try to trade. I don't think it's necessary to take time off to 'test' it. There should be rules to your trading system and you should know enough weather the rules would work by just looking at your back data.
-I'm not gonna trade after hour by staying up late or getting up real early. I'm pay well enough and don't need the additional stress just to try to make a few extra dollars.
-I'm considering Obamacare will take care of my future health needs. Unless there is a problem with that???
-Develop system is still the same as before. There may be some new strategies that been added.
More...

It would seem you have two options after you've eliminated everything else. Those two options are the following:

1) Get another job that you're happy with considering trading seems like you're just trying to make a "few extra dollars".

2) Quit your job and see where full-time trading takes you.

I say that because you didn't answer the question about did you achieve your desire capital level and did you save up enough money to get you by the first 1 - 2 years of full time trading so that you do not have to worry about income for awhile just in case market conditions change (its always changing) that causes unexpected poor trading by you.

Simply, if you didn't achieve your savings goals and desire capital for trading...that would eliminate option 2) above.

Good luck
 
Hi Jinxu, one of the most important things for traders (well, actually anyone, of which traders are a subset) is self-reflection. No offense, but I'd recommend going through some of your past threads and self-reflect as if you were someone on Mars reading this about someone you know nothing about, with a fresh clear and rational, unbiased mind. Reading the other posters' comments, aside from the details one of the key things is commitment, confidence and dedication -- if you are asking for help making up your mind, maybe need to work on this area. And I think the other thing you'll notice is you get the same range of responses from us other posters, from the "do it !!!!" to the "think about it ..." to the "no way, kid, never gonna work ...."

Other than that, I think if you "go for it", and things don't work out, well, it's easier to go back in your 20's than in your 30's, your 40's, etc. I understand your position, always wondering "could I do it?" but never having an answer,and it gets harder to risk finding the answer in yourself as years go by. Just like the people on Naked and Afraid. But, to qualify that, I suppose it's easiest of all to start with 60 years of living expenses covered and a job and an extra $10,000, and then try with the $10,000.

Most success stories I've read, people started doing something because they just liked it, and it got a little bigger each year, then after many years was a big success.

I don't know, don't take my advice, in all self-reflection, I wouldn't take my advice ....
 
Sorry -- I re-read your first post -- you say "going back to trading", so I guess you've already done it and know a bit about what it is like and been through the 'go for it !!' experience. For me, if I had good confidence I could make it, I'd do it -- but only because I really dislike interacting with people, in the past I didn't even like my friends when I had them. A job which nowadays is 50% - 90% interacting with people is like being in the dentist's chair all day ...



zedDoubleNaught said:
Hi Jinxu, one of the most important things for traders (well, actually anyone, of which traders are a subset) is self-reflection. No offense, but I'd recommend going through some of your past threads and self-reflect as if you were someone on Mars reading this about someone you know nothing about, with a fresh clear and rational, unbiased mind. Reading the other posters' comments, aside from the details one of the key things is commitment, confidence and dedication -- if you are asking for help making up your mind, maybe need to work on this area. And I think the other thing you'll notice is you get the same range of responses from us other posters, from the "do it !!!!" to the "think about it ..." to the "no way, kid, never gonna work ...."

Other than that, I think if you "go for it", and things don't work out, well, it's easier to go back in your 20's than in your 30's, your 40's, etc. I understand your position, always wondering "could I do it?" but never having an answer,and it gets harder to risk finding the answer in yourself as years go by. Just like the people on Naked and Afraid. But, to qualify that, I suppose it's easiest of all to start with 60 years of living expenses covered and a job and an extra $10,000, and then try with the $10,000.

Most success stories I've read, people started doing something because they just liked it, and it got a little bigger each year, then after many years was a big success.

I don't know, don't take my advice, in all self-reflection, I wouldn't take my advice ....
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Jinxu, I don't understand why you want to trade if you think it is gambling. If you know how to trade, it should not be gambling.
 
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