Why do you care so much about having an "edge?

[NoDoji]

Quote from bighog:

from the following artical: read the whole thing and get a idea of some of the evils of money without brains. .........................
The REST OF THE ARTICAL: http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Global_Economy/HG06Dj02.html

Wow, nice advance warning - July 2006.

 

[bronks]

Quote from asap:

mental dont exist anymore, it is a tale from ancient times when traders made their decisions manually as the market action evolved.

nowadays, most of the professional community relies on some sort of ats to run the operation. i believe around 90% of the volume in the eurex and globex is computer based. thus, trading is becoming an emotionless activity that is solely based on code supremacy, aka binary edge. also, there is no static edge anymore. the dynamics of competition fueled by hoards of brain and computer power alters the rules of the game on a constant basis. sustaining an edge on the long haul in such environment is increasingly difficult and it is totally based on survival of fittest (fittest code, that is).

I just love the way programmers and quants keep suggesting that that a real life human trader will be all but extinct. Could it be the sentient algorithm could actually find an exploitable edge over their binarymechanical counterpart BECAUSE they are human?

Edges come in many forms, but as far as trading absolutes; no clearer examples can be given than that by Atticus.



**Whatever happened to the spell check?**

 

[NeoRio1]

The better your edge(s) the more trust you have in the market. The more trust you have in the market the stronger your mental part is. Your edge is how you perform and what you do. What you do corresponds to how you judge yourself and your overall mental outlook on your trading future. The whole issue of pyschology is irrelevent when you can make money and have trust in yourself. The reason the pyschology forum and overall topic is so popular is because everyone who is looking for better pyschological success has no edge. They either use a mass amount of indicators or have no idea how to read price action past two sequences they have memorized and they sure do not know how to examine the different characteristics of different stocks. There are those who make money and those who can't which make endless posts on this stupid disappointing website trying to think their way through their problems.

 

[Indrionas]

Quote from jonbig04:

Really. I know having an "edge" is necessary for being a profitable trader. It's true that we should all be constantly tying to refine and make our edge more effective...however that's all anyone ever talks about on this site. T/A, PA, fundamentals, support/resistance...all that is fine and good but it seems to me that your edge is a small factor in determining your trading success. The main and most important factor is your mental state, how you THINK, your head game. Yet edge and method threads outweigh mental threads probably 20 to 1. Is this the reason why so many traders fail?

If you have an edge, you can automate/trade it mechanically and metal state won't matter.

Useless garbage/flame war threads outweigh method threads 500 to 1. There's really almost nothing of substance on ET.

 

[trickshot]

Quote from jonbig04:

Really. I know having an "edge" is necessary for being a profitable trader. It's true that we should all be constantly tying to refine and make our edge more effective...however that's all anyone ever talks about on this site. T/A, PA, fundamentals, support/resistance...all that is fine and good but it seems to me that your edge is a small factor in determining your trading success. The main and most important factor is your mental state, how you THINK, your head game. Yet edge and method threads outweigh mental threads probably 20 to 1. Is this the reason why so many traders fail?

No, the reason why most traders fail is because they think they have an edge when in reality they have none.

Psychology is just a sry excuse for pikers who have no real edge. I do arbitrage for a certain instrument day in day out and have been consistently profitable for the last 3.5yrs, psychology has nothing to do with my trading.

 

[bighog]

nodoji

That was not intended as an advanced warning, it was a lesson. The savings and loan crisis was a lesson also and well dated. Did many learn from that lesson?

PS: for your info, this sub-prime is sort of old now.

 

[bighog]

Most things that are measurable are not important, and most things that are important are not measurable.

A summary of what is your edge: <a href="http://www.sweetim.com/s.asp?im=gen&ref=11" target="_blank"><img src="http://content.sweetim.com/sim/cpie/emoticons/000202B3.gif" border=0 ></a>

 

[ElCubano]

Quote from rolextrader:

No doubt, if a trader has no statistical probabilities working in his favor, it doesn't matter if he is like a mindless robot--it won't matter, he will lose;.

this statement is false...."he will lose" . I for one have seen people make money without an edge, without a mental game and without so much as knowing what a stock was...peace

 

[NoDoji]

Quote from bighog:

nodoji

That was not intended as an advanced warning, it was a lesson. The savings and loan crisis was a lesson also and well dated. Did many learn from that lesson?

PS: for your info, this sub-prime is sort of old now.

But it was advance warning when that article was originally written (2006). I remember we refinanced our house back then and it had more than doubled in value in a a little over a year and I thought, Whoa, that's not right, something's gotta give.

 

[bighog]

nodoji

Good call you did back then, congrats. I remember my bro saying his house in Biscayne Park, FL went up a 100k from the previous year. I reminded him to make sure when it comes back down to call the insurance and the county tax personal to lower the insurance and tax bills just as fast on the downstroke when prices reverse.