Would you give up a steady job to Trade?

I do believe that there are some that misunderstood my previous post regarding the subject.

BOTTOM LINE: Unless you are able to find someone who can guide you through ALL the rubbish out here in the world of trading for a living, then you must be willing to spend at least $100k on an education in the markets. After that there is still NO GUARANTEE that you will succeed at it.

THE REASON: Successful trading is a closely guarded secret that no one is really willing to teach you. Sure some things you will just learn on your own by trial and error but the vast majority of books and seminars on trading are truly hype and sensationalism to boost product sales. You have to read through sooooo much garbage that by the time you find someone worth reading or following, you have blown your capital.

SO WHAT: I realize that no matter what I say there will be some who won't listen to a word I've said. I'm only speaking from experience as an X-Broker/insider who got 1st hand knowledge of the industry and I know what works and what doesnt.

WHAT DO I KNOW: How many people do you know who has placed literally THOUSANDS of trades in just about EVERY FUTURES market, COMMODITIES, STOCKS, & FOREX???????
I HAVE!!!!! I have seen clients lose HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS $$$$$$$$$ in the markets!!!!!! Trust me you will be one of them.
I too would not be trading today if I did not have the privaledge of seeing it done right before my eyes. OVER & OVER & OVER again in various market conditions!!!!!

SO WHAT / WHO CARES!!!!: I do. I don't want to see would be hopefuls get all dissaullusioned about the whole idea of trading for a living. There are 7 phases to becoming a successful trader. Here is the formula for trading success:

STEP ONE: Your a loser!!!!!

STEP TWO: You will learn how to trade quickly but your risk capital will dwindle quicker!

STEP THREE: You read every article in every issue of Stocks & Commodities Magizine, Futures Magizine, Barons, Forbes, Wall Street Journal, IBD, Read the works of Linda B. R., Warren Buffet, George Soros, Go to every Seminar accross the country. Spend $10k on Trade Station and have someone to program the dog gone thing for you. Lose continually. Lose some more. Watch others lose. Give up and convence yourself that it just cant be done and that those that claim to do it successfully are liers!!!!
Become VERY VERY VERY discouraged!!!!!!!!!!!!

STEP FOUR: Become depressed, get up and try it again. Lose some more. Trade less than before. Study charts and technical idicators. Determine that Technical indicators are TOTALLY USELESS. Quit trading again.

STEP FIVE: Develope your own system of trading based on your own risk tolerance and desired level of trading and your present committment level. Deside what time frame works best for you given your current lifestyle. Backtest the idea of your new system.

STEP SIX: Trade your new system. Lose much money. Become discouraged again. Now you scream out loud with a loud voice--"THIS SUCKS"!!!!! I'LL NEVER BE A TRADER!!!!

STEP SEVEN: Go back to the drawing board. Stop trading against the prevailing trend. Make some money. NOW YOUR A TRADER AND READY TO SERIOUSLY TRADE FOR A LIVING!!!!!!!1

GREAT JOB. YOU ARE NOW ON YOUR WAY TO VAST FORTUNE IN THE TRADING GAME AND YOU ARE NOW ON YOUR WAY TO GREAT WEALTH BEYOND YOUR WILDEST DREAMS!!!!!!


p.s. Unless you are prepared to go through the above harsh realities of trading these markets- "QUIT WHILE YOUR AHEAD"!!!
YOUR ALREADY A LOSER- SO DONT EVEN THINK ABOUT IT EVERY AGAIN IN LIFE.

FIND A CAREER THAT BETTER SATISFIES YOUR LACK OF COMMITMENT!:D
 
OMG...I feel sorry for this guy even posting this question here on ET! Why are all of you still trading if it's so hard and "not worth it"? If you treat this like a BUSINESS, you will have a very good shot at succeeding. It's not a get-rich-quick scheme where you sit in front of your PC and people pour money into your account. Sure, it takes work, and being a little smart with numbers helps, but it's not impossible.

-FastTrader
 
With all due respect to T-Rex .....

I'm glad this person was a broker and enjoyed it. However, selling is not trading. Brokers are sales people and IMHO I would not give too much credibility to anything a sales person tells you without verifying it with several sources.

I worked at the CME during the days it was still starting up its major makets and establishing the mechanics of its markets.

I agree that you need to learn from somebody: this means you need to work at a firm or exchange etc and learn first what not to do since your first goal should be to not lose money.

However for the right person who is prepared - from training and educational background - trading can be a great career at the right firm or even with your own capital provided you truly know what you are doing.

So I guess my point is be careful who you listen to ..... and dont hink that this is different than any other profession: there is a training path and you need to train with legitimate experts - not salespeople.
 
it all depends on your capital. if you've got the dough, give it a shot....if not....don't touch it. trade in your free time
 
From all of the doom and gloom around here it would sound as if it is nearly impossible to be a career trader. I agree that a person should not quit everything and embark upon the quest to be a career trader until they are fully ready. By ready I mean psychologically, financially, and have already been successful trading prior to going full-time. I also agree that most beginners have unrealistic expectations, I know I did. However I can think of professions that require much more effort and are much harder than trading. Take sports for example. What percentage of athletes actually make it to the professional level. Of those, how many make it more than a year or two. I do not have numbers but being an ex-athlete I would be willing to bet that becoming a professional athlete is much harder than trading. At least in trading you are not limited by your physical attributes. For those who have not participated in professional sports, it is extremely hard mentally and psychologically as well as physically. Also, being a successful business owner is just as hard a being a successful trader, perhaps harder. 95% of all start ups fail within 5-years. Are statistics for traders all that different. At least when trading you do not have to worry about anything but yourself. No employees, inventory, customers etc.. Also keep this in mind. People spend 4-5 years and 40K-100K+ for a college education that only provides book smarts. The real world is much different than college where experience counts more than book smarts. The same goes for trading. You can be as book smart as you like, but there is no substitute for experience.

Knowing what I know now. If I was 24 and had a good stash of money saved and lived at home with little to no expenses I would devote all I could to becoming a trader. What do you have to lose? You do not have a family, bills, house note, car note and whatever debt that most people have. I came from college with no knowledge what so ever of the markets. Fortunately I landed a job at a FOREX brokerage house that only lasted three months but were some of the most educational three months of my life. I wasn't in a position to take advantage of the opportunity I had at that time due to other considerations such as a family, house note, car note and so forth. That's why I trade part time while holding a full time job to get enough experience to be a full-time trader, WHEN THE TIME IS RIGHT.

For those who feel that learning to trade is not worth it due to the effort involved and the emotional difficulties, my opinion is that you are weak minded and and should stick with a boss who can tell you what to do and what not to do. Unfortunately a good majority of the population is too weak minded and cannot face adversity and challenge head on and not admit defeat to succeed at much of anything. They are the losers in trading and other activities that that require you to be the boss. The mind is what separates the losers from the winners. Conquer it and you can conquer anything. Except flying without wings.
 
Quote from Fast_Trader:

OMG...I feel sorry for this guy even posting this question here on ET! Why are all of you still trading if it's so hard and "not worth it"? If you treat this like a BUSINESS, you will have a very good shot at succeeding. It's not a get-rich-quick scheme where you sit in front of your PC and people pour money into your account. Sure, it takes work, and being a little smart with numbers helps, but it's not impossible.

-FastTrader
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I completely agree.

Perhaps a lot of young people get enchanted on trading because it has been called the hottest game in town.

Trading is too far from be a software- computer game. Its a business. Actually a serious one.

It is much much easier get rich quickly and without any capital risk more than 5 bucks.

Get a lottery ticket and play the odds.

Sadly, we realized through most of the ET threads the (low) level of ( trading) education we , the so named Traders have.
 
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