Has trading worked out for you?

Thanks SKC/Mclovin.

Trading is one of those rare endevours in life where it gets harder day by day for a long time before it gets a little easier.

I guess me being arrogant and naive enough to have the attitude and impression i had at the beginning like you guys mentioned above set me up to fail and be dissapointed beyond belief.

Hence leading me to want to succeed even more badly.

Once Canoz agreed to mentor me, that was like the best day of my life. You truly understand the oppurtunity and make sure that its not taken for granted.

For example, I try to inspire my younger brother and teach him all the mistakes to avoid and set him on the correct path to trading but he hasnt earned it nor bled sort of speak to understand what im truly offering. So he doesnt really care.

In the end I think most people could do well in it if they had the right guidance to lay out a good foundation. Most people might give up but if you keep going, you will eventually get your break.

Ps, i hope i dont sound cocky.
my intention was to possibly motivate some one to keep their dream alive long enough till it works out.

Kind regards

DH

Oh yeah, one mkre amazing thing ive discovered.

As a result of all of this and the new dedication/discipline and work ethic ive built from trading, which is potentially my blue print to success, ive been trying to project
that mind set to all aspects of my life.

It is ultimately one of those very difficult endevours which I believe if you can overcome will develop you into a very mentally strong individual.

All the best,

DH

McLovin said:

Holy cr@p. I had to double check this was the same poster who wanted to open an "underground fund" last year. Well done DH. I'm amazed.

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Indeed!

skc said:

I see that you joined the forum in Nov 2007. I think you said you are 26 so you joined as an 18 year old. Are you telling us that, you have not been able to save enough money to fund your own live account over 8 years?! How much do you need to trade 1 DAX contract? $15-20k margin? I am trying not to pre-judge but you'd need a lot of bad luck or restricting circumstances if that's what stopping you from pursuing your dream. For 8 years!

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Yes would have to agree. That was what my long winded post was about at the start of the thread. Once you spend a bit of time looking at the markets if you have a traders brain (scary what that could actually be ) you will see what you have to do and go do it. You only need $2500 USD as min margin to trade the DAX, not much more just to take 20 or so ticks a night for a few months and build a small record for a prop shop to give you a chance.

That kind of money you can get from a credit card. Thats the path I would take rather than wasting 8 years trying to save 50 g.

Trembling Hand said:

Sam wrong question I reckon. Its about what opportunity and path you can see.

Blah
Blah
Blah


There is nothing wrong with having trading as a hobby for a long long time while you figure out your path. After all I think 99% of the people here are in that category. It is a problem though if its an excuse for not going out in the real world and searching for other more rewarding opportunities.

At some point though the "having another go at it" becomes more a stop loss move just so it doesn't get hit rather than a show of determination or a fight against bad luck.

You cannot walk down a path you cannot see.

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skc said:

I see that you joined the forum in Nov 2007. I think you said you are 26 so you joined as an 18 year old. Are you telling us that, you have not been able to save enough money to fund your own live account over 8 years?! How much do you need to trade 1 DAX contract? $15-20k margin? I am trying not to pre-judge but you'd need a lot of bad luck or restricting circumstances if that's what stopping you from pursuing your dream. For 8 years!.

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Ouch....thanks.

So it took 3 pages but we finally have at least two people who think I should throw in the towel because of my circumstances. That's fair, I'll take that on the chin.

For fear of getting banned, that's all I'll say. Thanks for the input skc/TH. Got to be willing to accept all input

Feel free to keep sharing the stories everyone

ThingyMajiggy said:

Ouch....thanks.

So it took 3 pages but we finally have at least two people who think I should throw in the towel because of my circumstances. That's fair, I'll take that on the chin.

For fear of getting banned, that's all I'll say. Thanks for the input skc/TH. Got to be willing to accept all input

Feel free to keep sharing the stories everyone

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I'm not saying throw in the towel.

I'm saying for f^ck sake commit to your own success and give it a 100% dedicated effort. You don't have to save up 30g so you can trade 4 wild DAX contracts before you have a go. You know prop will look at you if you can scratch out a little upside without digging a hole on the bad days. If that means moving to another city and taking a night job 3 for days a week as a dishwasher then do that.

If it means trading a CFD for $1 a tick for a few months do that. If it means taking ownership of what you have done up to here and saying I actually have no idea and may never then that's it to. But asking have others done it doesn't help you make the decision as to can you see what you have to do to make it.

Mostly it aint pretty what is required to win.

ThingyMajiggy said:

Ouch....thanks.

So it took 3 pages but we finally have at least two people who think I should throw in the towel because of my circumstances. That's fair, I'll take that on the chin.

For fear of getting banned, that's all I'll say. Thanks for the input skc/TH. Got to be willing to accept all input

Feel free to keep sharing the stories everyone

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No one is asking you to throw in the towel. I am not sure how you come to that conclusion. I think we are all trying to encourage you to try your best and your hardest to pursue your dream.

We don't know your circumstance other than what you have chose to disclose... and may be there are legitimate reasons in your life that prevents you from taking that seemingly achievable first step. You don't need to explain or defend yourself to strangers on the internet... as long as you are honest with yourself and that's all it matters.

Trembling Hand said:

I'm not saying throw in the towel.

I'm saying for f^ck sake commit to your own success and give it a 100% dedicated effort. You don't have to save up 30g so you can trade 4 wild DAX contracts before you have a go. You know prop will look at you if you can scratch out a little upside without digging a hole on the bad days. If that means moving to another city and taking a night job 3 for days a week as a dishwasher then do that.

If it means trading a CFD for $1 a tick for a few months do that. If it means taking ownership of what you have done up to here and saying I actually have no idea and may never then that's it to. But asking have others done it doesn't help you make the decision as to can you see what you have to do to make it.

Mostly it aint pretty what is required to win.

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skc said:

No one is asking you to throw in the towel. I am not sure how you come to that conclusion. I think we are all trying to encourage you to try your best and your hardest to pursue your dream.

We don't know your circumstance other than what you have chose to disclose... and may be there are legitimate reasons in your life that prevents you from taking that seemingly achievable first step. You don't need to explain or defend yourself to strangers on the internet... as long as you are honest with yourself and that's all it matters.

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Thanks guys going to give 100%

Wall of text warning - May cause some drowsiness. Do not read before operating heavy machinery.

I'll provide some insight into the mind of the unsuccessful. This isn't directed at the OP, just a warning to eager yet undisciplined lurkers.

Have I been successful, no. Why? No dedication or focus. I might also be inept, but I haven't done enough to say. Lets look at the path I took -
After the GFC and my financial advisers advice of “Buy and hold with as much leverage as you can handle”, I decided I can lose money on my own without paying someone to do it for me. I started knowing absolutely nothing about trading. From there I got pulled in every direction. Stocks, forex, futures, options. Long term hold, end of day, intra day. Chart patterns, indicators, Elliot wave, VSA, tape reading, automated trading systems…

For the first three years all I did was work, eat, sleep and research trading. I'd spend 10-11hrs at work, come home and study trading for 4-5hrs every night. I had no life, surely I was dedicated right? Nope. In reality, trading was second place to work. That 4-5 hrs a day was when I was already mentally exhausted from my day job. My trading research covered too many topics and was too unfocused to get me anywhere. I made myself aware of many things, but not an expert at anything.

Eventually the workload in my day job grew even more. I take pride in doing my job well, so I pushed trading aside (temporarily I told myself).

So here I am now, years have passed, the more work I get done for my employer the more they throw at me. My last pay review increase was a nice round number... Zero (poor economic conditions you see). I have no life outside of work, the only people I talk to are work colleagues. My financial position is degrading with inflation. In the end I sacrificed my life for the the benefit of a company that doesn't even recognise my efforts. The effort continues because I am still dependant on them for my income. Too late I understand that leaving your financial success in the hands of an employer is a conflict of interest. Trading/investment is my only chance to make financial progress and I've poured too much into it to walk away. (there's a name for this particular form of false logic but it escapes me right now). But I've been out of it so long that I almost have to start from scratch. Trouble is that I'm burnt out now, I barely have the motivation to do the dishes each night let alone dedicate myself to a second job.

Don't end up like me, don't leave your future in others hands. But people hoping to succeed should take a good look at how dedicated they really are. Remember that how much effort you expend is a poor indicator of progress. What are you actually achieving? Is this right for you, or would your time be better spent on something else? Just don't spend your life looking for something else.

You've only got one life to live, only a limited amount of time to spend on anything in this world. Be careful what you burn your time on.

First of all, I would like to thank ThingyMajiggy for starting this thread. It has been really inspirational !!

I am very passionate to learn more and more about trading.
I do work full time and am struggling to find time. Just as Lone Wolf, I come home from work, and spend at least 2 hours on reading about trading.

My main problem is lack of focus. I want to learn technical analysis, Amibroker AFL, trading strategies, etc. etc. (all at once)and I do a little bit of everything each day. With this, I am going nowhere.


I have bought a book on technical analysis Martin Pring - Technical Analysis Explained. For now, I will focus on reading it and completing it before doing anything else.

Reading success stories of other members help to increase one's self belief.

Members of ASF have been very helpful.

Thanks everyone !!!

Thanks for the lessons Lone Wolf. It sounds very similar to how I first started (trying to learn everything and anything - HC was a regular source of info...).

What I realised a couple years back was that I needed a mentor to help direct/focus my efforts. I found getting this feedback very valuable and helped hone my strategy to become laser-like which has helped my performance.

Got my live account up and running finally, all set up with X_TRADER Pro, just going to slowly add to my account each pay from my day job, goal is to get to 5k-10k or so, its 2.5k to trade 1 lot on the DAX but would want a little more than that for some breathing room, but am happy because I can at least watch the live market and can trade on the sim.

I actually have enough to trade the Stoxx futs, which I had a little go in last night, a few scratches but +5 ticks but not planning on doing that too often, was just a couple of times it was pretty obvious it was going to at least make a new low or turn for a couple ticks so I jumped on to test the execution and platform out, make sure all was well Was actually a really quiet session last night, very range bound until the US opened, that livened it up a little.

Now to practice up on knowing when to walk away, knowing when I'm not on it, knowing the patterns(the struggle for me at the moment, feel like I should know more setups?), knowing that if I don't know, then I'm wrong already.

My setup....



Now I save, watch, trade

ThingyMajiggy said:

Got my live account up and running finally, all set up with X_TRADER Pro, just going to slowly add to my account each pay from my day job, goal is to get to 5k-10k or so, its 2.5k to trade 1 lot on the DAX but would want a little more than that for some breathing room, but am happy because I can at least watch the live market and can trade on the sim.



My setup....

View attachment 63676

Now I save, watch, trade

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How exciting congratulation on taking that step. Funnily enough I opened a Live futures account yesterday also. Did you try out any other Platforms other than X Trader? I Found it very difficult to use.

Out of curiosity why the DAX?

Good luck and keep us updated with your progress.

Modest said:

How exciting congratulation on taking that step. Funnily enough I opened a Live futures account yesterday also. Did you try out any other Platforms other than X Trader? I Found it very difficult to use.

Out of curiosity why the DAX?

Good luck and keep us updated with your progress.

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Yeah I actually wanted to go with CQG IC but its $595/month, which would impact pretty hard on my saving up to fund my account, so I've gone with X_TRADER on a transactional basis, so no monthly cost. I don't mind X_TRADER, I have used it plenty of times before so I know it fairly well, I want a direct connection to the exchange and its CQG or TT who offer that, CQG was out so TT it was

The DAX because it's what I know, have traded it more than anything else and it's one of the best markets technically and a LOT of opportunity on there, when it moves it really moves.

Thanks

Just be carefull on the DAX.

An average move on the DAX can really hurt you even on 1 contract.

On sim ive played moves where a tight range breaks out by 10 points instantly. Thats 250 euro in less than a blink of an eye. Even with a 10k account thats pain full but good luck.

darkhorse70 said:

Just be carefull on the DAX.

An average move on the DAX can really hurt you even on 1 contract.

On sim ive played moves where a tight range breaks out by 10 points instantly. Thats 250 euro in less than a blink of an eye. Even with a 10k account thats pain full but good luck.

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Yeah I know, it's a beast! Thanks

Wait for it to go.
Many times you'll see it just bounding up or down.
Jump on it.
The DAX respects S&R better than most I've traded.
If it spikes toward either----chances are it will test it.

Look for really high volume and fade it.

tech/a said:

Look for really high volume and fade it.

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You're sounding more and more like a prop trader........

tech/a said:

Wait for it to go.
Many times you'll see it just bounding up or down.
Jump on it.
The DAX respects S&R better than most I've traded.
If it spikes toward either----chances are it will test it.

Look for really high volume and fade it.

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Trembling Hand said:

You're sounding more and more like a prop trader........

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As I said to you the other day tech, it's harder to do when its unravelling live in front of me, what do you boys do when say you get a one bar pushing up on big volume, as that's happening live that is huge volume, so you fade? Then the next bar pushes even further on even bigger volume, it's hard to tell which one is going to be the "really high volume" when it's live.

I guess you just get chopped, out and back in again and just try to minimise the loss, suppose you can tell when it's going to go again and push further so it wouldn't be too bad....answering my own question now I guess

Sam
Your long/short high volume until it stalls.
Youll probably see that in a 1 min bar.
Fading volume may not mean a reversal of the dominant trend unless
It's a test of S&R

Just keep watching
You'll soon see it.

ThingyMajiggy said:

As I said to you the other day tech, it's harder to do when its unravelling live in front of me, what do you boys do when say you get a one bar pushing up on big volume, as that's happening live that is huge volume, so you fade? Then the next bar pushes even further on even bigger volume, it's hard to tell which one is going to be the "really high volume" when it's live.

I guess you just get chopped, out and back in again and just try to minimise the loss, suppose you can tell when it's going to go again and push further so it wouldn't be too bad....answering my own question now I guess

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I try to wait towards the end of a period, 1 min, 5 min or 15 min. When its getting pushed on volume its dudes doing the business.imp: They aren't going to stop until they have printed the bar they want. Which is normally a nice big long candle and often just through S/R to trap the 1 lot breakout crowd.

Though you are always faced with the possibility of missing it because because for every big swinging dick there are a few hundred just as big and wanting the opposite action. The only good thing you have going in your favour is they are patient and able to hold positions way off side. So as always for every good trade idea you still need very good timing to make it work.