Hi NE......my 2 cents worth. I am proud to say, that the answers you are receiving are the signs that this thread is truly a responsible thread, with very solid contributors. People can gloss over this job like many gloss over their lives. Its easy to portray yourself as a Porsche driving, risk taking, daytrading highflyer! The truth is this is "work" it's not an easy buck as some insist.
10-12 hours a day is the norm, period. It also doesn't not stop there, you continually rehash bad trades, your interpretation of a market signal, your choice and why you made it, your stupidity, your "intelligence"<gg>, your bank balance, your sanity etc. etc.
Your emotions swing from ellation, to frustration in 4.2 nano seconds. We'll all probably die of a heartattack and ulcers or both!
In saying that, your survival is really based on your ability to control "all of the above". To grow and learn by your mistakes, and to maintain a discipline level that is much higher than anywhere else, in any other job.
I have met many a trader over the years and probably only about 5% survive, the remainder eat their bank accounts in high risk trades, as a result of sustaining a previous loss. Once in that spiral, they double up, triple up, quadruple up, in an effort to prove that their initial trade and entry level was in fact "perfect" and the market is about to come back.
In the end, if you are able to discipline yourself and stick to a "SIGNIFICANT" rule set, then in time the effort is worth it. It takes about 2 years of fulltime daytrading to break even. The third year tends to be the start of your bread and butter year. That means you have to be able to survive with NO INCOME for a minimum of two years.
I can't recommend this life to anyone, you have to make your own choice. All I can say, is I don't regret doing it fulltime, but the advantage I have is that if I fail, I can walk away from it and do nothing and survive. Thats not bragging, its just a fact for me. I don't need to do this,......I do it because I like it, and I like the people I meet on the Internet that do it as well.
the Chief |
