I recently answered the above question on Quora. ” I won’t know how long it will take you. It took me 2 years for forex. Maybe I am slower. There are many elements to learn in trading in order to be consistently profitable – understanding market structure and determining the edges are just two of many. Money management, trading psychology, […]
(Found this interesting article I wrote many years ago whilst cleaning up old hard disks.) Worry the market has been too good? Not sure economic growth is really turning round … but do not want to miss the ride? With so many indices towering towards the sky, surely the sky will not fall…… Are there not many faithful riding the upstream […]
The Reward Risk (R:R) ratio helps a trader manage his trade – not provide a valuation of risk. R:R does not measure risk. Some strategies with “inferior” R:Rs are in fact safer (less risky) than some with higher R:Rs. A highly positive R:R ratio falsely assures many traders a risk is worth taking. If someone passing by my house tells me there is a large, hopeful gold vein in […]
Yesterday I was trying to explain to my young son what I actually do everyday. …… “So you must guess the price direction?” “Yeah, in a way, I try to guess intelligently of course.” “You must be really smart.” “Yeah, but smart has nothing to do with making money (in the markets).” “So you must be really lucky.” “That I […]
An old friend shared how discouraged he was with not being able to manage his impulsive trades. That evening we decided to observe how he traded the US session. He certainly was hard working and eyeballed every 5 minute bar. He had a reasonable trading strategy, but on several occasions strayed from the original plan, and “analyzed” various opportunities on the fly. Quite […]
Nervy Third Quarter The last quarter (June – Sep 2015) was a tragic tale with many acts. Some US$11 trillion was wiped out as stock markets were brutalized across Asia, Europe and US. Commodities accentuated their downward spirals, and funds continued their flight from emerging promised lands, (nearly US$1 trillion drained away over 13 months till July, much of it […]
In 2012, in one writing blitz I wrote a 65 pager for posterity,… here’s page 1. I hope it is illuminating to you as it is still to me. “Notes to Trading (for the average Joe) A trading system is merely a systematic approach towards the market place. A trading system with an edge is one that favors the probability […]
Over 3 years have flown by since I started trading – just a small part of the last 15 years I devoted to finding myself. Except for a compulsory 2 years’ stint in the military, no job or vocation had penetrated me with as much depth. Trading had been a highly personal interaction not only with the market, but always […]
A person’s journey is marked by the milestones he leaves in his wake. Imagine how short that journey will be if he keeps carrying the marker stones around. Recently my son was preparing for his first story telling competition. The young lad slaved without break and was all pumped with vivid imagination. He finished his first draft with a flourish […]
The Beginning Trader A few days ago, my friend (a reasonably new trader) was lamenting over his losses and mistakes. He felt miserable. If not for his naturally glowing persona, I presume he would have fallen into depression. I wish I could help him, but really I couldn’t do more than lend him a listening ear. There is no secret to […]