BlueFlare

Thank you all so much for all these responses. I really appreciate it! Hopefully I can use some of the information in this thread to convince potential employers of the parallel between poker and trading. Do you all think that is the road I should start out on (i.e. getting a job with a trading company) or should I just invest poker money into trading and trade on my own? What are the advantages / disadvantages of both of these? If I were to go the employed route, what is the best way to start? Thanks again in advance, all of this information has been so extremely helpful.

Hello everyone, I am extremely interested in becoming a trader but could really use some advice, guidance, and insight into my situation. First some background on me... I graduated from North Carolina at Chapel Hill two years ago with two degrees in economics and communications. Since then I have actually been playing poker professionally, mostly online combined with a few major live tournaments on the circuit. I decided to play poker out of school because of the freedom it allowed me ( I love traveling! ). I don't want to sound pompous but I was also making a ton of money playing cards. Recently I have had a strong desire to learn a new passion and to get into a more "legitimate" career. I have read several articles that parallel trading to playing poker, including one on this site! Everyone seems to say that they are very similar and if this is truly the case than trading would be right up my alley. My biggest question is what is the best way to get started? I would love to work for someone else or find some mentor or entity who could "show me the ropes", but i'm worried that everyone I talk to will frown upon the fact that I played poker for a living for two years. How competitive is getting a job as a trader? I would love to have a long term goal of owning my own trading company. Is this something I can learn to do on my own with time, hard work, brains, and will power? Or should I try to get my foot in the door with a company first? Thank you all so much in advance for all the help! Wonderful site and I can't wait to read the responses..