Are You a Hundredaire????

[Gekko78 10]

Hello friends,

 

I was asked today, by a friend who always overhears me talk about trading, are you rich? Do you make a killing in the market? How do I get started??

 

I said not I am not rich and I said what is your definition of a killing?? For a person who makes $20,000 a year , making 1000 a week trading is a killing , but to someone who makes $250,000 a year , a $1000 a week is ok.

 

 

I said maybe I "could" make a killing but I honestly have not tried to.......I started trading because I have loved the markets since I Was a kid and I love money so the two go hand in hand...

 

I trade now just to help supplement my wife's income so she can stay at home with my son and he can be raised by a parent instead of a stranger

 

Would I love to make millions every year?? Of course who wouldn't However , I am not mentally or emotionally ready to handle that kind of cash and if I tried , at least right now , I am pretty sure I would fail.......It is the same reason why you read about poor people who win the lottery for 200 million dollars only to lose it all just a few short years later......subconsciously they were not ready to have that kind of cash......their mind and sub conscience forced them to get rid of the money and get to a level they felt comfortable at Everyone has a level of self worth whether you believe it or not it is true.

 

Have you ever run across someone who keeps themselves from being successful? It seems like they are giving countless opportunities to succeed yet the either do not take it or fail miserably at it?? These are the exact people I am talking about ...I know because I lived with one for 20 years.

 

 

Many people on forums claim to be successful and making serious money in trading.....all truth be told I seriously doubt most of them are ........Remember that old saying : "Those who can .....do , those who cannot ......teach"

 

 

It also depends on what you own personal definition of success is.....The best definition I have ever come across was by an unknown author who said " Success is the progressive realization of a worthy ideal" In short this means that you are doing what you set out to do and actually pulling it of...........Success in NOT money in the bank , it is not a car or a house......It is the woman who quits her job to stay at home with her newborn son because that's what she wanted to do......if she does it and pulls it off she is a smashing success......It is the man who quits being a lawyer and moves up to a mountain top and feed the squirrels because that's what he wanted to do......if he goes and does it and pulls it off he also is a smashing success. If your goals is to simply make $5 a week and you do it then you are a success.......In my mind I am successful because I set out to trade to supplement my wifes income so she can stay home and I am pulling it off ( at least for now ) so I am a success.

 

Anyway ....I am a hundredaire ......and am perfectly happy making a few hundred bucks a week from the market until such time when I feel ready to become a thousandaire!

 

 

So who is with me?? Who is also content and happy to be a hundredaire??!!!!!! :applaud:

Edited January 30, 2013 by Gekko78

[Mysticforex 13]

Nice post Gekko78,

 

It sounds like you are comfortable where you are. And that's a good thing.

I have never made a Million $$ a year trading either.

 

 

I like the idea about Lotto winners.

[MightyMouse 12]

Good Post!

 

There is something called I/R theory which proposes that someone who does not have high self esteem is out of his comfort zone if he achieves a bit of success, such as a lottery win, or a lucky trade, etc. He will, then, through self sabotage, whittle down the success until he is back in his comfort zone. The way to fix it is to increase his self esteem.

 

I suppose I would be a thousandaire. I don't use the money for anything other than building my account. I made a double digit return in 2012 and am very content, but the money on its own couldn't fund a family in Appalachia.

 

Making millions in the market means trading much, much bigger size. It is a very different game than trading 1-10 lots. I assume that in time as my account grows that I will learn to play that game, but if I don't I will remain content to take what I am taking.

[BlueHorseshoe 10]

 

Many people on forums claim to be successful and making serious money in trading.....all truth be told I seriously doubt most of them are ........Remember that old saying : "Those who can .....do , those who cannot ......teach"

 

Hi Gekko,

 

I agree with what you're saying about success - a lot of it comes back to your own goals versus other people's expectations. I am particularly poor at managing other people's expectations and envious of those who can take a "f**k you" attitude and be genuine about it.

 

With regard to your example, if the $250k salary bloke starts trading with all of last years income and makes $1k a week, then that's a 20% return on capital, which is pretty damn good!

 

I used to like to throw the old "those who can . . . " quote about as a teenager (it's an especially fun thing to say to a teacher, believe me!). Is it GB Shaw? Anyway, then I thought about it. Just because a high school physics teacher doesn't work at CERN doesn't mean they don't know a damn sight more about physics than a sixteen year old.

 

I come here to try and offer help (teach?) those who might know less than I do, and to learn from those who know more than I do. The way I figure it, the more time I spend explaining the diference between an SMA and an EMA to complete newbies, the more time people like MysticForex or MightyMouse posting above will have to spend helping me.

 

There are probably no real 'experts' in trading, and you don't have to be an expert to help someone out - you just need to have a bit more knowledge or experience than they do.

 

BlueHorseshoe

[Gekko78 10]

Hi Gekko,

 

I agree with what you're saying about success - a lot of it comes back to your own goals versus other people's expectations. I am particularly poor at managing other people's expectations and envious of those who can take a "f**k you" attitude and be genuine about it.

 

With regard to your example, if the $250k salary bloke starts trading with all of last years income and makes $1k a week, then that's a 20% return on capital, which is pretty damn good!

 

I used to like to throw the old "those who can . . . " quote about as a teenager (it's an especially fun thing to say to a teacher, believe me!). Is it GB Shaw? Anyway, then I thought about it. Just because a high school physics teacher doesn't work at CERN doesn't mean they don't know a damn sight more about physics than a sixteen year old.

 

I come here to try and offer help (teach?) those who might know less than I do, and to learn from those who know more than I do. The way I figure it, the more time I spend explaining the diference between an SMA and an EMA to complete newbies, the more time people like MysticForex or MightyMouse posting above will have to spend helping me.

 

There are probably no real 'experts' in trading, and you don't have to be an expert to help someone out - you just need to have a bit more knowledge or experience than they do.

 

BlueHorseshoe

 

Blue ,

 

Yes you are right about some people who teach .......but I would say more people who teach are not successful in what they teach. It reminds me of people who try and tell you how to start a business and be successful yet , they have never done it themselves they just know what "should" work ...... College professors and Politicians often fall into this category from my experience. In fact I am taking a course right now in IT. We sit there and laugh about much of what she says as she has been out of the game for some time. Her information would be relevant if we were say , still in the 1990's . What she teaches "used" to be relevant but now I can learn more for free over the internet. She says she just likes teaching and will do it until she cannot anymore. Sadly there are many others like her in the world doing the exact same thing.......teaching outdated methods so they can get $$

 

I didn't really think about the $250,000 person in a % return situation ...I should have said like $2,000,000 or something ...I was just trying to make the point of a killing to one person is different than a killing to another.

Edited January 30, 2013 by Gekko78

[Gekko78 10]

Good Post!

 

There is something called I/R theory which proposes that someone who does not have high self esteem is out of his comfort zone if he achieves a bit of success, such as a lottery win, or a lucky trade, etc. He will, then, through self sabotage, whittle down the success until he is back in his comfort zone. The way to fix it is to increase his self esteem.

 

I suppose I would be a thousandaire. I don't use the money for anything other than building my account. I made a double digit return in 2012 and am very content, but the money on its own couldn't fund a family in Appalachia.

 

Making millions in the market means trading much, much bigger size. It is a very different game than trading 1-10 lots. I assume that in time as my account grows that I will learn to play that game, but if I don't I will remain content to take what I am taking.

 

Thanks Yes I studied that theory in my BA degree a few years ago and it does hold true. Self esteem needs to be changed but it cannot happen overnight ( like the lottery people) and it can be quite hard when you have been programmed your whole life to think you are not as good as others......it takes a long time.

 

I learned (finally) a long time ago that emotions and your emotional state are keys to success in trading , and almost anything is life for that matter , the ability to harness these things and control them are what separate the lucky ones from the consistent ones.

[Mysticforex 13]

Thanks Yes I studied that theory in my BA degree a few years ago and it does hold true. Self esteem needs to be changed but it cannot happen overnight ( like the lottery people) and it can be quite hard when you have been programmed your whole life to think you are not as good as others......it takes a long time.

 

I learned (finally) a long time ago that emotions and your emotional state are keys to success in trading , and almost anything is life for that matter , the ability to harness these things and control them are what separate the lucky ones from the consistent ones.

 

Ahhh... now you are starting to get close to the heart of the matter with trading.

When I attend a seminar or webinar it's not about learning a new system.

I am up to my eyebrows with MAs, ossilators, MACDs, support and resistance, supply and demand, overbought or oversold. What I look for is, does the Presenter "THINK' like a trader.

[Gekko78 10]

Ahhh... now you are starting to get close to the heart of the matter with trading.

When I attend a seminar or webinar it's not about learning a new system.

I am up to my eyebrows with MAs, ossilators, MACDs, support and resistance, supply and demand, overbought or oversold. What I look for is, does the Presenter "THINK' like a trader.

 

Mystic,

 

I as well used to up to my eyeballs in all kinds of indicators.....I used to have so many indicators on my charts that I could barely see the price......I had all these "rules" and requirements that needed to be met before I would place a trade. The problem was that since so many things need to line up at the same time I hardly ever was able to take a trade. Even when I would take a trade I would get out to early and miss out and big moves.

 

I finally came across a book that totally changed my trading life......after I read that book , I deleted everything , except price , off my charts and started over. Realizing that there is only 1 POSSIBLE leading indicator that could exist and that is price. All over indicators are based on price. The thing you always here when watching someone trade or reading a trading website is " Past performance is not indicative of future results" well that same statement also applies to indicators. So with price as my guide I developed a method that allowed me to see the markets for what it truly is ......simply buyers and sellers coming together.

 

With these things in mind I was able to focus more and control my emotional state a lot more. Since I had developed my own method I trusted it much more than anything I saw on a forum.

 

Now my charts are very clean (see attached) and allow me take set ups more frequently with better returns........

 

One thing that really helped me emotionally was just assuming that the money I had in my account was already lost since I do not need it to survive. It is a good supplement but not critical......With that in mind if the money is already lost then I have nothing to lose. This let me be calm and jut trade . If I win great! If I lose that is fine to....losses happen.

 

You can have the greatest method or system in the world but without proper execution of it and understanding of the market it becomes as useless as tits on a boar hog

[Gekko78 10]

Also pertaining to "systems" and "methods" and how they relate to each person is critical as well. Being comfortable with your emotions is not just about MM. It also lends itself to the style and time frame you are comfortable with.

 

As an example I have read , seen and heard from a number of traders in all markets that one should start with higher time frames as the success rate is better than say a 5 or 15 min chart . While I understand this ....this is something I have never been able to do .....I do not like longer time frames in fact , I could say I hate them.......so my brain already goes against longer time frames......Even when I tried to use them I failed miserably.....my wiring is not set up to accept longer time frames and that is that. So I do not try and force myself to trade the time frames I do not like. My personality is that of a short term scalper.....No , not for the quick buck but, for the quick time........Time is my enemy ....the longer I am in a trade the more likely I am to convince myself that I am wrong.....Also with the longer time frames I have a tendency to take profits to quickly. Having a target of say 60 and it reaching 30 I would say " ok 30 is enough I will just take that instead of letting it run to 60.

 

With scalping I am in and out usually within 5-10 minutes. That is what I need .....the more time I have to "think" and "analyze" the worse I become.

 

So instead of trying to change my weaknesses I play to my strengths.....which is short time frames. This makes me comfortable and comfort emotionally and mentally is key when trading.

 

 

I do get upset when I read on forums and people say "scalping does not work" What they should be saying is "scalping does not work for me"

 

However, most people I know scalp for the wrong reason ...they scalp because they think it gives them the ability to use more leverage with smaller stop and make money faster ......THAT kind of scalping is what gets people in trouble ....I do not do that .....I scalp for a different reason ......Hey I like leverage just as much as the next guy but I rarely use it......I trade 1 contract ......MAYBE 2 depending on conditions.

 

 

So when you are trying to control your emotions it is more than just being able to hadle wins and losses there is a lot more that most people do not factor in.

 

Figure out what type of person you are first.........are you ok with letting a trade last for 3-4 days to hit your target or will you go nuts watching it?>

 

There is no wrong answer to this question but , the answer for each individual person is key to their long term success. :missy:

[Mysticforex 13]

So pray tell, what is the name of the book?

[Gekko78 10]

So pray tell, what is the name of the book?

 

Oh sorry I forgot to include that in the post......It's not a secret or anything.....It is just Trading in the Zone .....I am sure many have read it and are familiar with it .........

[Gekko78 10]

Hundredaire's sound off!

[Gekko78 10]

Still a successful hundredaire and loving it.

 

That is all , carry on.