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Hallmark of a Position Day Trader

  
  Education
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  • Routine and Predictable daily methodology
  • Psychological Control: Discipline, Focus, Patience
  • Macro vs Micro Market Analysis … seeing the Big Picture
  • Comprehensive intraday Hit List analysis
  • Multiple intraday Set-up opportunities
  • Various chart pattern recognition … low risk opportunities
  • Capital preservation = risking less than 50% maximum stop loss.
  • Expectation & Time Exits: Scalp, Breakeven, Profit Target, Let Profits Run
  • Trading Execution Commitment: honoring Set-up signals, not P&L

    • 10 Lessons from Michael Batnick’s Book ‘Big Mistakes’

      
    Analysis, Education

    Image result for big mistakes michael batnickIn his first book, Michael Batnick outlines the big investing and trading mistakes of some of the most successful investors and brightest minds that are known to humankind. Most mistakes revolve around the same themes:
    – being overleveraged and building too big positions in assets that were illiquid or suddenly became illiquid;
    – venturing outside of expert zone when having to manage a much bigger amount of capital;
    – overconfidence and hubris;
    – normal mistakes that cannot really be prevented; they are part of the investing process;
    – fear of missing out.

    I enjoyed reading Michael’s book . It is not a how-to book. It is an interesting dive into market history and psychology. Here are some of the more interesting insights I found:

    1. Leverage made Livermore his fortune, leverage destroyed him. He knew everything one can possibly know about market psychology and price action but it seems he never learned how to control risk – it was a constant all or nothing betting for him. No wonder he went broke 4 times.

    2. Ben Graham understood that no approach works all the time. There are time and place for everything. Markets evolve and some concepts stop working. A margin of safety doesn’t matter during periods of forced liquidation, especially when you are leveraged to the hill.

    3. “A high IQ guarantees you nothing! This is one of the hardest things for newer investors to come to grips with, that markets don’t compensate you just for being smart.” and “Intelligence in investing is not absolute; it’s relative. In other words, it doesn’t just matter how smart you are, it matters how smart your competition is.”

    4. “Putting too much money into something you don’t fully understand is a good way to lose a lot of money. But what’s more damaging than losing money is the psychological scar tissue that remains after the money vanishes.”

    5. “Once something belongs to us, objective thinking flies out the window.” (more…)

    4 Trading Mistakes

      
      Education
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    1.  Do the Math
     

    Sit down and go over your expected Risk to Reward Ratio for each trade.  If you have already been trading for a period of time sit down and analyse how much you are making each trade and your winning %.  These two numbers will help you formulate a solid profit goal.  No trading strategy works 100% of the time so you need to work out how much you lose per losing trade vs. how much you make per winning trade and then figure in your percentages.  From there you should have a realistic idea of how much you can expect to make in through your trading. 

    2.  Don’t Expect Instant Returns
     

    Trading is a business and like any other business it requires not only capital investment but time investment as well.  It takes time to find your rhythm and develop your trading skills.  Try not to be to hard on yourself during the learning phase and remember to focus on the positive aspects of your trading.  The vast majority of traders lose money and this number is even higher with traders who are just starting out.  Factor this in when you are setting your goals.

    3.  Skill vs. Profits
     

    Try to come up with goals that are not directly tied to your P&L statements.  For example, set a goal of following your rules for every trade for an entire trading day.  Once that is completed shoot for an entire week, then a month, and pretty soon you will be doing following your rules without even realising it.   Train yourself to develop your trading skills and reward yourself when you reach those goals. 

    4.  It Takes Money
     

    It takes money to make money.  Small accounts are fantastic for testing out whether or not trading is for you but when you get serious and want to go full time make sure you have enough capital to support your business.  Solid traders should expect to make 8% in the market over the course of a month.  That equates to 96% over a given trading year.  Make sure this figure allows you to have the lifestyle that you are expecting. 

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