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Anyone Trading For A Living?
Member Since Jan 14, 2010
541 posts
Sep 10, 2012 at 12:37
I'm wondering how many traders are actually trading for a living? Please do not spam you system here as that is not the point of this topic. What I'm looking to find out is the answers to the following questions, (if you are trading for a living):
- How did you make the move from part time trading to fulltime?
- What starting capital did you require to trade full time?
- Has your performance changed once you did the transition from part to fulltime?
- Are you happy with your decision?
- Do you trade only your own money? Either yes or no, why?
- Do you see yourself still trading fulltime in the long term?
If more questions come to mind, I will be sure to post them as well 😄
- How did you make the move from part time trading to fulltime?
- What starting capital did you require to trade full time?
- Has your performance changed once you did the transition from part to fulltime?
- Are you happy with your decision?
- Do you trade only your own money? Either yes or no, why?
- Do you see yourself still trading fulltime in the long term?
If more questions come to mind, I will be sure to post them as well 😄
Sep 10, 2012 at 17:28
My goal is that but unfortunately i did not reached it yet. I have traded the forex market for about one and a half year. I have learned a lot, lossed a lot, and I hope I will one of them who trade for a living next year. I never ever give up! :)
Don't PANIC!
Member Since Jan 14, 2010
2279 posts
Sep 10, 2012 at 23:21
working on this.
Member Since Oct 27, 2011
59 posts
Sep 11, 2012 at 05:59
I do, and a number of people I work with also trade for a living.
A couple of things they have in common:
- At least 3 years trading experience
- Target a minimum of 20 pip profit targets
- Trade the London/US sessions
- Most have employed the use of a mentor when starting.
It's not easy, and most people don't have the emotional stability to do it. But I can tell you that there are plenty of people out there making good money trading FX.
A couple of things they have in common:
- At least 3 years trading experience
- Target a minimum of 20 pip profit targets
- Trade the London/US sessions
- Most have employed the use of a mentor when starting.
It's not easy, and most people don't have the emotional stability to do it. But I can tell you that there are plenty of people out there making good money trading FX.
Find your passion and work hard
Member Since Jan 14, 2010
541 posts
Sep 11, 2012 at 07:48
zlion posted:
My goal is that but unfortunately i did not reached it yet. I have traded the forex market for about one and a half year. I have learned a lot, lossed a lot, and I hope I will one of them who trade for a living next year. I never ever give up! :)
That's great to hear you don't give up. A big psychological factor in trading is to be able to hang in there through the rough times.
Member Since Jan 14, 2010
541 posts
Sep 11, 2012 at 07:50
Chikot posted:
working on this.
😀 That's quite concise.
How long have you been working on this if I may know? Were there times where you thought you're already there just to find out you're not? (this is something I've experienced many times and still do).
Member Since Jan 14, 2010
541 posts
Sep 11, 2012 at 07:51
NickMcDonald posted:
I do, and a number of people I work with also trade for a living.
A couple of things they have in common:
- At least 3 years trading experience
- Target a minimum of 20 pip profit targets
- Trade the London/US sessions
- Most have employed the use of a mentor when starting.
It's not easy, and most people don't have the emotional stability to do it. But I can tell you that there are plenty of people out there making good money trading FX.
Great. I would really appreciate if you can answer my questions in the first post 😄 (Thanks!)
Member Since Jan 14, 2010
2279 posts
Sep 11, 2012 at 08:02
(edited Sep 11, 2012 at 08:04)
basically I had a long break from trading as you might know from my journal. since December 2010 till this June end I practically had time to trade only last summer when I was trading oil live. I think I am there and I think I have been there for some time.
I can say one thing that I am constantly improving and as soon as I have enough data will be looking for some firm to join. I am actually going to start my attempts soon but not with FX. Futures. FX I am trading long term trend following I am displaying now on my live account and day trading I will go with different instruments. When I have enough data for trend following will be looking for funding too. started trading September 2008. no prior experience.
I can say one thing that I am constantly improving and as soon as I have enough data will be looking for some firm to join. I am actually going to start my attempts soon but not with FX. Futures. FX I am trading long term trend following I am displaying now on my live account and day trading I will go with different instruments. When I have enough data for trend following will be looking for funding too. started trading September 2008. no prior experience.
Member Since Jan 14, 2010
541 posts
Sep 11, 2012 at 14:59
Chikot posted:
basically I had a long break from trading as you might know from my journal. since December 2010 till this June end I practically had time to trade only last summer when I was trading oil live. I think I am there and I think I have been there for some time.
I can say one thing that I am constantly improving and as soon as I have enough data will be looking for some firm to join. I am actually going to start my attempts soon but not with FX. Futures. FX I am trading long term trend following I am displaying now on my live account and day trading I will go with different instruments. When I have enough data for trend following will be looking for funding too. started trading September 2008. no prior experience.
Sounds good. Quite surprising you're going with futures and not forex - I always though futures aren't that popular, especially if you're accustomed to quick moves like with forex.
So you're currently doing this part time? Are you a bit scared to switch to full time? I mean, it's like putting all of your eggs in the same basket, so to speak. Do you have a plan B for the worst case scenario?
Member Since Jan 14, 2010
2279 posts
Sep 11, 2012 at 18:41
I simply got few companies who are testing traders willing to trade OPM with futures. The process of selection is tough but funding and later pay is far better than anything proposed here. It is only for day traders. Futures are actually a better intra day trading instrument than FX. FX may be more jerky but we have no information about volume which is very important piece of information. Been practicing futures and things are going well.
FX is longer term trend following project for me.
FX is longer term trend following project for me.
Member Since Jan 14, 2010
541 posts
Sep 12, 2012 at 14:23
Chikot posted:
I simply got few companies who are testing traders willing to trade OPM with futures. The process of selection is tough but funding and later pay is far better than anything proposed here. It is only for day traders. Futures are actually a better intra day trading instrument than FX. FX may be more jerky but we have no information about volume which is very important piece of information. Been practicing futures and things are going well.
FX is longer term trend following project for me.
Do those companies have any requirement for if you're trading part-time or full-time? Or are they interested only with positive figures? Also, do they allow you to trade the account(s) from your home? Or do you need to physically be in their offices? (I always wondered about these! 😄)
Member Since Jan 14, 2010
2279 posts
Sep 12, 2012 at 16:20
James I PMed you
forex_trader_67886
Member Since Mar 02, 2012
1 posts
Sep 13, 2012 at 14:25
Of course. But difficult!
forex_trader_29148
Member Since Feb 11, 2011
1768 posts
Sep 13, 2012 at 15:41
been learning for the past 7 years,trading for living since 9 months,though a rough road ,learning everyday,good luck to all of you doing the same thing 😄
Member Since May 30, 2012
124 posts
Sep 14, 2012 at 07:17
Got big respect for people who can trade the market
only been learning forex for 1.5 years, made a lot of rookie mistakes, lost some cash,
manual trading isn't for me, so i quickly started learning the programming language.
Hope to make it in forex trading with own systems and get a monthly income eventually.
lets jope for a happy ending :)
I like this topic because it is indeed a step to consider, when does someone make trading their (parttime) job.
only been learning forex for 1.5 years, made a lot of rookie mistakes, lost some cash,
manual trading isn't for me, so i quickly started learning the programming language.
Hope to make it in forex trading with own systems and get a monthly income eventually.
lets jope for a happy ending :)
I like this topic because it is indeed a step to consider, when does someone make trading their (parttime) job.
I am the change in the market that causes you to lose :p / Watch out before I negative pip you! ^^
Member Since Jan 14, 2010
541 posts
Sep 14, 2012 at 07:43
rob559 posted:
been learning for the past 7 years,trading for living since 9 months,though a rough road ,learning everyday,good luck to all of you doing the same thing 😄
You must be a very patient man if you were able to learn for 7 years - that's like getting a phd! Doctor rob559 😀
How has it been going for you? Why do you say a "though road"? Have you experienced large losses/setbacks?
On the same topic, how much starting capital do you think is required to have in your trading account for full-time trading?
Sep 15, 2012 at 12:02
From the first day I got to know what is ForeX I planned to live from it.
What I like in it is:
- "Flexible" work hours - I work when I want...
- I'm not "tied" to one place- I can do it at home , cafe or during holidays in Spain ;)
- No boss over me
- As I only scalp- it takes few hours to make those 10-15 pips daily and the rest of the day I can spend doing what I like ;)
It took me one year to find suitable to my nature ( and profitable) trading system. In my opinion main problem traders have is lack of patience... If you hope to earn more then 2-3% daily you can forget about earning at all...
What I like in it is:
- "Flexible" work hours - I work when I want...
- I'm not "tied" to one place- I can do it at home , cafe or during holidays in Spain ;)
- No boss over me
- As I only scalp- it takes few hours to make those 10-15 pips daily and the rest of the day I can spend doing what I like ;)
It took me one year to find suitable to my nature ( and profitable) trading system. In my opinion main problem traders have is lack of patience... If you hope to earn more then 2-3% daily you can forget about earning at all...
Lack of patience is one of the most important reasons of forex traders failure
forex_trader_29148
Member Since Feb 11, 2011
1768 posts
Sep 15, 2012 at 21:13
James_Bond posted:experience is the sum of your mistakes ,applies to me very well 😀,been on and off the market lost thousands (rough road),went off completly for 1 year,back since 2009 ,only time can get you to assimilate from from your mistakes.rob559 posted:
been learning for the past 7 years,trading for living since 9 months,though a rough road ,learning everyday,good luck to all of you doing the same thing 😄
You must be a very patient man if you were able to learn for 7 years - that's like getting a phd! Doctor rob559 😀
How has it been going for you? Why do you say a "though road"? Have you experienced large losses/setbacks?
On the same topic, how much starting capital do you think is required to have in your trading account for full-time trading?
i think the most important thing is to be able to get a real feeling of the market,being able to trade fundamentals along with thech analysis,being able to follow the world news everyday. nowadays traders are waiting for news to happen if not market go silent. a minimum of 40,000 is needed to make a decent living . what about you are you doing part time or full time?
Member Since May 30, 2012
124 posts
Sep 16, 2012 at 13:40
rob559 posted:
a minimum of 40,000 is needed to make a decent living .
On what grounds do you get/calculate this number? :)
I am the change in the market that causes you to lose :p / Watch out before I negative pip you! ^^
Member Since May 30, 2012
124 posts
Sep 16, 2012 at 14:12
I've calculated my minimum capital requirements for me that i would be able to get a decent living from trading.
unfortunatly i've just graduated, am looking for a job and am short on cash.
But here's the math:
In my country I would be able to live from 3000 USD/month, which is more than I would earn working.
So for 20 trading days present in a month I would need to gain 150 USD/day
I currently have 3 mini real accounts with my current broker I can use to get to this 150 USD/day so this will result in 50 USD/account
Now: my current stratigy allows me to gain a 5 USD -10 USD/day for each ea active on a chart
to run the EA safely multiple times(5times) I would need 4000 USD/account
So the minimal capital:
12 000 USD in the case an average of (10 USD/day)/EA run is gotten
24 000 USD in the case an average of (5 USD/day)/EA run is gotten
now to apply this in real life:
Lets say I save 1000 USD/month when I have a job, living with mom and dad, my future would be I needed to work less then 2 years to be indipendant, knowing I'm running 3 accounts each with 1 time the EA the odds will be I reach this target within 1 year.
So I envy those people who already have 30 000 USD starting cash and in my opinion should be set for life :)
but then again if everyone could reach these targets the economy would collapse :D
To top this all off and make nonsense of what I wrote above, I'm only trading this stratigy live for 3 weeks with the small cash I have, so this isnt bulletproof nor has the stratigy been proven to never crash. Even though I hadn't had a day to have losses with this stratigy, I can not garantee succes :) no one can, we can just make an educated guess.
So fingers crossed :D
unfortunatly i've just graduated, am looking for a job and am short on cash.
But here's the math:
In my country I would be able to live from 3000 USD/month, which is more than I would earn working.
So for 20 trading days present in a month I would need to gain 150 USD/day
I currently have 3 mini real accounts with my current broker I can use to get to this 150 USD/day so this will result in 50 USD/account
Now: my current stratigy allows me to gain a 5 USD -10 USD/day for each ea active on a chart
to run the EA safely multiple times(5times) I would need 4000 USD/account
So the minimal capital:
12 000 USD in the case an average of (10 USD/day)/EA run is gotten
24 000 USD in the case an average of (5 USD/day)/EA run is gotten
now to apply this in real life:
Lets say I save 1000 USD/month when I have a job, living with mom and dad, my future would be I needed to work less then 2 years to be indipendant, knowing I'm running 3 accounts each with 1 time the EA the odds will be I reach this target within 1 year.
So I envy those people who already have 30 000 USD starting cash and in my opinion should be set for life :)
but then again if everyone could reach these targets the economy would collapse :D
To top this all off and make nonsense of what I wrote above, I'm only trading this stratigy live for 3 weeks with the small cash I have, so this isnt bulletproof nor has the stratigy been proven to never crash. Even though I hadn't had a day to have losses with this stratigy, I can not garantee succes :) no one can, we can just make an educated guess.
So fingers crossed :D
I am the change in the market that causes you to lose :p / Watch out before I negative pip you! ^^
