This is what it takes to be successful at trading (mindset)

Discussion in 'Psychology' started by djmartin, Sep 25, 2015.

  1. wrbtrader

    wrbtrader

    Psychology isn't a sale topic. Its real and for some...more real than ever after they've visited a psychologist or psychiatrist. Many have help people improve their lifestyle and careers. It's serious stuff.

    I have a friend that develop mental illness (bipolar) when he was at the top of his game in rowing. He had to quit the sport for two years because it killed his training and performance...after a few years of them getting his medication at the correct dosage...he was soon back on top.

    Mental game...its real.

    Many top jobs today make all potential employees take a psych test and there are questions on the application involving mental health, depression, stress management and so on. Heck, even special types of jobs involves psychological evaluations and some of them have continued psychological evaluations for employees...poor performance at work...they start asking questions and calling their in house psychologist if you need help.

    This stuff isn't a joke...too bad the only requirement for a retail trader to get involved in trading is 5k to 10k instead of putting a psychological evaluation in there too as a requirement like many of today's top jobs do. Reality, if brokers did such (pass a psychological evaluation)...many traders wouldn't pass and brokers will soon be out of business.

    If I'm not mistaken, several congressman propose such back in the 90's after two mass shootings by day traders that flipped.

    Simply, I think psychology is very underrated.

     
    Last edited: Sep 25, 2015
    #11     Sep 25, 2015
  2. volente_00

    volente_00

    I was trading ES the night this video was made. First time I ever saw it trade limit down.
    1:30 in that video is classic. If you have traded long enough you have been through the same emotions in that video at one point in time.
     
    Last edited: Sep 25, 2015
    #12     Sep 25, 2015
    wrbtrader and djmartin like this.
  3. EPrado

    EPrado


    I always wondered if that was a dude trading real money or just some nutjob on a simulator making a video. Looks like an IB account, not sure if IB offers sim.

    But whatever it is, the guy is clearly out of his mind. At least he's taking responsibility for it calling himself basically an idiot. I've been around guys like this who wig out when they lose their ass. Not a lot, but a few. I've been there.....but instead of acting like Godzilla trashing everything around me I found other ways to vent.
     
    #13     Sep 25, 2015
  4. i960

    i960

    That video is used over and over and the only real take home from it is "use a fucking stop loss."
     
    #14     Sep 25, 2015
  5. EPrado

    EPrado


    Nah..I think the kid was caught long over a holiday weekend long. A stop would have not saved his ass.
     
    #15     Sep 25, 2015
  6. i960

    i960

    The thing I never understood about that video was how a 20 pt drop translated into 25k with a 10 lot. What exactly was he trading? If they were SP futures it'd be like -50k, and if they were ES futures it'd be like -10k.
     
    #16     Sep 25, 2015
  7. EPrado

    EPrado


    I think he is caught in Russell 2000 Futures. 100 bucks a point. Down 20 points. 10 lots he's down 20k. He probably had a negative mark coming into the night to make it 25k.
     
    #17     Sep 25, 2015
  8. i960

    i960

    Ah yes, TF (or prob ER2 then), good point.

    So what's the problem here? Just add another 10 and ride that shit! :D:rolleyes:
     
    #18     Sep 25, 2015
  9. k p

    k p

    Yes.. IB offers a totally seperate login for sim trading. You can enter whatever amount of money you want I think for an account balance, and I bet you can even use it to generate statements. The only difference is the account number is different, but most people wouldn't know that, and this would be a something you would manually cover up any way for privacy sake. The PnL would look exactly the same and all that jazz.
     
    #19     Sep 25, 2015
  10. NoDoji

    NoDoji

    The strangest thing I ever saw was pre-market NQ on 8/24 last month. Volume just piling up at the circuit breaker level (3992-ish?) and over 15 levels of Bid totally empty below.
     
    #20     Sep 26, 2015