Live & Die by the sword....

roguetrader said:
Funny, I don't know that I'd agree with that, the reason I say I don't know is because I haven't tried trading that way yet, (longer term that is) but what causes the stress? An intraday trade requires more management than one of your trades, but it is also over much more quickly and the result is known. What is that saying? "Waiting is the hardest part." I spend the vast majority of my time without exposure to the market, not much stress there. Whereas I'd imagine you spend the vast majority of your time exposed to the market. I'm hoping you have traded both ways and will have a much better range of experience for comparison. Would be interested in your thoughts.
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I totally agree with this.
On average I look to make at least 15-20 points a day by scalping - though the trades can be 20 minutes to a couple of hours long. Some days I make this in one trade and that's the end of my exposure to the market for that day. I know what I've made and none of it is at risk again that day.

I have my own set system with entry and exit points that I look for. If I don't get an entry point, I don't worry about it. That's not stressful for me. Watching my account go up and down throughout the day and the following day is more stressful.

When I did try longer term trading the Dow (April - May this year) the waiting got to me so much I vowed never to do it again. It ended up in me getting out of the trade too soon, just before the Dow took off on its upward climb (yes I was long). Waiting does not suit me. Rushing to the computer every morning to see how the trade is going - that's not for me.

As they say each to his own. Whatever trading style suits you - then stick with it. Square peg in round hole, doesn't fit - and all that.
 
That's fair enough FC, I see your point of view. Trading, whatever your timeframe, method etc, should be comfortable, doing anything in life that you are not comfortable with invites an underperformance.
Good trading.
 
I used to avoid longer timeframes because I felt uncomfortable holding overnight, but have recently started to trade them in addition to my normal intraday stuff. Contrary to what I expected, i've found that it's generally quite comforting! The strategy i'm using is working out well, so instead of switching off & worrying about open positions, most nights I switch off contented in the knowledge that i'm sitting on positions with an open profit of £x, and stops in place to protect me. Also, because they add to the portfolio of strategies that I use, I quite often find that when i've not had a great day on my short term trading, the longer term stuff makes up for it.

It all comes down to whatever suits you as an individual, but if you don't try it on you'll never know if it fits.

Simon
 
My trades tend to last a couple of weeks on average. I used to trade FX intraday, but because of other commitments I found it hard and whenever I took a loss I would take poor trades to get the money back. I realised very quickly that I would never succeed doing that, so I trade end of day while I'm creating a system I can trade intraday when my commitments have gone (which will be quite soon). Having an actual system should help me keep the discipline.

But just like turtle said, it's best to trade with a timeframe that keeps you comfortable.
 
roguetrader said:
Hi Orion,
Why do you do that, is that how you exit your positions?
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No, roguetrader, it's one of the methods I use to initiate new positions, fairly early on (hopefully) in the new trend. I have three exit methods. 1) An initial stop loss, in case of emergencies when the market unexpectedly reverses direction soon after entry. 2) A partial exit (usually one third of my total stake) at a set profit target, around 100-150 Dow points, and 3) A trailing profit exit.

That's why it's pure luck if I happen to exit under 3) above right at the top of a rally. In fact if it is a trailing profit stop then by definition the market must have fallen back some way from the top for the exit to be triggered. Sometimes I'm out too early, sometimes a bit too late, but as long as my win/loss ratio and % winning trades remain good I'm happy to let my money management take the strain and I'll just take what I can out of the middle of the rally, whatever the market is prepared to yield.
 
FC

I think your thread has been hi-jacked. Oops :| Sorry!

How's the trading today going? (See if we can get this back on track).
 
lol dont worry about the thread guys and dolls, this is a BB for an exchange of ideas, and some good points have been raised. :)

today ive been whipped around on cable a couple of times. stopped out twice for -40, but currently in a short and stops are ar B/e. whether it follows through is another matter.

been doing some background reading as well. a few interesting things over on elitetrader, back in the day when it used to be worth a read.

fc
 
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right.. ok.. it looks like i didnt have the sword sharp enough when i fell on it this time...

so, for my next trick, i will be undertaking........

"random entry". yup. its crazy, but it might just work.


will be trying this off 5 min charts using ATR trailing stop losses.. should trigger 2/3 trades a day. so we should be able to see within a couple of weeks (30 trades) if it has merit.

wish me luck, its 5-a-side footie tonight :)

FC
 
FC,

I think random entry can definitely work but I would be interested in your exit strategy. Will you run a fixed stop and fixed target. I ask this because even in a massively bullish market you can make money shorting on a 5/10/30 min pullback if you are running tight stops and looking for smallish profits?

Verno
 
Trading :cheesy: Footie :(

Female perspective there - other half is Liverpool fan, so I've had a lot to put up with. :rolleyes:

Looking forward to seeing how new strategy goes.
 
having profit targets with random entry is deffo a nono (a small peruvian mammal). it can only work when running your profits to the extreme, and the only sensible way to do that is with a trailing stop.

on a 5 min chart on cable, a trailing stop of circa 25-30 points should do (the precise amount used isnt vitally important )

will be interesting, if nothing else.. :)
 
FetteredChinos said:
lol dont worry about the thread guys and dolls, this is a BB for an exchange of ideas, and some good points have been raised. :)

That says it all.
Click to expand...
 
righty ho, the lucky coin came up heads this morning, so we're off on a long at 1.8135 on Cable

using a 50pt trailing stop to avoid the "noise" whipping me out. lets see if we end up with a positive result by the end of July. Initial stop 1.8085

FC
 
£/ US$-Cable comes from the transatlantic cable.which opened up whole new areas of currency specualtion,like pigeons inside our modern computers.
 
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