I am an individual who has been on a long journey towards trading success. I have been trading since 1998 and have had my ups and downs. The ups were the golden years of the dot coms. I would trade anything in the technology sector or biotech and I would make money. Because this was the beginning of my trading career, I took advice of anyone and did not do my due diligence. In 2001, I bought a few stocks that didn’t do too well and I did the typical hold and believed it would go back up. Why not? I kept making money until now, why would it not happen again? On a dip, I thought that it was a good idea to buy more because I was sure that it would go back up! To make a long story short, I blew out that account and lost over $10K.
That was a hard lesson to take in. I decided to learn more about technical analysis so that I can do a better job at doing my own due diligence. I started reading books upon books upon books and learned a lot about being a technician but I just couldn’t seem to put these concepts together! As I was studying and learning to put my “system” together, I fell into my first mistake, I took the advice of a friend and bought some oil stock which busted and lost over $10K once again.
Even after the expensive education that I received, I pressed forward and continued to study the markets. Many people ask me why I do this. The answer is simple, I have a passion for it. Many people would have stopped after the first account blowout but not me! I think I’m just a gluton for pain! (= I had the great opportunity to meet a a mentor who has helped me and is helping me to understand the markets and price patterns a lot better and he is helping me “put together and distill” all the information and data I learned in the past.
So this will be my journal about my journey to become a fluid trader. I picked this name because no matter what happens, I hope to become as fluid like liquid as possible and flow with the trends!
So sit back, relax, and enjoy.
I will be also writing about other subjects outside of the market.
Charlie,
I’m behind you 100%. This is a tough, tough business and the only way you learn a lesson fully is to experience it yourself. What I love is that, although you’ve experienced some very painful losses, you’ve never lost your passion and love for the game and fun parts of trading.
Take courage from the “Market Wizards,” some of which blew out multiple accounts before realizing what it took to become consistent in the markets. I actually believe that hard losses are almost a pre-requisite for moving on because of the fortitude and determination they cause, when you keep moving on.
A great trader once said that you almost have to make every mistake in the book to become a great trader. While I hope that’s not true, I do know I’ve had my share of hard lessons and losses just like everyone.
All my best,
Corey