I am completely new to trading. I started out by reading "how to day trade for a living" by Andrew Aziz. That led me to hours of internet research and ultimately to this forum. All the questions in my mind come from a completely blank slate because I know nothing about day trading. I have a TD Ameritrade account already so I downloaded ToS. I have not started paper trading as I am still learning about the market and the program. Many thanks to all the YouTube posters that have helped me learn to navigate the ToS program.

I have looked into software, scanners, cost's, brokers, types of trading and computer setups. Made me feel like I was in Kindergarten. Well here is where I am starting from;

Computer - Acer Aspire i5 4200u, 6gig ram, 64bit, win 10 So far I have not seen a problem running ToS but I do not have any other software running with it. I also have a second monitor attached.

software - Thinkorswim Mainly because it seemed very robust and it was free. I know many others use NT and various other programs but I can't see putting the money into software at this time. I know that TD charges more for trades but at this time my budget doesn't allow for purchasing another platform.

education - So far just what I have been able to find on the internet and a few books. I have an acquaintance that is willing to show me the ropes.

account - I will be starting my trading with a 5000.00 account.

This is not a sprint for me, my goal is to be starting live sometime by the end of the year. I really don't know what is a realistic time frame. I'm a quick study of most things and am willing to put in the time to learn. I am a very disciplined person and a type A personality.
I value each and everyone of your thoughts and opinions. I have quickly found this forum to be a great place for acquiring knowledge. I have seen many different internet sites offering courses but equally as many people saying to stay away from them. What is the consensus on learning from the ground up? Are there any courses worth the money they are asking? Is it even necessary if you have a mentor? At this point I'm trying to build a good foundation to get started so any advice or direction is appreciated. Thank you for entertaining the ramblings of a true beginner.

Dave

Hello,

I would recommend:

1. Do not rush into trading your real capital.

2. Find a simple trading strategy you comfortable with.

3. Stare at the charts every day.

4. Use paper money with 1 contract until you prove to yourself you can make money.

5. Keep your trading cost as LOW as possible.

6. Read good books and as tons of questions.

7. Learn the different ways of trading.

8. Have fun

Hi there!

Books that have helped me are Trading in the Zone and High Probability Trading by Link. If you are near a library and they don't have them, InterLibrary Loan them for a few bucks each.

I had a hard time doing demo on ToS and since I opened an account with Stage 5 Trading I have access to great software and community immediately. Not to mention the awesome S5 Trade Analyzer, which is no cost as well.

I am studying Al Brooks Price Action. Like most trading plans/systems it seems to depend on stats to establish an edge. After about the first 35 trades, my expectancy is about a tic and a fraction per trade. Which I am happy with, but each loss still stings a lot. So, I picked this one system and am sticking to studying it and not letting myself wonder around, even if it is just to better understand the system I prioritized. Someday I would like to do the No BS Day Trading course and the FT71 volume profile methods.

And, that is the other thing, figure out what you want to do about psychology. Personally, I read the Zone book and now am trying to mediate (increasing the time in one minute increments), also there are a lot of NexusFi webinars that help with that topic. The book Fooled by Randomness has helped with my approach or relationship to the markets.

I too trade one contract for now and will not go live for quite some time. It is good that you have a really long term goal for using cash. For me it is key to go a pace that allows me to understand what I am doing and feeling comfortable about that pace.

Good luck to you!