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Updated the 'Quick Summary' post on the first page. Check it out if you are interested in Options/trading. I will be updating it some more over the weekend to make the journal more accessible/easier to navigate.
Was stopped out of JDSU as well. It got smoked on its Earnings Report anyways. Really rough effect on my trading account. Market moved higher but I was stopped out of like 5-7 positions in a row.
Ouch
I haven't been trading as much recently. In fact I thought about it and I'd define it as (non)trading on tilt. Basically, I had stops set for my positions, so I completely stopped watching them and allowed them all to be stopped out one by one. Basically I was doing ostrich effect hardcore. I've done this previous times during my trading career I realize. I will have to tackle this.
Only one position that is still open at the moment... STP.
It was retracing recently but is up nicely today (20%):
Stepped away from trading for a few weeks. Of course, when this happened, STP got delisted. I had a GTC stop order on STP but that was based off of free-commissions which ran out like 11/1/2013 and so instead of charging me commission for the trade, the brokerage canceled the trade completely it appears. Nothing like opening up your account after a few weeks and being down $800 after thinking that you were out $600 ago.
Anyways, gonna be looking at the markets this weekend and get back into the swing of things. There are murmurs about the ability to work from home @ my job. If this is a potential option in the future, I want to be ready to fully integrate trading into my work life and as a source of income. If I have more time at home, I will look to potentially transition into Futures trading down the road. I am intrigued by the tax benefits, and the ability to consistently bring in a profit, but I am concerned about the idea of having to 'force' trades instead of waiting for a set-up in the +250 stocks with penny-increment option spreads.
That really isn't a concern that is relevant at the moment though. That is at the least, a good 6 months down the road.
Looked at a few stock over the weekend but they were all potential trades with longer term expectations for my Roth IRA. Luckily I have Thursday and Friday off for the holidays. Staying in Chicago, so I will look to really hit the charts and get some DD underway as long as I am not too hung over.
Dredging this back up. WFH has me dipping my toes in the markets again.
I have shifted away from option trading for the most part which is ironic given its newfound popularity with retail traders. Currently I trade mostly stock so I will try to get a thread title update.
For the first time, it feels like I have found a rhythm with my trading strategy. It feels too good to be true and a part of me is waiting for the other shoe to drop. I am playing breakouts in an irrational uptrend so the sustainability of the strategy in a bearish market remains to be seen.
My plan is to dedicate the majority of my resources on refining what is currently working, and spend 10-15% of my time testing a new strategy. It will likely involve my pivoting towards day/swing trading a liquid market in a long term uptrend. I've spent the last hour comparing FX to e-Micros but I've gotten nowhere. It's late but I'll update with more info in the next few days.
Some of you might have picked up on it, but those numbers are the general commission rates over time as a retail trader.
Most trading literature presumes transaction fees as a necessary evil and advocate for strategies that minimize this as a result. Since that no longer applies, the average retail trader needs to re-imagine risk management.
Psychologically, scaling can help to reduce risk or lock in profits, both of which help every trader sleep better and make less emotional decisions. Given that the average broker doesn't charge commission, how has that affected your approach to risk?