T2W Trading Community

Advice

Are there any books you have read, that you would recommend to people?
To be honest, I read very few books. I am dyslexic. Reading books is very difficult for me, especially trading books. My number one best book is the Holy Bible. I have read it and re-read it many times, especially the book of Proverbs.

What is the most important advice you can give the average trader?
Find out who you really are. Discover what makes you tick. Face what you are and deal with it.

What advice do you have for the beginner trader?
Find out everything you can about markets and how they work before you start trading. Do not look for anything magic, it doesn’t exist. Do not be in a hurry to rush into trading. You will have to work hard to find out what it is really all about.

What are the traits of a successful trader?
That is the million dollar question. I don’t think anyone knows. There have been many who have tried to find out, but I don’t think they ever succeeded. Successful traders can be as different from one another as night is from day. I have taught and trained thousands of traders. I can never tell a good one from a bad one.

The View From The Floor

Do you enjoy working from home?
Yes. That’s the way I’ve always traded.

What environment do you trade in, for example do you have a separate office, multiple monitors and CNBC on the telly?
I have a trading office with multiple monitors. But CNBC? Come on, give me a break. CNBC may be the best comedy show on TV, but I don’t think it’s funny at all.

What effect has trading had on your personal life?
You might say that trading is my life. I really know how to do little else. I write about trading , teach trading, and trade. But trading has given me most of the things I ever wanted.

Do you sometimes need to get away from the market for a few days?
Yes! I get away from it often. I take two one-month vacations a year. I have a prison ministry which gets me away from the markets for 1-4 days every month. I look for any excuse to get away. Trading is intense. Frequent breaks are the way to go.

Is trading for a living firstly viable and secondly desirable?
Yes, and yes! I’ve made my living at it all of my adult life. If you don’t try to make a job out of it, it is quite pleasurable. The problem with most aspiring traders is that they turn trading into a job. They are at it day and night. That’s not how trading is supposed to be. You become a trader so you can have a life of leisure. Trading is freedom, not slavery. A trader can live and work anywhere in the world where he can obtain a telephone connection. I know, I’ve traded on my laptop from a mountain top in South Africa. All I had was a phone line operated from a solar panel and a battery.

If you weren’t trading what would you want to spend your time doing?
Teaching others how to trade, and raising money for my prison ministry. It’s called “Second Chance Ministry International.” People coming out of prison need help in getting back into society and becoming fully functional. They have paid their debt to society. We have a very high success rate of ex-prisoners who have never gone back.

And Finally

Do you have any goals at this point?
To trade, teach, and write until I am no longer able.

Do you still see yourself trading ten or fifteen years down the road?
Absolutely. Trading is my life.

When you make your first million, what will you spend the money on?
I made my first million long ago. The hospitals got most of it by keeping me alive. My second million has gone to support my ministry. My next million will go to helping people in need. There is always need somewhere.

Any comments about T2W?
T2W is doing a fine service. There is an endless need for education in the business of trading. People come into it faster than they can be properly educated.

Any last words?
There’s much more to life than making money and getting rich. Life is far more rewarding when you can reach out to others and give them a helping hand. You never know when the smallest gesture of kindness will bring about a complete turn in the life of another person. When you become a successful trader, you have a choice. You can focus entirely on yourself and your materialist desires, or you can use the money to improve the lives of others. The choice is always yours.