The MOST important factor

[swededemon]

Minimising risk is right, so you are 'being right' to do it. The outcome of the trade may be negative though. So what went 'wrong'?

 

[charliechan]

What comes first, knowing yourself or your trading self? How do you ever realise your trading self without trading experience? Knowing you have the correct trading personna boils down to trading experience, being right or not will give you a clue to wether you have got what it takes or not. So, being right is still the most important factor.

i have heard of many traders who are wrong far more often than when they are right. but they cut their losses pronto, and let their winners run until the end. they are called trend followers.

so they are still making money.

kind of proves making money is more important than being right.

the purpose of any business is to make money. the end. period. i have never heard of any champion of industry wake up one morning to say ' i know, i will start a business with the sole purpose of minimising risk'. if he did, he would probably decide the best course of action to minimise risk would be to stay in bed. neither have i heard of any entrepreneur wake up and say ' i will start a business today in order to prove to the world that i am right and they are wrong.' etc. etc.

business are in business to make money. if this is not the case, then they are called charities, not businesses. i think some folk should be asking if they are trading as charities - giving their money to those who view their trading as a business.

quite an interesting thread. very educational to see that most here dont even see making money as their sole purpose, or focus. while this mind set is so prevalent, making money should be a lot easier for those who are properly focused!

 

[wasp]

i have heard of many traders who are wrong far more often than when they are right. but they cut their losses pronto, and let their winners run until the end. they are called trend followers.

so they are still making money.

kind of proves making money is more important than being right.

Theres my point...

I only get about 6 in 10 right but make much more than I lose, because, I make sure (by minimizing risk) that my losses are miniscule and virtually irrelevant, then I concentrate on making the most profit.

 

[fxmarkets]

Minimising risk is right, so you are 'being right' to do it. The outcome of the trade may be negative though. So what went 'wrong'?

nothing, it might be a point to ask yourself should I learn discretion at some point.

I mean this risk being first makes me want to name it Verra Lynn method, name that tune and it aint white cliffs of dover....

 

[charliechan]

Theres my point...

I only get about 6 in 10 right but make much more than I lose, because, I make sure (by minimizing risk) that my losses are miniscule and virtually irrelevant, then I concentrate on making the most profit.

DAMN YOU!!!! :cheesy: :cheesy:

seriously - yes focus on risk is extrememly impotrant. i am not denying this at all. all i am saying is that it is not #1.

some of the best trend followers they say only get 2 out of 10 right, but when they do........

i think the turtles had only 3 in 10 right or something like that

 

[rols]

Theres my point...

I only get about 6 in 10 right but make much more than I lose, because, I make sure (by minimizing risk) that my losses are miniscule and virtually irrelevant, then I concentrate on making the most profit.

So do we all agree to agree for once?!

I quote myself from earlier..

the salutary awareness that their worst performance will be good enough to end the day with a profit. Anyone can have flashes of brilliance but it's the bottom line we need to be watching and taking care of.
.

I was watching the golf on telly from Wentworth and what struck me was not the massive tee shots or the incredible touch play but the fact that the top players always manage to rescue themselves and recover from bad shots and end up making par.

The other golf analogy I like is from the excellent book 'The Golfer and the Millionaire' where the mentor says if you were on the second hole and made a double bogey why should that spoil the rest of your round because in essence it is no different from making a double bogey on the 16th when you could be six under for the round, and in which case it wouldn't bother you atall.

 

[swededemon]

The first post on this thread, by chris, is of a slightly different context to the actual poll. When i first looked at the poll, 'making money' seemed like the correct choice, but, without 'being right' within the numerous facets that are connected with 'being right', then a trader will not be 'making money'.

 

[Grey1]

What is the most important thing to you when your about to enter a trade. Which aspect takes precedence and is the most vital aspect of any given trade?

if I asked you which one of these parts are most important in a car to be able to get you from A to B
what would you reply ?

1) Engine
2) Tyres
3) Gear BoX
4) Seats

if you know the answer to above then you know the answer to the thread

Grey1

 

[fxmarkets]

the driver.

 

[rols]

if I asked you which one of these parts are most important in a car to be able to get you from A to B
what would you reply ?

1) Engine
2) Tyres
3) Gear BoX
4) Seats

if you know the answer to above then you know the answer to the thread

Grey1

no 1. I presume we're talking the mighty VWAP engine?

 

[rols]

the driver.

FX! You're not gonna get a job at Tescos if you make up answers that aren't in the list of choices!

 

[Splitlink]

Agree.

IMHO anybody who does not recognise that they are not trading against the markets but against themselves is a fool. This can be a very expensive lesson.

Don't trade against the market? That puts me in agreement provided that you are talking about trends. If the trend is wrong you are up the creek without a paddle.

Split

 

[fxmarkets]

FX! You're not gonna get a job at Tescos if you make up answers that aren't in the list of choices!

lol, the answer that any quiz master doesnt like to hear, the question needs to be reflected on a bit deeper unless you are aiming it as a selection criterior with sneaky motives.

upon being told stop being pedantic when I was challenging the wanted answer for what is memory (A store,think of it like a box) A bloody store !!?? its more than that..... its fluid its a process an action with recall and triggers , DEFINING it as a store to me was pointless as an aid to nurture knowledge, ho hum its a store then do i pass 1 out of 1 ...

but what about it being considered as a god state bliss bringing rememberance into it to re assembling our experience ? its a bloody store...... . double ho hums with knobs on.

 

[fxmarkets]

"spicy chicken wings is the casue", some say.

yep the birth of all trends(effect) will unwind from Alien Proofs, Active Pulse, One Inn Tit(cause)

ever wonder why indicators get completely buggered, those are indicators indicating effect and not the cause.

 

[TheBramble]

No, just before all that.

Ah OK. So just before all that...easy...

...Spend years looking at different indicators and building your own in an effort to find that one true indicator (OK, maybe two) that will set you up for life.

Next you need to start trading without sufficient capitalisation to ever possibly make it a goer.

Then you need to Ignore risk and go with 50% of your trading capital - a few times.

Never under any circumstances check your risk:reward ratio. Can get a bit scary and might put you off taking some trades that ploddos might deem pointless. Pah!

Ignore your rules and go on hunches.

Be swayed by what you think is going to happen rather than what is happening.

Change your methods and systems on the first loss.

Do lots of research and spend all your time designing and building and tweaking the accounting side of your trading empire - the thing that will to within 10 decimal places tell you how well you're doing, what your PL is, your W:L, your max drawdown you ROI etc - well, it will when you do eventually get round to making a trade.

Grab the first bit of profit you can, even if it's only just clear of b/e, so you can feel better about losing 50% of your entire pot on that trade before last. Keep taking small profits to keep the W:L looking good. Accept the fact that 50% blowouts are part of a traders life and you just need to keep putting more money into the pot. Draw a line (accounts wise) under the last blowout and start again. With more statistics.

Only read the first couple of chapters on any book about trading or until you know you've heard it all before and you know better. It's never more than three chapters.

Maintain an intense sense of ego and complete and unshakeable confidence in your abilities and that you're certainly in the top 99.99% of traders even though you have no empirical basis for feeling that way. Confidence is everything. Experience wil take care of the rough edges...

I think that's about it. Yes, once you'ver done all that just before you start again and do it the right way. That's all you need to do. But make sure it's really, really painful otherwise it doesn't count.

Chris, you're asking a question to which you already have the answer. It's all the things you do when you're currency trading. And you already do that successfully. US Stocks are no different. Just the mechanics the dynamics the players and the platforms and the structure. Just those few minor details. The trader side of the business isn't IMHO what you need to be keep bringing back to focus. That's done. You're already a successful trader. It's those other things that might be more useful to you right now. Just a thought.

 

[oildaytrader]

Following the game plan is the most important criteria.

The game plan covers making money(entry,exit,set up),being right is invalid(trading is about being right 50 % of the time),minimising risk is quite important( it is covered in the game plan i.e money management and trade set up)

Just follow the game plan and everything will play out.

 

[jaspertrademaster]

I went for minimizing risk and see that so did a lot of others. Unless money is very plentiful most people are prudent when it comes to the risk of losing it. If you can stand major losses then the thrill is in the conquest.

 

[Black Swan]

I voted minimizing the risk but I am now happily approaching the stage of unconscious ability where I don't 'think' I just 'do'...