well? are traders smart?

Trading is quite simply the game of the gods and anyone who can trade successfully for a living is right at the top of the food chain. A very hard way to make a very easy living and quite simply you need to be right up there in so many traits to be successful. The ability to make very quick dynamic risk assessments on a split second basis at times is too much for the majority of the population so call it smart, intelligent, aggresive etc but it takes a pretty rare beast to do thyis for a living, oh yea and arrogance and confidence defrinately right up there as well :)
 
montmorencyt2w said:
Interesting. I had not come across that expression before, but it does remind me of one from the IT world I used to inhabit, namely "egoless programming". A lot of programming gurus are a little bit like those traders who are more keen on being "right" than on being generally effective. In the (non-egoless) programming world, this might consist of writing smart, but very obscure code that no-one but themselves understood ('cos they have to prove they are the bestest), so no point in documenting it or commenting it, naturally.

It also means that he is the guy they have to call in when it all goes wrong. Remarkably, some people get away with this for years (or used to). Even more remarkably, a lot of people don't see through them and are impressed by them.
Click to expand...

Any software engineer getting away with this does not have adult supervision. Unfortunately, this encompasses most of the profession.
 
montmorencyt2w said:
Interesting. I had not come across that expression before, but it does remind me of one from the IT world I used to inhabit, namely "egoless programming". A lot of programming gurus are a little bit like those traders who are more keen on being "right" than on being generally effective. In the (non-egoless) programming world, this might consist of writing smart, but very obscure code that no-one but themselves understood ('cos they have to prove they are the bestest), so no point in documenting it or commenting it, naturally.

It also means that he is the guy they have to call in when it all goes wrong. Remarkably, some people get away with this for years (or used to). Even more remarkably, a lot of people don't see through them and are impressed by them.
Click to expand...

A good parellel.
 
Traders are like programmers... traders are like pilots...traders are like this...traders are like that etc...etc...SNOOKI! This thread is littered with amateur psychoanalysts giving unqualified opinions and irrelevant analogies. It's obvious that nobody here has any idea what the average I.Q of a trader is. Do you even know your own I.Q? Probably not.:rolleyes:
 
new_trader said:
Traders are like programmers... traders are like pilots...traders are like this...traders are like that etc...etc...SNOOKI! This thread is littered with amateur psychoanalysts giving unqualified opinions and irrelevant analogies. It's obvious that nobody here has any idea what the average I.Q of a trader is. Do you even know your own I.Q? Probably not.:rolleyes:
Click to expand...

You've missed the point. It's about ego, not the job description.
 
new_trader said:
Point? The question was "Are traders smart?" How does ego come in to this?
Click to expand...

Those looking for complex answers to simple questions are feeding their egos. Successful trading isn't about intelligence of the IQ variety, it's about listening to what the market is telling you, which requires you getting rid of or at least working around your ego.
 
My problem is that my intelligence has been on a steady downward path since the age of about 11. I don't know whether this is a natural thing, or if I hastened the process with alcohol, but I find it increasingly difficult to take new concepts on board (and my music taste is rooted firmly in the 80s).

For example, on another thread a chap mentioned the Sortino ratio.. I had heard of it before, but had not analysed it. The initial "hurdle" for me to learn something new is much higher.. but in the end I sat down and worked through a few examples in Excel, and it's not really that complicated a concept. It's just that it takes me longer to grasp things than it used to. Anyone else experience this?
 
JRP2891 said:
Those looking for complex answers to simple questions are feeding their egos. Successful trading isn't about intelligence of the IQ variety, it's about listening to what the market is telling you, which requires you getting rid of or at least working around your ego.
Click to expand...

This is an opinion and has nothing to do with the question. It is like asking "Are traders tall?"...whether being tall is conducive to successful trading is irrelevant. Intelligence is measurable like height, it doesn't require opinion or judgement.

The question was interesting however the answers have been disappointing. Why doesn't everyone here (who considers themselves a trader) have their I.Q tested? That way we will have a statistically valid sample that we can work from instead of guesses and opinions.
 
new_trader said:
This is an opinion and has nothing to do with the question. It is like asking "Are traders tall?"...whether being tall is conducive to successful trading is irrelevant. Intelligence is measurable like height, it doesn't require opinion or judgement.

The question was interesting however the answers have been disappointing. Why doesn't everyone here (who considers themselves a trader) have their I.Q tested? That way we will have a statistically valid sample that we can work from instead of guesses and opinions.
Click to expand...

I was specifically talking about ego which was in response to Scoose's question, not the OP.

With regards to IQ tests, i've only ever done internet based ones where the results vary approximately in a 20 point range. Is there a conclusive IQ test you know of?
 
JRP2891 said:
I was specifically talking about ego which was in response to Scoose's question, not the OP.

With regards to IQ tests, i've only ever done internet based ones where the results vary approximately in a 20 point range. Is there a conclusive IQ test you know of?
Click to expand...

Yes, or at least generally accepted, would be any I.Q test that MENSA would accept for membership.

Now...sit back and watch all the MENSA critics dive in...:rolleyes:
 
Er, I just spent ten minutes doing one to find out that they wanted $10 to send me the results.

Is there a free one?
 
meanreversion said:
My problem is that my intelligence has been on a steady downward path since the age of about 11. I don't know whether this is a natural thing, or if I hastened the process with alcohol, but I find it increasingly difficult to take new concepts on board (and my music taste is rooted firmly in the 80s).

For example, on another thread a chap mentioned the Sortino ratio.. I had heard of it before, but had not analysed it. The initial "hurdle" for me to learn something new is much higher.. but in the end I sat down and worked through a few examples in Excel, and it's not really that complicated a concept. It's just that it takes me longer to grasp things than it used to. Anyone else experience this?
Click to expand...

I'm not sure i've noticed a deterioration, although sometimes a stubbornness to new concepts. After initially becoming consistently profitable in trading, i struggled to take on new ideas regarding trading, as i was basically afraid of returning to where i'd come from.
 
Last edited:
new_trader said:
Yes, or at least generally accepted, would be any I.Q test that MENSA would accept for membership.

Now...sit back and watch all the MENSA critics dive in...:rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Me and a mate did the Mensa home test and then the Mensa controlled test (basically under exam conditions, scrutinised, timed, etc) some years ago before I discovered beer. It was useful to find out what my IQ was but we never joined.

e2a - 135 on this free test
 
Last edited:
meanreversion said:
My problem is that my intelligence has been on a steady downward path since the age of about 11. I don't know whether this is a natural thing, or if I hastened the process with alcohol, but I find it increasingly difficult to take new concepts on board (and my music taste is rooted firmly in the 80s).

For example, on another thread a chap mentioned the Sortino ratio.. I had heard of it before, but had not analysed it. The initial "hurdle" for me to learn something new is much higher.. but in the end I sat down and worked through a few examples in Excel, and it's not really that complicated a concept. It's just that it takes me longer to grasp things than it used to. Anyone else experience this?
Click to expand...

@ almost 26 I'm finding it harder to retain stuff that isn't related to work.
 
I did the test, now it's asking for $9.95 ?
The click through thing says I got 149 but has "sample" written everywhere.....
 
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