MaxGriddy's old school stock daytrading journal

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MaxGriddy

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My plan is to collect at least $200/day from the markets. No special methods and strategies used, just plain old vanilla price action. How can it get simpler than that? Averaging around $4k/month, my goal by year's end is $32k.

A little background so you do not waste your time responding/posting in my journal about things that are out of my ****ing understanding. I am a college dropout who has worked and saved enough to open a margin account. I have no formal education in economics, mathematics, statistics or any other field that may aid me in this business. I am just depending on my nimble forefinger on the bid/ask button and a good sense of the market trend and volatility to guide me .

By December 31, 2010 I will be up $32,000. Dream big---- No risk, no reward!
 
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Mother of all stinking sardine munching traders! What the hell! Market plunge on my first day of working my way to a $32k year goal!!!

I got positions open and will have to wait, I don't know how long. God help me...
 
MaxGriddy said:
Mother of all stinking sardine munching traders! What the hell! Market plunge on my first day of working my way to a $32k year goal!!!

I got positions open and will have to wait, I don't know how long. God help me...
Click to expand...

ROFL. if u were out for laughs with that post then well done.
Seriously, though, today didn't have to be a major setback if you were on the short side. You have to adapt to changing market trends.

Peter
 
CLosed out positions initiated on april 28. Total added up to $560+ change. I must be more nimble and have a good plan of action on all open positions in terms of the time frame which I intend to work with and a set profit target. I could have closed these positions early unscathed and repositioned on greener pastures but I rationalized them away while the market left me behind . Plan the trade and trade the plan

<img src="http://www.trade2win.com/boards/attachment.php?attachmentid=82232&stc=1&d=1272962037 ">


It was a good swing. At this rate, I could have $2k/mo extra spending money.
 

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Sidestepped the sell off today and waited like a caged animal. Bought some calls near the low pivots and will see tomorrow. I am finding that I am more comfortable with swing trades for now, so be it. I think my profit margins are better on a larger time frame anyway.

After hours action in ITMN. WOW! A drop from $45 to $10!!! I will look in on the stock tomorrow. It may have overreacted and bound for a good pop in opening hours. If it goes down I am picking up calls on this baby!
 
MaxGriddy said:
Sidestepped the sell off today and waited like a caged animal. Bought some calls near the low pivots and will see tomorrow. I am finding that I am more comfortable with swing trades for now, so be it. I think my profit margins are better on a larger time frame anyway.

After hours action in ITMN. WOW! A drop from $45 to $10!!! I will look in on the stock tomorrow. It may have overreacted and bound for a good pop in opening hours. If it goes down I am picking up calls on this baby!
Click to expand...

In my honest opinion, if you are depending on margin to make money, then trading currency is the best because you get 100 to 1 margin there. Anyway, I just checked out this stock ITMN, and if you wouldn't have told me it was going to ten then I would have said it was definitely going down.
 
JahDave said:
In my honest opinion, if you are depending on margin to make money, then trading currency is the best because you get 100 to 1 margin there. Anyway, I just checked out this stock ITMN, and if you wouldn't have told me it was going to ten then I would have said it was definitely going down.
Click to expand...

THese pharma companies are prone to behave like this. I just wish I had the stock on my radar. I remember DNDN a number of years ago behaving like this and now it's holding up around $50 plus.

I am with TDAmeritrade and they don't let me trade anything else other than stocks and options. I hope they change their program soon. I am leaving if they don't allow other forms of trading by the summer of 2010.
 
MaxGriddy said:
THese pharma companies are prone to behave like this. I just wish I had the stock on my radar. I remember DNDN a number of years ago behaving like this and now it's holding up around $50 plus.

I am with TDAmeritrade and they don't let me trade anything else other than stocks and options. I hope they change their program soon. I am leaving if they don't allow other forms of trading by the summer of 2010.
Click to expand...

My point is that I use Elliott Wave Theory for trading currency and when I looked at that chart then I definitely thought it would be going down. Just not before I could type this message.......LOL
 
Oh! We rocked!

:clap: No way in hell I go broke taking profits. Whether it's a net of $25 or $250 I am taking it in from now on. Too many times I have hesitated thinking there was a little more upside left when the trade turns on me like a rabid mange dog with bad breath.
Did well today. It could have been 4x better if I had followed my initial instincts for the market direction before the May 6 snafu. I had set bids and had I sat on them I would have gotten filled quite nicely. I need to learn to trust my instincts more.

I expect tomorrow's action to pull back a little from the open. I will hang back and wait for it to reach me for another round.
 

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Can't go broke taking profit

:devilish: $350+ today. Worked the charts 1.5 hours into the day for the gains. Yet, again, my initial instincts were good and had set profit targets that would have pocketed 5x of today's gain . Got spooked looking at the charts though. The market was sideways in a tight range in negative territory from the open and I couldn't shake the feeling that the gap up from yesterday was going to be retraced eventually. A bearish mode prevailed when the May 6 snafu hit, then the gap up on good news of the Euro zone debt problem and the snafu being sorted out as being only a logistical overload....we all know a lot of shorts were covering on that gap up move. What reason is there for the bulls? I could only assume the pre-may 6 bearish tone will continue without resistance. I wimped out for the $350+. There was no good reason I got out at that point. It was a moment of weakness, indecision, and fatigue. (n) I should not conduct my trading in this manner again if I want to succeed in this business.

Turns out the bulls made some moves today....these are buy levels for money on the sidelines and big boys faked out of their positions on all the recent hullabaloo . After all, the U.S. economy is improving, albeit slowly, despite problems in Europe.

Tomorrow, I am lost. I will have to see what comes and let the open dictate what I should do. Hope there will be some good news overnight to hint the direction.

You all make some good money, you hear!
 

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No action. Markets did a head fake in early morning activity and made slow grind through out the day until late action pulled the plug on the bulls' rocket. These days are only for swinging. Rocket boosters are being refueled for tomorrow and I have a ticket to ride on the first expedition.

I have to work on my shorting phobia.
 
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHghh

Fowking proper day to short. Too bad I can't. Fawkiing Euros and their money management! :(
 
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seems like you are doing great.
I had a set back last few days but getting better.
I dont know about yu but over-confidence seems like my worst enemy.

Keep up the good work!.
100% by December huh. Hope you get there. Perhaps we race toward to same goal:)
later
 
Thanks, fgp.
Yes overconfidence is not a good thing for my balance. I start making trades that do not make sense. Hopefully, I can wait this one out.
 
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