Whats your trading style?

[Doomberg]

Most traders have a certain trading style and once the penny drops so to speak they will often stick to this style because it suits them, others may use a few different techniques with success. What would you say your trading style is, do you have more than one style?

For the majority of my 2 years trading i suppose i could of been classed as a swing trader, except for most of this i had no idea how to read charts so i simply relied on price action, and bought when i thought there was room for some upwards momentum, it was mainly with stable bank shares although i took the odd risk. My trading techniques were far from ideal but still delivered modest results... 'even a blind squirrel finds the occasional hazelnut'

Over these 2 years i have wanted to get in to the world of day trading and have often been burned because i was doing silly things like trying to 'jump in on spikes' on the FTSE or Wall St etc with no real method or reason why, sometimes it payed off but more often than not it didn't.. it was naive of me to think it was that easy. Recently i have started to get my head in gear and have been studying more of the technical side of things.. chart reading, support / resistance etc. Its fair to say that getting stuck in learning has already started to pay off as i am getting used to chart reading and my success rate is slowly creeping up.. even improving with 5-10 min day trading, im no warren buffet but oh i will get there in the end

To sum up i'd say my trading style is short term, somewhere in between day trading and swing trading, i don't like holding for more than a few days.

So whats your preferred trading style, and was it always this style or did you try a few different options before you eventually found your groove?

And finally i'd like to say that im glad that i've found this site, i have met some nice people already who have been very helpful and welcomed me.

Doomberg

 

[safvan]

Relative strength of all time high stocks compared to the main market. Buy when they break out of their bases and ride the trend.

Trade only when main indexes are healthy, above 50 day moving average.

Which means I only trade in bull markets and that too when they are above 50 dma.

Thank you.

 

[HowardCohodas]

I've been told mine is picking up pennies in front of a steamroller.

 

[barryb]

I've been told mine is picking up pennies in front of a steamroller.

You were informed correctly.

 

[Chartsy]

daily chart trend trader

 

[shadowninja]

Swing scalper? Short term swing trader? I look for daily retracements and buy in the direction of the trend on the daily chart.

I've been told mine is picking up pennies in front of a steamroller.

Curious. Do you trade options close to expiry? I've done something similar trading football markets and that's akin to picking up pennies in front of a steamroller - one goal against me and I take a 60-70 tick loss and I'm going for 2-3 ticks a trade. So far so good.

im no warren buffet but oh i will get there in the end

Not if you're doing £5/pip without having a clue.

 

[Masquerade]

I like to throw a lot of money at the market and make a few points.

 

[Doomberg]

Not if you're doing £5/pip without having a clue.

Lol im reducing my amounts now, its odd.. i'll have a great start to each day, but then lose my profits due to breaking my own rules, need to become stricter

So as i learn, back down to £1-2 per pip, may even get a demo account to try new techniques

 

[brettus]

Lol im reducing my amounts now, its odd.. i'll have a great start to each day, but then lose my profits due to breaking my own rules, need to become stricter

So as i learn, back down to £1-2 per pip, may even get a demo account to try new techniques

Think i know what i'm doing, but probably don't have a clue trader.

 

[The Artist]

Volatility breakout/range expansions trader, with systematic entry/exit rules I never deviate from. And in the market 10% of the time so I have time to do other things.
Lack of flexibility can be a psychological killer sometimes though I have to say.

 

[ftradeonline]

When it comes to trading, two adjectives are used more frequently than others to describe traders' various styles: Aggressive and conservative. We're here to tell you that in a perfect world, you'll find a way to marry both of these styles to boost your chances of success. After all, the most seasoned trading veterans will tell you the best aggressive traders know when to be conservative and the best conservative traders know when to increase their risk and get aggressive. There's nothing wrong with either style, so let's highlight some of the things you need to know about risk as it pertains to trading.

 

[safvan]

When it comes to trading, two adjectives are used more frequently than others to describe traders' various styles: Aggressive and conservative. We're here to tell you that in a perfect world, you'll find a way to marry both of these styles to boost your chances of success. After all, the most seasoned trading veterans will tell you the best aggressive traders know when to be conservative and the best conservative traders know when to increase their risk and get aggressive. There's nothing wrong with either style, so let's highlight some of the things you need to know about risk as it pertains to trading.

I agree with you that there is nothing wrong with either style. There are 100s of ways of making money in the markets however I completely disagree with you when you say one can marry these methods.

This is one of the biggest hurdles traders face and that is why only a select few make *big* money in the markets. Only certain hedge funds perform very well year after year. If you look into their backgrounds they focus on just ONE method and stick to it and then refine it over the years.

Value, growth, momentum you can name it anything but one has to completely focus on just one method to consistently make *big* money in the markets. Switching or mixing methods without years of experience would be fatal.

Warren Buffet is value and focuses just on that. Mark minervini and Dan Zanger type traders look for strength and momentum, James Simons with his quantitative strategies or john paulson with his magic tricks all focus most of their time on one core strategy.

Focus on just one strategy and refine it over the years so that your brain develops a procedural memory.

Simple facts of trading to make *big* money in the markets. Stick to one thing!

 

[Black Swan]

I agree with you that there is nothing wrong with either style. There are 100s of ways of making money in the markets however I completely disagree with you when you say one can marry these methods.

This is one of the biggest hurdles traders face and that is why only a select few make *big* money in the markets. Only certain hedge funds perform very well year after year. If you look into their backgrounds they focus on just ONE method and stick to it and then refine it over the years.
Value, growth, momentum you can name it anything but one has to completely focus on just one method to consistently make *big* money in the markets. Switching or mixing methods without years of experience would be fatal.

Warren Buffet is value and focuses just on that. Mark minervini and Dan Zanger type traders look for strength and momentum, James Simons with his quantitative strategies or john paulson with his magic tricks all focus most of their time on one core strategy.

Focus on just one strategy and refine it over the years so that your brain develops a procedural memory.

Simple facts of trading to make *big* money in the markets. Stick to one thing!

Good post, particularly liked the bits highlighted.

 

[0007]

Focus on just one strategy and refine it over the years so that your brain develops a procedural memory.

Simple facts of trading to make *big* money in the markets. Stick to one thing!

Agree. And the simpler the better.

 

[coopster]

Focus on just one strategy and refine it over the years so that your brain develops a procedural memory.

My procedural memory seems to be able to make silly trades and hold onto losers while cutting winners too early without me having to think about it!

 

[safvan]

My procedural memory seems to be able to make silly trades and hold onto losers while cutting winners too early without me having to think about it!

You are able to realize it. The only thing you can do now is to fix it IF you want to. If you are net profitable and are okay with the results, dont mess with it. Its that easy. The realization was the most difficult part.

 

[Hotch]

Erratic punting. It's like white water rafting in cambridge.

 

[fihunts]

Trend Trader using Anti-Martingale MM plan.

 

[safvan]

Trend Trader using Anti-Martingale MM plan.

Any kind of trend trading method beats the main market with large margins. All big hedge funds and top individual traders that make big money consistently use trend trading methods.

Whether short term or long term, as long as you stick with the trend while it lasts while risking a decent amount of capital, the money would flow in. Its the sitting that counts not the entries and exits. The daily battle is boredom.

 

[AmandaKennyChris]

Interesting read.