How I got here

I was asked by one of my classmates to explain how I became a full time day trader. So I thought I would put it in my blog.

First,  as I have stated before the stock market has always been a passion of mine. I have been fascinated by the markets for most of my adult life. I was a CNBC junkie its all I listened to and its what I watched when I got home from my day job.

I always wanted to be in a position to eventually earn a living from trading. I was unable to do so with the type of trading I was involved in because I was one of those value buyers that bought a stock added on dips and held till it made me money. Sometimes it took years of holding a stock till it made me a nice chunk of money. The problem with that strategy is twofold it tied up my money and it provided no income on a consistent basis to live on.

So roughly a year ago I came across a course from "Bulls on Wall Street" that I decided to take after watching the the CEO and head trader of the firm (Kunal Desai) repeatedly impress me with the trades he would make throughout a day. I had to learn his style. I recognized that if I could do that my dream would be much closer to becoming a reality.

I embarked on my new journey. I joined the BOWS chat room and I took the 16 day "Bootcamp" which just so happened to be their very first. As a matter of fact I have taken every "Bootcamp" course they have given since. I think I am going on number 7 or 8 starting this Sunday.

The class material is put together extremely well and it was easy to follow. Kunal as an instructor really resonated with me. He spoke my kind of language and really took the time to explain anything I may have had a question with. Whether that was in class, on the phone or through email, he was always accessible and remains so today. It doesn't matter if its day,night or the weekend he is always there to help.

I was fortunate enough to be in a position to keep my day job as I put into practice what I had learned in my classes. I learned early on that I had to learn my own style and determine what type of trader I was going to become. I learned the hard way that just trying to follow Kunal on all his trades would not be an effective approach for me to take. I needed to look for stocks I would be comfortable trading. I needed to look at charts and find the setups I was taught on my own.

Because I had a full time job many of the stocks that I played were swing trades. That was by design since I could not sit glued to the computer and watch every tick of the tape on my stocks or the market overall. Swing trading came easy for me since I was already programmed to be a long term holder. I would find stocks that I felt had a nice line in the sand to place my stop and a nice risk reward ratio for price appreciation. As I progressed along and I felt more comfortable. I began taking some quick day trades. Testing myself to see if I could actually generate a fairly consistent stream of income just from taking a few quick trades throughout the day and being back in cash by the end of that day. I had several mishaps and missteps.

I never gave up! I kept pushing forward, reviewing my lesson plan and taking the classes. Each time I retook the course I learned something new or something I had forgotten was re established into my memory banks. I studied thousands of charts spent 100's of hours going through my trades and trying to understand where I made my errors and where I needed to improve.Two of my biggest challenges were admitting I was wrong on a trade and taking losses quickly.

 Eventually, I began having more wins than losses. 
That occurred when I stopped  trying to follow on somebody else's trade or looking for someone else to give me confirmation on a stock that I thought was ready to break out. That isn't to say that I don't value other peoples opinions, I absolutely appreciate any feedback I can get. However, other people have their own stocks and set ups that they are watching and when your day trading waiting a minute or two waiting for someones response can cost you the proper entry price on a trade and turn it from a winning trade to a losing trade. The key for me was I had to have confidence in myself and conviction in my own trade.

So after nearly a year of intense education, thousands of charts, hundreds of trades and ultimately consistent success. I determined it was time to fulfill my dream and trade full time. I quit my day job. I made sure I had enough in the bank to support myself for three months worth of living expenses. I cut all my expenses down to the bare minimum and I got approval and support from my dog Buddy. Once I had that I knew I was good to go.

Now I am what I would consider a hybrid trader. I still take swing trades and I probably prefer them most since you can get a bigger bang for your buck and you keep your commission fees down by taking less trades. I also take those quick day trades for income to pay the electric bill, and buy dog food for Buddy. I never stop trying to improve my skills, I continue to educate myself and I have a feeling that won't end anytime soon.

One thing that I feel is very important and why I have been able to weather the storm so to speak.  I trade with my own money >I do not use margin and I won't unless I am extremely comfortable that I have mastered my trade. Even then I will only use it for a very quick day trade that I am in and out of. I would never hold anything on margin overnight. I know that the lure of using leverage to get rich is very appealing but leave that to the pro's or at least until you yourself become a pro. Its just as easy to lose it all and wind up wiped out and still owing someone some money. I am pretty sure that is what happened back in 1929 and if I am not mistaken 2007 and 2008 but that is just my personal preference.

Well that's it folks sorry to ramble on for so long > Wake up! Come on!!!  It wasn't that bad was it?

 If I put you to sleep I apologize. Tomorrow I will be back to charts and watch lists. Have a great night all.