beginners advice

[lou189]

Hi everyone,
as the post suggests I'm a newbie here, I have a small amount of knowledge and am slowly making my way through the tutorial videos.
although I know what im doing... sort of ... I have made a few rookie mistakes which have lost me a small amount of money. Not too much in the grand scheme of things and tbh I'm quite happy taking that on as a lesson learnt.
my main reason for getting into this is because I enjoy it, I'm definitely not looking at it as a get rich quick scheme but I do have a few questions. I have looked through the forum for answers but if there is one that I've missed please feel free to let me know. thank you in advance
1. your top must have advice for a newby. something you wish you had know when starting out.
2. how long where you trading before you felt you had a solid understanding of the basics?
3. what time do you start your trading day, and what time do you finish?
4. what sports do you trade and at what hours? so for instance horses 4-8 football 6-11.
5. has anyone done the 39.99 4 hour tutorial and was it of any benefit after completing the free video courses?

and lastly just for fun, what were you doing before you started/what do you do now along side trading? I'm psychology student but prior to that run my own design business

[ShaunWhite]

1. Don't run out of money before you run out of lessons.
2. I'd been a hobby gambler and building trading systems for work, so not long.
3. I work 2pm-6pm and 1am-5am, 6 days a week.
4. Horses (aus, gb & ie) & dogs, all via bespoke automation.
5. No
6. 25+ years in software development for asset management companies finishing up as head of global systems dev before I gave it up due to sheer mindnumbing boredom. Aside from trading, as little as pos, but car restoration & gardening if I had to pick two but I'm not sure that's at all relevent.

Good luck.

[Emmson]

1/ Realise there are no short cuts unless you're exceptionally gifted.

2/ 1 year

3/ Sometimes will trade 18 hours a day,

4/ Primary Cricket, NBA Basketball, Secondary Golf (majors) Horses Pre race, Greyhounds

5/ No

6/ Dreaming

[lou189]

oh thank you so much for your reply. wow up at 1am-5am that's impressive! I've just got my sleep back from my 2year old so not sure I'm willing to give it up again just yet

wishing I had a bit more time to trade but family commitments make it a little impossible at times. definitely going to keep going I absolutely love it, especially as I grew up around bookies and horse racing so just dont see the point in gambling your money away on a whim thank you both for your advice it is very much appreciated.

[Derek27]

Hi Lou, welcome to the forum.

1. You can achieve much more swing trading than backing/laying the field, although you probably already know that!

2. I thought I had a solid understanding of trading after two weeks, but two years later I realised I hadn't!

3. Whatever time I get up and whatever time I go to bed.

4. Horse racing and a bit of tennis when it doesn't clash.

5. No.

6. Claiming Jobseeker's Allowance. Before that, I was a computer programmer for insurance companies. I enjoy drinking when I'm not trading, and sometimes when I am.

[lou189]

Thanks Derek,
can totally relate to your last statement

[ShaunWhite]

wow up at 1am-5am that's impressive!

Narr, I've always liked the peace and quiet at night cos I'm easily distracted, and it's better than laying in bed awake with insomnia. Part of the joy of being self-emp is working when you work best and not having to do 9-5 just because convention dictates it. I only do about 50hrs a week so it's not exactly heroic especially as it's pleasure and not a chore. I don't think many people regard trading as 'work' so the hours just fly by.

[LeTiss]

Hello to you

1. Take no notice of other people's green screens, or P&L they post - some of them will be doctored/bullshit and many others will put a pressure on yourself to take greater risks to try and make more money. Just concentrate on your own green screens
2. It took me a few months, but it was longer before I eradicated my constant weaknesses/mistakes
3. I load up Guardian at 8am, but don't necessarily start, unless sporting action is in place. There's no set time for finishing, but the biggest mistake I made over the years was not finishing soon enough
4. All sports all day. I only touch Horses when they are Group races, or major meetings
5. Nope

I started off as a betting shop manager, then odds compiler for Ladbrokes. Became a sales rep, then went self-employed with redundancy money

One bit of advice I'd give, is to make sure you don't let trading take over your life. I did, and I regret it. There is always something to trade on, and unfortunately I lived on my own - before long, I stopped socialising and stopped going on dates. Trading can easily turn oneself into a recluse

Good Luck

[ShaunWhite]

I enjoy drinking when I'm not trading, and sometimes when I am.

The only place for alcohol is in the fuel tank of a dragster, I'd never put that poisonous depressant in my body on a regular basis.
.....but I am partial to a little relaxing smoke to keep my overactive mind in check so if ethanol is your drug of choice then fair enough.

[ShaunWhite]

1. Take no notice of other people's green screens, or P&L they post - some of them will be doctored/bullshit and many others will put a pressure on yourself to take greater risks to try and make more money. Just concentrate on your own green screens

One of the wisest things I heard came from you..."don't count on all the money you win today being yours to keep tomorrow"....or something like that. Giving some back is so much more painless if you expect to.

[lou189]

I enjoy drinking when I'm not trading, and sometimes when I am.

The only place for alcohol is in the fuel tank of a dragster, I'd never put that poisonous depressant in my body on a regular basis.
.....but I am partial to a little relaxing smoke to keep my overactive mind in check so if ethanol is your drug of choice then fair enough.

I'm sure everyone has their own way of relaxing as long as it's not harming anyone then each to their own no judgement here. I personally like a glass of wine or two but have family who would totally agree with you on a relaxing smoke over alcahol.

thank you all for your replies i really appreciate it

[lou189]

One bit of advice I'd give, is to make sure you don't let trading take over your life. I did, and I regret it. There is always something to trade on, and unfortunately I lived on my own - before long, I stopped socialising and stopped going on dates. Trading can easily turn oneself into a recluse

Good Luck

oh I can definitely see how this can happen luckily I have a partner and two girls who require my attention for 95% of the time so for me although I give it my all when I am trading and am trying to learn as much as possible they are my no.1 and will always come first.

just out of curious do most of you do this as a full time job? I completely understand if you dont want to answer this so by all means ignore it

oh and thought I should edit I'm just doing it for some spare cash obviously I'm not going to limit myself anything extra is a bonus for me but I'm looking at it long term as I really do enjoy it. -also get some peace ☮

[Derek27]

...but have family who would totally agree with you on a relaxing smoke over alcahol.

They're most enjoyable when they're together - fag in one hand, can of beer in the other.