I so agree with this post. If I was 21 again, I would certainly not be starting off now on Betfair. No way Jose. Earn your money from working, upscale your skills there and invest your money accordingly.xtrader16 wrote: ↑Wed Jan 14, 2026 7:51 pmMy advice to anybody starting off in Betfair Trading is DONT.
There are proper markets out there in Currency and Equity markets that will pay you x 100 more than any horse race will over the course of 5 years.
The people who make their money from Betfair wont tell you how to do it and it will take you years to work it out. The risk to return is awful. Dont bother. Try and trade equity markets and invest for the long term.
Sports trading is for mugs unless you know exactly how/why/when/where the markets are going and nobody is going to tell you.
21 yr old looking for all round advice
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wearthefoxhat
- Posts: 3655
- Joined: Sun Feb 18, 2018 9:55 am
Add in the mix, something that Peter Webb has highlighted before, would also make the difference between starting something or maybe just giving up completely.
This is likely to be the best starting point for anyone new to the game, (and a reminder for anyone that still makes the same mistakes).
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He argues that the greatest obstacle to success isn't a lack of technical strategy, but the "primitive brain" and its hardwired emotional responses. He frequently references the "Devil Inside," which is his term for the internal conflict between our logical understanding of a trade and our emotional reaction to risk. The most destructive of these traits is loss aversion—the psychological tendency to feel the pain of a loss far more intensely than the joy of a corresponding gain. This often leads traders to "hold on" to losing positions in the hope of a turnaround, effectively turning a controlled trade into a reckless gamble.
To mitigate these risks, he emphasizes that trading is less about finding a "magic" formula and more about playing the "loser's game." This means winning by simply avoiding the common, unforced errors that most people make due to their biology. He highlights apophenia (the tendency to see patterns in random data) as a major pitfall, warning traders not to mistake a lucky streak for a repeatable system. Instead of chasing a single "golden egg" strategy, He advocates for consistency and money management, treating losses as an unavoidable business expense. By shifting your mindset to view the market as a structured environment rather than a chaotic one, you can focus on positive expectancy—ensuring that your process is sound enough to win over a long enough timeline, even when individual trades fail.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3t3uytTBCk
(9 years ago, 8.41 minutes)
This is likely to be the best starting point for anyone new to the game, (and a reminder for anyone that still makes the same mistakes).
---
He argues that the greatest obstacle to success isn't a lack of technical strategy, but the "primitive brain" and its hardwired emotional responses. He frequently references the "Devil Inside," which is his term for the internal conflict between our logical understanding of a trade and our emotional reaction to risk. The most destructive of these traits is loss aversion—the psychological tendency to feel the pain of a loss far more intensely than the joy of a corresponding gain. This often leads traders to "hold on" to losing positions in the hope of a turnaround, effectively turning a controlled trade into a reckless gamble.
To mitigate these risks, he emphasizes that trading is less about finding a "magic" formula and more about playing the "loser's game." This means winning by simply avoiding the common, unforced errors that most people make due to their biology. He highlights apophenia (the tendency to see patterns in random data) as a major pitfall, warning traders not to mistake a lucky streak for a repeatable system. Instead of chasing a single "golden egg" strategy, He advocates for consistency and money management, treating losses as an unavoidable business expense. By shifting your mindset to view the market as a structured environment rather than a chaotic one, you can focus on positive expectancy—ensuring that your process is sound enough to win over a long enough timeline, even when individual trades fail.
---
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3t3uytTBCk
(9 years ago, 8.41 minutes)
If you’re 21 and thinking “shot before a normal job”, I’d be careful with that framing.
This is not easy money.
It’s hard, and most people lose, especially if they try to force it as income from day 1.
The “only 5% make money” line gets used wrong.
Even if it’s true, it doesn’t mean you personally have a 5% chance.
It just means it’s not plug and play, and you need a real edge plus discipline plus proper record keeping.
If you want a sensible start, keep stakes tiny, pick one simple repeatable setup, and log every trade.
Treat it like a hobby budget, not a career plan.
Courses are mostly noise too.
Nobody sells you an edge.
And the Peter Webb pile-on feels misplaced.
If someone loses money, that’s usually no edge, bad risk control, or unrealistic expectations.
If you don’t enjoy it, do something else.
Life’s too short to force a hobby you don’t even like.
This is not easy money.
It’s hard, and most people lose, especially if they try to force it as income from day 1.
The “only 5% make money” line gets used wrong.
Even if it’s true, it doesn’t mean you personally have a 5% chance.
It just means it’s not plug and play, and you need a real edge plus discipline plus proper record keeping.
If you want a sensible start, keep stakes tiny, pick one simple repeatable setup, and log every trade.
Treat it like a hobby budget, not a career plan.
Courses are mostly noise too.
Nobody sells you an edge.
And the Peter Webb pile-on feels misplaced.
If someone loses money, that’s usually no edge, bad risk control, or unrealistic expectations.
If you don’t enjoy it, do something else.
Life’s too short to force a hobby you don’t even like.