Sorry for the recent turn of events, shake. But any successful trader goes through these lessons and you'll be the better for it. Anyone who says they started making money from day one is just plain lying and/or doesn't trade at all. Just try to survive and learn.
And yes, I have been there and I'm not trying to give you some phony pep talk. I started trading with $30,000 cash that I had saved up. Lost all of that within 3 months, took out credit card advances for $50,000, lost most of that. Down to my last $17,000 (from both my cash and credit card advances combined), I turned that into $150,000. Paid off the credit card advances. Then, I lost all of that again, took out another credit card advance for $40,000, lost most of that, was down to my last $11,000. But I survived and came back and now I'm a full-time trader. Now I'm debating between buying an Audi Q7 or a Mercedes S600.
If your wondering, this post isn't a joke, I went through all that. And no, I didn't have a whole bunch of money. That $30,000 I started with and lost was my entire life savings. You better believe I was crying like a baby when I lost it.
This is the quote that I live by because I went through it and it describes what it takes to be a successful trader, although I still make plenty, plenty of mistakes. I love what I do and you will too. Just survive and learn.
How high is the cost to be a master trader? While the actual price is difficult to quantify, we have been at the business of trading long enough to know that it's higher than most people think. And in most cases, it's higher than most people are willing to pay. Show me someone who wants to quit his or her job to become a day trader, and I'll show you someone who probably doesn't understand what it takes to be a day trader. Those who feel this is a game that can be conquered or mastered in a few short months are deluding themselves. Not only does it take many months to years of relentless effort to obtain market proficiency, but also excellence seems to emerge only after one has learned and experienced every conceivable way to lose. The truth of the matter is that the pains, the agony, the scars of an experienced trader run especially long and deep. If aspiring market mavens do not possess a great deal of fortitude, or if they lack resolve, are devoid of passion, and are unwilling to forsake all, they simply won't last. Individuals who truly desire market success will have to pay with their blood, their money, and a very big part of their lives. The tuition is high. There is no denying that. But the ultimate reward that goes to those willing to pay the price is immeasurable. Successful traders enjoy an independence that can't even be imagined by most. With a notebook computer and a telephone line, they are free to trade, to book profits, from any place in the world. They can earn more money in 2 hours than most people earn in a month. With the click of a mouse and the stroke of a few keys, successful traders can bring into existence their every material desire and shield themselves from the day-to-day concerns that typically plague the mediocre and the average. By properly responding to the electronic impulses flashing on the computer screen, traders can create the world of their choice, live a lifestyle that supersedes the wildest of all dreams, and rest securely in the fact that no one on planet Earth can take it away. But in order to get there, you must last! To reach the lofty level of which I speak, you must survive, however difficult things get. And that, my friends, is no easy task. So if you are truly willing to pay the price, the best advice I can give you is this. Develop a plan, find a mentor who will teach you, and never surrender! Make up your mind this very day that you will either rise or perish. And then watch your unshakable resolve work out the details. You can do it. We know this to be true because we did it. - Initiation of the Master Trader
