Intuition and Trading

[carter]

	Quote:	Stockaddict
	Are you saying that system traders blindly follow their signals without overall understanding of the market? Wouldn't intuition help even with system based trading since they would be able to obvious false signals?

That is how traders lose. If you are trading a system, you need to take every signal in order for the system to work.

By not following your system 100% you decrease your odds of profitability.

[Soultrader]

I see where you are getting at carter. I have never traded a system or have any experience with it so it would be hard for me to say whether intuition is necessary for pure mechanical traders.

It's hard for me to follow how system traders think in terms of market understanding since I have focused hard to be a pure discretionary trader.

[Blaze]

	Quote:	luke24.5
	None ... If you treat it as you do any formal education for a good paying profession. $2-300 per month US will pay for a real-time datafeed, good charting and simulator. Once you can make money on the simulator consistently for at least 3-6 months, you've garduated and the return on your investment will be quicker than virtually any other profession. If this is a 2 year process, it's still a cheap and quick education considering it's potential. Now if you prefer the quick route that most use, you will blow in direct prportion to what you start with. And you will most likely blow out a few times over before you come to the decision that one cannot make money at this, or you decide to get the education and a few (very few, and most were during the 90's boom) have even got lucky and started making money off the bat.

Do you mind if I ask how long it took you to trade successfully? If a trader spends 2-3 years and can not seem to be profitable, would you recommend him to stop trading?

I am curious to know if trading can be learned or is it talent. If it is something that I can be good at through time and hard work I am willing to go all the way. However, if talent is a big factor in trading I may need to reconsider this field. I read that the failure rate is incredibly high. Why is this?