Ask mrbaseball about trading for a living

[boardertj]

I'm sure this is pretty firm specific but, how many hours per week does a first year trader work?

[ArturiusX]

Hey, I've been trading freelance for about 2 years now, some people were asking about books, here's a few good ones:

Technical Analysis Explained, Martin J. Pring
Martin Pring on Market Momentum, Martin J. Pring
Technical Analysis of the Financial markets...John J. Murphy
Intermarket Analysis, John J. Murphy
Trading for a Living, Alexander Elder
The New Market Wizards, Jack D. Schwager
Trading in the Zone, Mark Douglas

Also some blogs, although these people trade NOTHING like I (or mrbaseball) trade, thats the sexy part about trading, you do whatever the hell you want as long as the numbers work:


http://traderx.blogspot.com/

http://tradermike.net/

http://picture-windows.blogspot.com/index.html

http://thetradingdigest.com/blog/

http://blog.stocktickr.com/

[RarocASP]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm sure this is pretty firm specific but, how many hours per week does a first year trader work?

[/ QUOTE ]

I've been an options market maker for about three years now. Typically, I get in to work about 7:30-8ish and leave around 6ish most nights (so about 50 hours/wk). However, I do have the flexibility to get in just before 9:30 or leave right after the bell at 4 if need be. I find this to be the norm for a market maker.

Like you said, this is very firm specific and varies greatly between the different types of traders.

[mrbaseball]

[ QUOTE ]
I'm sure this is pretty firm specific but, how many hours per week does a first year trader work?


[/ QUOTE ]

Typically from open to close. I know a lot of guys that got into the grain markets just for the hours [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img] What you do after that depends on the person. I do a lot of research and study but I really enjoy that aspect. Some guys don't do any at all? Some like to trade the off hours in addition to normal market hours (I don't). Like everything else it depends?

[eternalnewbie]

I have been looking for arbitrage/scalp type opportunities suitable for individuals. Although I believe that I have spotted opportunities, I have found that all of them either (i) would not be possible for me as an individual because the transactions costs would eat up the profit unless the orders were very large or (ii) would require purchases or sales in markets that are thinly traded enough that I would be worried about execution risk.

I believe that you mentioned that you did not want to discuss your current positions, but can you give some examples of particular trades of this type that you have made in the past? It would be great if we could get a full - "this was my original idea, this is how I found it, this is how I executed the transaction, and this is how I closed it out" type analysis. I am basically looking for insight into how you scout out your plays.

Thanks again for this thread!

[mrbaseball]

[ QUOTE ]
can you give some examples of particular trades of this type that you have made in the past?

[/ QUOTE ]

Okay, here's a dead arb. When the Crude Oil delivery contract first became electronically traded there were lots of easy arbs trading the delivery contract versus the mini-contract. But after a few months it was arbed out and you could no longer get profitable execution with getting picked off or legged up even when auto-spreading. The NYMEX has a market maker program which gives the exchange market makers preferable execution which means once the arb gets popular and noticed that it won't work for you anymore unless you are one of the chosen few. There are lots of these kinds of opportunities but generally they don't last for more than a few months so you have to be vigilant in always trying to find new ones.

[Foghatlive]

Is it possible for a middle-aged guy with no experience, who's looking for a career change, to break into the biz, or is it pretty much a young guys' game?

[pig4bill]

You can always trade your own account, but you need capital, either your own or someone else's. If you do well, you'll have results you can show around and eventually open your own hedge fund and raise money.

[john voight]

Off topic, but:

what is the craziest thing you have seen in person related to your job.

Like have you seen a fist fight, etc..

[PokerPaul]

Can you please clear up this mathematical inconsistancy i cant figure out. I used to work in the settlements area for goldman sachs. Institutional Fixed income trading office. All the traders traded with the SAME counterparts and other traders from competing firms for the most part day in day out.

For every trade there is usually one winner and loser. If thats the case in the long run should HALF of all those traders be losers? How can they all be employed for so much $$ if only half likely to make $$$? Or if thats not the case, how can more than Half turn profits?