Tomorrow will be my second 'blogiversary' and I can't believe that it's already been two years since I started this weblog. It's even tougher for me to believe that I've been trading full-time for six years now. That's the longest period of time that I've had one 'job'. They say that change is good and I think it's time for me to make some changes.
While I like not having to commute to work, working from home can get really old after a few years. I've got to get out of this damn house! :-) It would also be nice to have a (more) steady stream of income. Back in the day I made so much in the good times that I could go through the dry times with little concern. But in this sideways market it's a lot tougher, especially when you have bills to pay. So I'm going to spend the next few weeks exploring some other opportunities.
Some of the opportunities are trading, or trading-related -- others are not. I had a very interesting meeting yesterday with a proprietary trading shop. While they would allow me access to more capital its the consistency of their system that really caught my interest. I'm going to take a hard look at that next week. Other things that I'm considering are going back into technology (the engineer in me just won't die) or breaking in to the venture capital industry.
No matter what I decide to do I'm not sure what will become of this site. It's tough writing about the market every day for months on end -- especially when you're doing it for free. Perhaps I'll slow to posting two or three times a week. I'll just have to play it by ear. I do enjoy doing the chart requests for people so please keep those requests coming. (Kevin, your PIXR chart is coming very soon!)
And, no, none of this is an April Fools joke. :-)
Happy April Fools Day to you too.
Peter
We all go through the phase of looking for alternative income streams when trading income slows down. My view is that if trading is your passion, you should continue to trade, and seek those additional income streams at the weekend e.g. running an internet business, locating property to invest in etc.
You must be honest with yourself when you ask the following "Do I love trading?". If you do, don't quit even if trading income is currently hard to come by.
Drop by to Elitetrader.com if you haven't already done so.
The "home alone" part was the toughest for me - even tougher than the money stuff. After eight years working in a converted 8x10 bedroom I was going nucking futs, and I even had the chance to travel quite a bit to client sites.
So now I have a nice office about 15 minutes from the house where clients can come in, people can come out for brainstorming sessions, I can hold meetings, etc. Economically, I can't say it was a great idea. It's tough. Especially in the dry times. But for my sanity, productivity, and civility it was absolutely the right thing. And I guess the economics can't follow if the rest isn't in place.
Best of luck however you work out your situation.
Hi Mike,
I have been reading your blog for past 4 months. I think you are best blogger. I am an engineer in high-tech. Life is very difficult out in tech land. Maybe doing some part-time business on side and then get fully involved in both business.
I find trading very difficult with a full time tech job. I think doing a business and trading appears to be more sensible. This will allow steady stream of income and you can trader without pressure.
I wish you luck.
Hi Mike,
I wish you luck in whatever you end up doing. I am sure the thought of the capital markets will always warm your heart.
Cheers!
JWK - Public Co$
Hi Mike,
We wish you the best over here at Public Co$. I am sure the capital markets will always have a place in your heart (and trading account).
Cheers!
Jeff
Hi Mike,
I just started trading full time in Jan 2005. I previously worked in patents.
If you are considering going back into technology, you might want to look into becomming a part time patent agent. Patent agents get to look into all aspects of innovation, technology transfer, and seed capital sources within a corporation. With your BSEE degree and experiences, many patent law firms would love to hire and teach you the business (A BSEE degree is the gold standard in patent practice). You could work part time at a patent law firm and part time trading stocks.
Best,
Vince
Hey Mike, I occasionally stop in to check out your blog. It's one of the few that I keep up with.
Anyway, I have also recently come to the same conclusion as you, and am making plans to shut her down and move on. Needless to say, it's not going to be easy as this is an addictive gig. But many do move on..out of the 50 or so traders that have passed through my life in the last 5 years, I think all but 5 have moved on. It was lots of fun when I first started doing this as I came from the commodity floor in early 2000. However, after encouraging initial results, it's become painfully obvious to me that the ratio of time and effort to income is getting worse and worse. It seems like all the time tested signals & setups in my arsenal have limited reliability these days. I've traded on enough floors and exchanges to know that you need the general public involved, otherwise it's shark against shark and everyone just ends up chasing their tails. And not only that, but it's clear to me that the trading landscape has also changed, with "black box trading programs" and insider trading steadily becoming a bigger part of the game. Anyway, it was fun and lucrative for awhile but it's time to say goodnight Gracie......
J.
..btw Mike, one of the options that I'm considering pursuing is a web based, service oriented business that might be of interest to you due to your technical background. Let me know if you'd like to discuss it further.
Regards,
J.
Wow. This thread is downright depressing. Perhaps you should consider splitting your time doing something else that would provide income and then trading could just be your icing on the cake.
Love the blog and would hate to see it die.
Hey Mike, I know exactly where you're coming from being the author of www.unconscious-trader.com Got to the point where I had to ask the question "do I want to be a trader or a writer of trading entertainment."
I've been reading this blog for sometime, but never posted. Reading all these posts, I'm amazed at how many people have been able to trade full time, or recently started trading full time. I've been investigating different trading systems for months (CANSLIM, Pitbull, momentum, swing, etc) and haven't yet found a "system" that seems complete or that I'm really comfortable with. I would LOVE to get some advice from a few of you who have been trading full time for a while. I work in the technical field now as a systems engineer, and don't necessarilly want to trade full time. However, I DO want to do a whole lot better with my portfolio! :-) You can visit my site at www.mauder.com and click the Contact button at the top of the page. Thanks! -Dave
Hi Mike,
I have just recently started to read your blog. I have really enjoyed your writing and analysis. I truly feel for you and know what you are talking about. I traded "professionally" for 4 years and the money I made in the beginning was great and lived the life of a "great trader". When the steady income dried up, it was difficult to change my lifestyle and got into some financial trouble. I then decided to quit trading even though it was what i LOVED and what I have immense passion for. I became frustrated with my results which further affected my trading results. I started looking for jobs with a degree from UC Berkeley, it was very hard but it just wasnt the same. I wasnt very happy even though i have slowly started to climb out of my financial problems. But, I have finally found a balance. I just started a job as an energy trader at Calpine and it gives me the excitement, competitive spirit and instant gratification that i needed in a "job". But, the schedule also allows me to trade for a few hours almost everyday to do some day trading and adjust orders for my swing trades... =) now i am a happy trader again and my results have actually improved dramatically! almsot makes me want to do it full time again... this stuff is so damn addicting. But I just suggest finding something that can satisfy your emotional trading needs as well as your financial needs. Good luck with everything but I really love your blog please stay online. Thank you for everything.
James