Well today was a proud day for me and my partner. Dr. Steenbarger, one of the top three trading coaches in the country, wrote a very nice blog about our training program (http://traderfeed.blogspot.com/2008/07/training-successful-traders-new-breed.html). Steve, GMan and I worked very hard to develop our training program and it is a great honor to be mentioned by Dr. Steenbarger. On our desk I always describe … Read More
AM Meeting Summary
CHK–Support 48/48.30 Resistance 49.60. FNM–Support 11.80 Resistance 12.60. XTO–Resistance 49.20 Support 48. WDC–Support 30. WFR–Support 42 Resistance 44. QCOM–Support 51.70 Resistance 54. WM–Big Seller at 4.04 yesterday. Followup (11:15AM): When FNM failed to break above 12.60 we shorted and covered in front of the 11.80 support. When the support dropped we traded it on the short side again for another … Read More
A Trade You Must Be In
On our desk there are trades that you must be in. There are setups that if offered by the market you must exploit. You should have a list of the trades that you must be in. And if this trade results in a loss you are not annoyed. In fact you are grateful for the opportunity. There are trades where … Read More
The Day Doesn’t End Until 4
One of my favorite phrases on our prop desk at SMB Capital is: the day doesn’t end until 4. If you start negative then you have the rest of the day to make it back and then some. In this market there is so much opportunity it is a waste of energy and irresponsible to get down after a few … Read More
Spreading Yourself Too Thin
Earnings season is an exciting time for us as traders. As Bella puts it, this is our Superbowl. Today was a great example of why this is an exciting time. I love being on the bus on my way to work scanning through briefing on my phone and seeing that a few of stocks I trade well have reported and … Read More
Sometimes You Just Gotta Be More Aggressive
I had a great day today. Actually, I feel like this could be the best I’ve traded in the past year. When I woke up this morning I was excited because there were a bunch of stocks that I’ve traded that had earnings today. And when the market opened, I was all over the place. My alerts were going off … Read More
Blackboxes/Algorithms Nothing to Fear
I received a GChat message from a future trader, Carter, who was interested in the impact of blackboxes or algorithms on intraday trading. I have heard Carter’s concerns from other future traders. Some believe that blackboxes will rule trading and eliminate the intraday trader. A few thoughts: 1) I have heard this argument for the past 5 years and I … Read More
A Bet That Paid Off
My primary focus for the past few years has been making money intraday. But occasionally I observe a pattern that causes me to take an overnight position. Around 10:30AM on Friday FNM had a very powerful breakout through $12. It topped out around $14. During the afternoon there was some selling and it traded as low at $12.40. But during … Read More
