Experienced Trader Humbled, Rises Again

We’ve heard the tough stories within our community about how traders struggled, suffered losses, and searched for answers to get on track.

Most of the traders on our team have been there – gaining confidence and a string of wins… then watching the market turn suddenly and rip away all the hard-earned dollars in the trading account.

Some of the unsolicited personal stories we receive from our community of traders stand out. They make us sit up straighter in front of our computers and focus harder on our goal of helping fellow traders.

This is one trader who gave us pause:

James became a member of Simpler Trading three years ago. His first two years were a tough learning experience as he struggled to trade with any consistency.

He found himself grappling with options strategies and a sizable account. He was in a pattern of larger losses and smaller wins. Yet, he stayed focused on learning.

Last December he took action and cut his account balance to a level more comfortable for him. He dedicated his trading plan to following more closely the examples and live trading in the Small Account Mastery program and real-time trading in the Options Gold chat room.

James aligned himself with the styles of several of Simpler’s traders while also watching and listening to fellow members.

He focused on “diligence before vision” to keep his trading in line with his resources and goals.

James went from a negative equity curve to gaining a net return of $90,000 this year and he wired out 60% of his gains.

He now plans to increase his base account balance – according to his trading comfort level – while focusing on his established trading plan.

He credits this positive outcome to holding himself to the Simpler standard of making trades based on a maximum percentage of the account, i.e. keeping position sizing (account percentage tied up in trades) to 5% or less.

Keep in mind James isn’t new to the stock market. He has 30 years experience, but knows the value of a little “schooling” – continually learning how to improve his trading.

James credits his time in the Simpler Trading community to providing a trading education he never had before.

This is at the heart of what Simpler Trading works to provide members. Our goal is to deliver real-life, real-time examples of how our traders navigate the pitfalls and opportunities of the markets to build a lifestyle of trading profitability.

Trading is risk. We embrace and work with that.

Risk is also part of the allure of the trading lifestyle. A savings account is arguably less risky than an options trade, but with much less potential for return on your money. Banking and compounding interest isn’t our cup of tea.

We are in this to win at a faster pace with success, even though we are well aware there will be losses along the way. The key is to make sure at the end of the day, week, month, and year that the equity curve points positive, i.e. consistent gains.

At Simpler, we know that sharing our own experiences and learning from the experiences of others will make us better traders.

This is why we don’t trade alone.

We Saw: a sharp twist in the market roller coaster – 

• Struggling tech stocks worrying investors
• Extended market, stocks being revealed
• Wednesday’s rebound being erased

We’re Watching: market showing classic pattern that fools traders –

• ‘Buying the dip’ more like catching a falling knife
• Vicious cycle of rally then retrace
• Acting fast to take gains on solid moves