2024: $2665.50

Total: $6980.60

 

To the current reader and current trader, I wish you nothing but the best of luck and the perseverance to keep on going. This is a hard space to venture, I hope that you reach a destination that is worthy of the vision you had when you started this journey. For me, that journey has come to an end. And although I never realized the vision I had for myself, I can walk away proud and satisfied that I was able to even try to pursue a dream. It took me a long time to realize how ill-prepared I was mentally and emotionally to pursue this dream. So I’d like to share what I can from my 5 year journey to provide some insight and guidance to anyone that may need it.

 

Patience is everything, the game forces you to adapt so be patient with yourself. Some changes are gonna be harder to make than others. The market is cyclical, so be patient in taking the setups you’re comfortable with. Trading is an art, not a science, so be patient to find good entries and good exits. Lastly, one day/one trade is never gonna matter in the long run. Like they say it’s a marathon not a sprint so be patient and get 1% better everyday, your trading success will be worth it in the end.

 

I found that you have to be good at all of these things to taste success. My biggest weakness was a lack of adaptation. I can be patient in waiting for setups, I can be patient in finding entries and exits, but I could never seem to grasp the slight nuances of the game that required adaptation. And sometimes I would get caught in a downward spiral because of that, in trading and in life my biggest emotional problem is frustration. As much as I think I have improved in dealing with frustration because of my trading journey, it wasn’t enough.

 

I would say that patience is a mental challenge, and frustration is an emotional one. And that emotional challenge is what I believe was the barrier to my success. My relationship with losing and competition is not a healthy one. My self talk in periods of downturn can be crippling and to this day it is a struggle. I’m too hard on myself or maybe I’m not confident enough in myself. Whichever side it is, or maybe a combination of the two, I never found a headspace to be able to navigate through those emotions while trading in real time. Some of my worst trades were revenge trades, or forced trades when I wanted to be right. The way that all the little emotional challenges stack up against you can turn into costly mistakes. So to be able to realize that and find a way to relieve that tension is a very valuable skill.

 

Skills are your weapons, trades are your targets and the market is a battlefield. Look for the best targets and make sure you have the right weapons to hit those targets. Become a “certified killer”, whether you’re a sniper, a gunslinger or someone in between, understand you can’t hit on everything and respect that you shouldn’t. The black swans that we see from time to time in the penny stock space are sometimes just a reminder of what you’re looking for on a smaller scale. It’s a reminder that trading success is tangible and attainable. So to those traders, keep fighting. And to those reading, I hope that you have a better understanding of the trading journey.