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Day Trading

So, you want to be a Day Trader. So do I!

If you've had any interest in stocks or other markets to trade, day trading probably came across your thoughts at one point or another. I've been in and out of this position for over 20 years. I'm now finding myself getting pulled back in.

I honestly believed when I was young I had all the knowledge and skill to make money day trading. Boy was I wrong.

I recently found some of my old transactions from my trading days back in 2001-2002. What a mess. Looking at the amount of money I traded was insane. I was way over my head. I'll share some of these transactions and statements in a future post.

Learn all about my history as a day trader right here. (In the Works)

Let's get into what is going to happen this time around.

The New Journey

Follow me as I navigate the markets once again. What will make this journey different? Am I crazy? Why would I go down this path again?

These are all great questions. I believe the answer to most of these is the conviction to do it right this time. Of course, I will have hiccups but I also feel like I have a great source to learn from, my mindset is aged better and the knowledge of bad habits from the past will steer me down the right path.

Will I be successful? First of all, I hope so. Secondly, I won't know unless I try. Lastly, I will do everything I can and then some to become successful at day trading.

Early Goals (Subject to Change)

In day trading, some people may consider goals as rules. The more rules you have for yourself the more bad situations you can avoid. Below are my starter goals.

  1. Focus on Studying the Course I plan to purchase. - Guys I've known in the business for over 12 years.
  2. Build the right ROUTINE.
  3. Learn the proper set-ups.
  4. Practice the proper set-ups.
  5. Drop the bad habits from the past.
  6. Manage risk better.
  7. Pull the trigger for the trades I really like. Trust in me.
  8. Avoid the trades that aren't almost perfect.
  9. Be defensive and back out of a trade I don't see working right away.
  10. No Shorting - I can't even short in the early stages of this journey if I wanted to. I'm not allowed to short stocks in a retirement account.

Starting Information

During the learning phase, I'll be using one of my three IRA accounts. As soon as I start trading in the green on a consistent basis, I will open a new cash account with a different broker. The broker I will use in the future is yet to be determined. I currently have accounts with TD Ameritrade and Etrade.

IRA Account Size - $32,000 - Caveat - I've owned Apple stock for several years in this account. It's currently a large share of my balance. I'm looking to exit this position when the time is right. I still have enough buying power to trade most stocks at the appropriate risk level. The AAPL position shouldn't get in my way.

Platform - Think or Swim (TOS) - This will change with the new cash account.

So, wish me luck and read the articles below to see where I'm at on my Day Trading journey.

UPDATED - 5/6/2020 - Although I still have my account with TDAmeritade, I'm officially moving my trading platform. I'm leaving TD with a gain of $998.71 since I started the course material on April 9, 2020. Not bad for less than 30 days and studying new material.

I officially have two accounts opened at Tradestation. One is a ROTH IRA and the other is a CASH Account. I will be in and out of both going forward. The cash account will be for income, while the ROTH will be for retirement. I still need to add cash to the income account so it goes above the PDT rule. I will most likely only take 1-2 trades a week in this account until that is met.

UPDATED - 10/1/2020 - I'm still trading with Tradestation for now, but I do have a new account opened at Etrade. As soon as I get that rolling I will share with you my thoughts. Check out my Septemeber 2020 day trading post to see how I'm doing. There is a lot more to come. I also plan to give a full Tradestation review at some point.

Updated - 10/20/2020 - At this time I've decided to use ETrade as a resource of items that Tradestation doesn't do as well. I'm going to continue to trade at Tradestation for now. I posted my Tradestation review, so please check that out. As we move through the next couple of months I will see how things perform.

Updated - 1/18/2021 - I put a list together of 21 daytrading tips I wish I had when I started.

Updated - 2/15/2021 - I built my own Daytrading PC for Tradestation so check it out.

Updated - 2/27/2021 - I put a review on the Elgato Stream Deck for daytrading. Check it out. I've almost made it a year in this business. I've learned a ton so far and it's now time to step it up. I have some new tools behind me to help make me better. From news trading to fast execution hotkeys, I really hope to pick it up.

Updated 3/11/2021 - I purchased the annual subscription to the Benzinga Pro news service. I give my full review. This tool is fantastic.