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Trading Recap

Can This Mindset Shift Change Everything?

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Written by Timothy Sykes
Updated 4/27/2023 6 min read
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After a brutal start to the month I’m starting to see some light at the end of the tunnel.

I placed five trades…with four of them being winners as I headed into Thursday’s trading session.

Moreover, my biggest winning trade was more than 6x larger than my only loss.

Despite a hectic travel schedule this month, that’s seen me go to Dubai, Tokyo, Bali, and Turkey to name a few…

My trading hasn’t been negatively affected.

In fact, I could argue I’m trading significantly better…

And it also has to do with making this one mindset shift.

How I’m Approaching Each Day

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Believe it or not this helped me out A TON.

And that’s going into each trading session NOT looking to trade.

I know, it sounds counterintuitive.

But check it out…

The overall market action has been relatively choppy as we go through earnings season.

And while I don’t necessarily trade earnings…I’m watching because the majority of stocks move with the market.

So yeah…I go into each day not looking to trade.

Now, that doesn’t mean I’m coming in unprepared. I’m still making my watchlist and have stocks on my radar.

But I’m going back to the mindset of a retired trader. In other words, I’m only getting into plays so compelling that I’d have regrets for not being involved.

This allows me to be selective and takes some pressure off me.

Sometimes we put so much pressure on ourselves. Especially when our account is down or going through a bad streak.

The best thing you can do is take a step back and review what you’ve been doing.

  • Are you overly aggressive?
  • Are you respecting your risk rules?
  • Are you taking only your best setups?
  • Are you following your trading plan?

These are all questions you should be asking yourself and finding answers to.

How I’m Approaching My Trades

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One way I’ve found that works for me is testing stuff out.

In other words, I’m placing smaller sized trades and seeing if my ideas play out.

Trading smaller allows me to focus more on the setups and less on the PnL swings.

And although this isn’t the best market for trading, I see these trades as me putting my reps in.

I’m going through the motions and it’s keeping me sharp.

For example, last Friday, the ticker symbol NLST announced it won a $303 million patent lawsuit against Samsung.

And since it was announced late on Friday…it made for the PERFECT Weekend Trade. 

I missed The Weekend Trade because I was traveling.

But I figured I might have a chance later in the week to trade NLST for a potential dip buy opportunity. 

And that’s what I did on Tuesday…

The market was selling off hard at the time and I figured the weakness in NLST was related to that.

So I “tested out” a dip buy at $4.38…which worked well for a quick scalp.

Not the biggest winner percentage wise…but I’m just trying to stay sharp and lock in small wins.

Good thing I did take those quick profits because the stock gave me another opportunity for a dip buy entry a few minutes later.

Of course, you never know if you’re buying the bottom or catching a falling knife. That’s why you should have a trading plan. And not be one of those “deer in headlights” traders.

The second scalp trade worked out great.

More Breaking News

Normally, I would play for bigger moves but that’s not what the market is giving us right now. That’s why I’m not upset at taking smaller percentage gains.

Final Note

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Sometimes taking pressure off yourself can help in regaining your focus and building up your confidence.

It’s okay to size down if you feel like your rhythm is off. In fact, I do it all the time.

Also, adopting the philosophy of being a retired trader can also be a huge benefit for some…I know it is for me.

And of course, what you want to be doing right now is STUDY…STUDY…STUDY.

If you’d like to discover what my Millionaire Challenge is all about…then click here for the details. 

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* Results are not typical and will vary from person to person. Making money trading stocks takes time, dedication, and hard work. There are inherent risks involved with investing in the stock market, including the loss of your investment. Past performance in the market is not indicative of future results. Any investment is at your own risk. See Terms of Service here

The available research on day trading suggests that most active traders lose money. Fees and overtrading are major contributors to these losses.

A 2000 study called “Trading is Hazardous to Your Wealth: The Common Stock Investment Performance of Individual Investors” evaluated 66,465 U.S. households that held stocks from 1991 to 1996. The households that traded most averaged an 11.4% annual return during a period where the overall market gained 17.9%. These lower returns were attributed to overconfidence.

A 2014 paper (revised 2019) titled “Learning Fast or Slow?” analyzed the complete transaction history of the Taiwan Stock Exchange between 1992 and 2006. It looked at the ongoing performance of day traders in this sample, and found that 97% of day traders can expect to lose money from trading, and more than 90% of all day trading volume can be traced to investors who predictably lose money. Additionally, it tied the behavior of gamblers and drivers who get more speeding tickets to overtrading, and cited studies showing that legalized gambling has an inverse effect on trading volume.

A 2019 research study (revised 2020) called “Day Trading for a Living?” observed 19,646 Brazilian futures contract traders who started day trading from 2013 to 2015, and recorded two years of their trading activity. The study authors found that 97% of traders with more than 300 days actively trading lost money, and only 1.1% earned more than the Brazilian minimum wage ($16 USD per day). They hypothesized that the greater returns shown in previous studies did not differentiate between frequent day traders and those who traded rarely, and that more frequent trading activity decreases the chance of profitability.

These studies show the wide variance of the available data on day trading profitability. One thing that seems clear from the research is that most day traders lose money .

Millionaire Media 66 W Flagler St. Ste. 900 Miami, FL 33130 United States (888) 878-3621 This is for information purposes only as Millionaire Media LLC nor Timothy Sykes is registered as a securities broker-dealer or an investment adviser. No information herein is intended as securities brokerage, investment, tax, accounting or legal advice, as an offer or solicitation of an offer to sell or buy, or as an endorsement, recommendation or sponsorship of any company, security or fund. Millionaire Media LLC and Timothy Sykes cannot and does not assess, verify or guarantee the adequacy, accuracy or completeness of any information, the suitability or profitability of any particular investment, or the potential value of any investment or informational source. The reader bears responsibility for his/her own investment research and decisions, should seek the advice of a qualified securities professional before making any investment, and investigate and fully understand any and all risks before investing. Millionaire Media LLC and Timothy Sykes in no way warrants the solvency, financial condition, or investment advisability of any of the securities mentioned in communications or websites. In addition, Millionaire Media LLC and Timothy Sykes accepts no liability whatsoever for any direct or consequential loss arising from any use of this information. This information is not intended to be used as the sole basis of any investment decision, nor should it be construed as advice designed to meet the investment needs of any particular investor. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future returns.

Citations for Disclaimer

Barber, Brad M. and Odean, Terrance, Trading is Hazardous to Your Wealth: The Common Stock Investment Performance of Individual Investors. Available at SSRN: “Day Trading for a Living?”

Barber, Brad M. and Lee, Yi-Tsung and Liu, Yu-Jane and Odean, Terrance and Zhang, Ke, Learning Fast or Slow? (May 28, 2019). Forthcoming: Review of Asset Pricing Studies, Available at SSRN: “https://ssrn.com/abstract=2535636”

Chague, Fernando and De-Losso, Rodrigo and Giovannetti, Bruno, Day Trading for a Living? (June 11, 2020). Available at SSRN: “https://ssrn.com/abstract=3423101”