< previous page page_5 next page >

Page 5
and say, "I did not make money." That's letting your ego get in the way. So you let the market go against you, and instead of losing one tick, you lose more.
Neal: So let's say my trading assistant, Duncan, goes through the first six months; he scratches all of his trades; he's gone the distance. Now he's wondering, "Okay, Sid, what's stage two?"
Sid: He's been trading one at a time. Now we say, "Here's what you do, Duncan. When you bid 11 and somebody hits you at 11, you offer it at 12 twice. If nobody buys it, you scratch the trade." You offer it only twice. That's stage two. Now let's say that you've offered it once or twice and somebody buys it. You've made some moneyfine, no problem. What's the next stage? You bid for two contracts. When somebody sells you the two contracts, you scratch one right away and offer one at 12 twice. If nobody buys it, scratch it at 11 again. So it's a progression. We want a person to learn to trade one contract successfully. Then you can move to two lots, then to three lots, then to five lots, but always getting out of part of it. After that, you might move up to another stage where you do five lots. You might scratch two; offer two, once . . . twice, get out of them; offer one more, somebody buys it and you go on. So it's a stacked progression. Each person travels through these stages on an individual basis. There is no way to predict. Through the seminars I've found people who have been able to master the mechanical and psychological concepts. I tell them, "When you go on the floor, you're going to be the very best prepared new trader. However, you're still an amateur playing against the pros. You've got to work to become a pro." We feel comfortable that after attending our classes, a person can go to the floor, let's say 8 or 10 times, without the fear of being blown out of the water.
Neal: Is fear a factor?
Sid: There's fear for some people, yes.

 
< previous page page_5 next page >