Its human nature to measure yourself against the other person(s). If you believe you can do better than the other person(s)...you're also believing your performance will be better.
Simply, as a trader and knowing most traders will fail at trading...if you think you can do better than other traders...you're also believing you'll be a profitable trader. Furthering my opinion, I think the market is arguably setup so that
only a small percentage will be profitable. Therefore, most market participants just lose money. Yet, just because only a small percentage are profitable doesn't imply the markets
do not work. In contrast, it means that the markets
do work and that only a small percentage were able to figure out how to make it work.
Quote:
Too many people got the philosophy of the trading mixed up. They believe to prove that something works is to prove that most are profitable.
I learned the above statement in in quote/italics is false when I played sports. On the amateur level...most can do it. Yet, as you progress to the higher level of competition from high school to college and then to professional or international competition...
Most will not make it but only a few will make it. I can live with that because I think that's the way its suppose to be. Simply, to prove that something works...you need to prove that only a small percentage are able to succeed.
Think about the above paragraph very carefully. For example, pretend there's 100 traders using the same trade method...only one trader succeeded while the other 99 traders failed...does that mean the trade method does
not work
With that said, there's obviously other ways to make money in the markets. For example, a close friend of mine so far this year is having a negative performance (first in about 10 years) at his institutional firm. Yet, his salary is 230k per year with full health/medical benefits and other perks. He earned that job. Graduated in the top of his class at graduate school, did the internships, made close friendships with the right people and many other things involving many years of education and networking. Simply, he figure out a way to make money in the markets but not via the perspective of a retail trader.
Regards,
M.A. Perry