Monday, January 21, 2008

HPT Caught In This Mess

This is hard to watch. If you've traded, you've probably had a moment like this somewhere in your past. (h/t mdawsz)

Warning: harsh language.... NSFW.


Stock Futures Trader Having Rough Day - Watch more free videos

HPT, keep your chin up and read your blog from back in August, the last time this happened. You'll come back. You will.

More on the huge global market decline here.

UPDATE: It's a shame, but HPT's video was removed from Youtube. I'm guessing because of the harsh language. Funny... you can post a video of 14 year olds beating the shit out of each other, but you can't say the word "Fuck!" How idiotic.

16 comments:

wincity said...

It's unbelievable. Everyone thought we'd bounce, me included. Yet this morning I woke up with futures down 70 and 60. I've never seen the futures this negative before.

The thing we should always remember is that it could always get worse.

Dinosaur Trader said...

Win,

Amen. That's the number one rule, isn't it? Things can always get worse.

-DT

TraderCaddy said...

I believe it took some guts and courage for HPT to post the video as we all know how egos can get in our way. The video needs to be played at all prop firms and trading houses as part of the training programs.
As far as the futures go at the moment I was around trading at the 1987 crash,Iraq invasion of Kuwait,9/11, etc. It always gets worse than you think especially since margin calls start going out. One thinks that a bottom can be picked, but its highly unlikely. In fact I wouldn't be surprised to see the quotes go out of sync.
I am going to just watch for awhile. However, I wouldn't be surprised to see the strongest sectors tommorrow (lose the least in the AM) be Homebuilders and Chip(not INTC) Equipment Cos as they have done okay the last few days. I would then think Regional Banks (as represented by the KRE ETF) could start a rebound with the homebuilders.
DT-Got a plan?

KC Equity Trader said...

WOW!

I feel so sorry for this guy watching what emotions he is going through. In his first video he was down 7k and could have sold. Now down 25k, the question is what do you do? Hopefully he is not on margin. Trying to pick a bottom or top will always lose you money. Many traders try to do that and all of them lose. The only people who can pick bottoms and tops are people with enough money to make them such as SAC Capital Management.

Trading is simple, but a lot of people can't follow simple trading rules.

1. Trade with the Trend
2. Risk Management
3. Money Management
4. Let your profits run

John Carter always says that the Futures Markets are better that equities because it's easier to make money. Well, obviously in order for someone to make money, their has to be someone to lose it. so it is also easy to lose money. This is why I stick to equities only! The futures and currencies are too much controlled by institutions who play a lot of games manipulating the markets.

One trading advice that I have always remember is from one of the greatest traders/investors of our time. Warren Buffet. He only has 2 rules that he goes by.

1. Don't lose money.
2. Remember rule #1.

Dinosaur Trader said...

TC,

Funny, I just asked you if YOU had a plan over at IBC....

I wasn't trading in 87 and too psychologically fucked up to even bother after 9/11. So I'm not sure how to play this. Right now I'm making a list of high short interest names and also searching for stocks that have held up.

I may also scan for stocks that have sold off egregiously over these past few days.

-DT

TraderCaddy said...

DT- I just know for sure that I am going to stay away from the volatile mo mos since capital preservation is number one. If it gets too nuts I will turn off the computer and go play golf as I will come back and trade the next day.

Dinosaur Trader said...

TC,

Smart. For me, I think I'll be involved, but I'll keep my position size small until I have some type of cushion. If I make some money early I may press my bets if things feel panicky. Whatever happens, it will be interesting.

-DT

Bluedog said...

DT,

It could be brutal. I'm tempted to short everything, but the big unknowns are 1) how big the gap down is going to be - we could get a quick bounce off a huge initial sell off, 2) fed action, 3) congressional action. I might not turn on my computer tomorrow.

-BD

tapeworm said...

this happens to a lot of people, they just don't put it on video...i agree with tradercaddy that it took a lot of courage to post this

i also agree with bluedog about the uncertainty of how to trade this...it definitely smells like panic, but where is capitulation...personally, i'll stay on the sidelines tomorrow - and maybe longer...if the quotes get out of whack, i could be losing money without even realizing how much

i don't have any experience with this type of thing, so i'll let u "real traders" figure it out

tapeworm said...

kudlow's show tomorrow will be pricess if the market doesn't recover...i can't wait to see how the head of the Ostrich Fund spins this...i'm sure his head will still be buried in the sand!

or maybe he'll find a way to blame Hillary or Obama!

Stewie said...

Hi HPT. great courage of you to post this video. Shows your character. Listen man, I cannot tell you how many times i had the same conversation with myself. This is trading. love it or hate. You can only blame yourself unfortunately and you must live to fight another day even it means selling out. just know i have been thru many days just the one you just had and i have more money in my account today and i am a better/wiser trader because of days like these. Lift your head, take a few days off and start from scratch man.

Stewie.

Dinosaur Trader said...

Stewie,

Well put.

-DT

Anonymous said...

"As a trader, you must accept risk, understand the risk you have accepted and construct your own parameters of risk, knowing that one single trading day is just a small piece of a much bigger puzzle. I have been assisting clients with day trading online for nine years. I have never witnessed a situation where one single day “made a trader,” but I have witnessed many single trading days that destroyed traders."

All I have to do, is to post a link to this great article again:
http://www.sfomag.com/homefeaturedetail.asp?ID=-1891797133&MonthNameID=September&YearID=2007

Dinosaur Trader said...

Great article stockhunter.

Thanks, I hadn't read it previously.

-DT

Dinosaur Trader said...

Meanwhile, this video has indeed gone "viral" with 30,000 views and counting.

Amazing. People love to watch other people blow up. Had he made 30gs, no way it gets 30,000 views.

-DT

tapeworm said...

DT: i think it went viral, because he bares a strong resemblance to a young mark wahlberg...who knows this could lead to a career in hollywood

5,000 views from day traders

10,000 views from women

15,000 views from gay day traders