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It is of the utmost value to learn how to concentrate. To make the greatest impact on your trading, you must be able to concentrate your entire thought process on the venture at hand. The person able to concentrate, utilizes all constructive thoughts and shuts out all destructive ones. Concentration makes the will and intellect act in unison and means strength of mind, exactly what we need as traders.
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If you have 60 to 90 minutes a day, a computer, risk capital, the Internet, mental discipline and “Sniper Day Trading”, I believe you may have what it takes to attain financial and time freedom by Day Trading the E-Mini Futures.
Emini Course and Mentoring Program
In my Emini Trading Course, I show you how to utilize a “Sniper Trading” type approach using my tested method to earn at least 2 points per day from the markets. You could learn how to make consistent profits in good or bad markets. Our method focuses on high probability trading, delivering you your points for the day. Day trading for a living does not have to be hard, if you have the right method, plan, course of action and someone to explain it to you in a live market trading environment.
Price action, is driven by emotional buying and selling decisions for a variety of reasons, all of which are present in the current price at any given moment. Our job, is to find the turning points that exist in each session through precision market timing. These turning points are present every day the markets are open. Sniper Day trading will teach you to clearly spot where these turning points are, using a trading mastery type approach. These points show up like consistent “Sniper” shots on your trading screen and are clearly defined by using the custom tools I have created.
We strive to teach our students to learn price action apart from indicators or tools, but they are helpful to point out what may not be seen in the beginning. I am sure what I have in full is not being taught by anyone and is unique to me and the many years I have spent developing and now clearly defining the “Sniper Day Trading Method”. The signals generated by my method will produce the same signals to anyone who is following it, there is really no gray area, only which trades you decide to take and which you let go by.
Sniper Day Trading Method
We trade with tick data and use multiple time frames in timing our trade entries. I have three different styles I trade and bring them up as the price action dictates. One is a “Scalp Trading Method”, (T-1 Trade) that is very accurate in picking up 2,3 or 4 ticks on the S&P. My stops are such, that this approach averages a one to one risk/reward ratio, but enjoys a very high percentage “Win/Loss” ratio. This is bread and butter for me.
The second style enjoys the benefit of my “Precision Turning Points” model, (T-2 Trade) and is usually traded with multiple contracts. The first part is scaled out around 1 point, which quickly brings me to a no loose position and the second half is usually allowed to run. I have four incredible ways to get out, all of which act independently of each other, but are uncannily similar in their results.
The last, is a “Pyramid Trading Method”, that when conditions are right, you are able to keep your first risk small but scale into the trade, adding positions in the direction of the trend, but only at very low risk entry points, keeping your stops down to 1 S&P point. Each one of these methods are very clearly explained in my 80 page trading manual and followed up in the DVD training part of my course. They will also be gone over in our live trading sessions.
While only needing to pull 2 points after commission per day out of the market, (8 ticks) catching a few scalp trades or a T-2 trade, is really all you need to hit your daily goal. I believe in setting realistic goals, which increase your chances to meet them. By having a clear mind, a solid trading plan, with position sizing risk limits and rock solid money management, you come that much closer to trade your way to financial and time freedom.
Examples of two typical trading days back to back, applying the Sniper Day Trading Method. It only took about 20 minutes to get my daily goal plus on both of these days.
Mental Discipline and Trading Psychology. I have told you what I can offer to you, but this is not all you will need for success. I am convinced that my method, custom indicators and complete approach could make the aspiring trader profitable on a regular basis, but do you have what it takes? Trading psychology plays a huge roll in all traders, whether they know it or not. You have forces constantly working against you. Success is only going to become a reality to you, if you have the qualities needed to pull this off. What you are going to need is * Discipline * Patience * Ability to follow rules * Control your fears * Get a grip on personal greed. Frequently, I talk about this in my daily blog, because they are too often why traders fail to reach their goals.
I offer a lot of support in this area as well, if you are a struggling trader and want to change, I have the tools, method and know how to likely turn you around, so that you can create the consistent income, free up your time and fulfill your dreams in becoming a successful day trader.
Mental Exercises
In my program I address some of these issues in a series of “Mental Training Exercises” that I have put together. They are designed to get your mind thinking and believing that trading for a living and meeting your daily trading goal is normal, natural and the only outcome you will accept. The titles in the first series are; * Financial Freedom * Positive Risk Taking * Holding your concentration while trading * Achieving your Trading Goals. The titles in the second series are; * Overcoming Trading Obstacles * Controlling Emotions while Trading * Overcoming the Fear of Failure * Creating Hope & Success.
These I believe are very powerful and are in, “the first person” and will become personal to you. They are a form of Neuro-Linguistic programming that can take you farther and bring you closer to meeting your trading goals. They are, in written form and in audio CD and created by me. My plans are to continue to expand these in the future and make any new additions available to students who come on board, all at no extra charge. These training series are specific to traders and cover issues they face.
Solutions for traders, Sniper Day Trading
I realize that not everyone is born with all the qualities a successful trader will need, but I feel it can be learned if you want it bad enough. Ask yourself, how much do you want to become a consistent successful trader ? The answer to that is going to make all the difference in the world.
I know personally the things that hold traders back from bringing it all together and I know exactly what to do to help them change. I believe I can help the struggling trader as well as the trader who has never done this before.
I can set you on a course that is tailored to your experience level and walk you through everything needed and expected. The good part is, you won’t have to go it along. If you have any question, I can not only answer it, but help you apply it, to get the results you will need. Our daily goal is not to hard to hit, 2 points + per day. We can take a conservative approach to help you get that goal regularly.
If you are honest and know you need help and are willing to work hard and change what ever you have to, then I am sure I can help. Trading for a living is possible, but you need to do different, be different and think different from the majority of other traders. If you first commit to yourself these things, then I will commit to you, which will bring you one step closer to the success that we all strive for. Lastly, I want to assure anyone with doubts, my method, straight up works. The only question that remains is, will you move forward and decide to make it work for “YOU”.
Price Action Day Trading
“Price Action Day Trading”, is the key to your long term success. The markets do something everyday that is consistent since they began trading, over one hundred years ago. It exists in all time frames and gets played out on trading screens across the globe each day. It is important to understand and learn, “good price structure” and how it is built. That is what I teach and that is what students get when they partner with me at Sniper Day Trading. The key is learning what to do and when to do it and why. If you don’t know the answers to those questions you will eventually fall short. Many traders use indicators to help them and that is OK. I have them and use them also, but I do not base my trading decisions on the indicators. I base it on good price structure and trade setups that happen over and over, day after day. Traders and investors are very predictable, they base many of there trading decisions on emotion. Knowing slightly ahead, how they will react when certain prices are reached and breached, give us the trading edge we look for. With that said, the indicators magically line up with our trading decisions which can give us the added confidence to put our money on the line.
Below is a typical trading day where you will see the trading, “Turning Point”. I have stripped away everything from the screen except two things. There is much more, but I just want to show you that the indicators line up with our turning points. Which came first the chicken or the egg. The chicken and that is price. Price is always first and the indicators are second. That being said, the indicators can help traders see what is already on the trading screen. I hope this explanation helps clarify in the minds of seeking traders that what we have and do is real and works.
What You Get With Sniper Day Trading
My E-Mini Trading Manual (hard copy 80 full pages) with future updates. (very nicely done)
Complete DVD video training package in very nice hard cover locking case / extra: will include method applied to stock trading.
Method explained throughout the week, with full screen video and audio illustration in both the T-1 and T-2 screens, “Turning Points”. Very powerful part of ongoing training. (This service will be included ongoing all at no extra charge)
All custom chart settings to build your trading platform and help by me if needed to set it up.
All of my custom and modified indicators I created, that will unmistakably identify my “TURNING POINTS” for the T-1 and T-2 trades, when applied to the method.
Method checklist work-sheet ( for examining trades against method).
Laminated 8×11 “Method Overview”, to pin up over trading screen. Laminated 8×11 “Mental Exercise Overview” pin up over screen.
Mental Training Exercises: eight titles – audio CD and in written form. On-going future title releases no extra charge.
Leather bound “Trading Journal”, to help you keep your thoughts, progress, questions and answers.
I will personally work with each trader by screen sharing technology and voice of I.P. through SKYPE, in a live trading environment. After you go through the material, we will set appointments for our personal sessions together. We will apply live market data to the method and I will show you exactly what to do and how to do it. The manual and video’s will give you a head start, but working with me personally will undoubtedly bring it all together. I will spend as much time as needed with each trader who comes on board until he or she understands the complete trading method.
If in the future if you have questions, I will always be here to discuss them and go over your charts to help point you in the right direction. I am not just selling my trading method, but offering much more, mentoring and getting you profitable. Traders often face mental barriers that hold them back, but they do not know exactly what it is or why they consistently make the same mistakes over and over again. I can uncover the problems here, find the solutions and set you on your new course.
My goal is to get each trader that joins with Sniper Day Trading to book at least 2 points per day and gradually increasing contract size to a desired income goal. I will do my part as stated above, will you do yours?
Futures Options trading has large potential rewards, but also large potential risk. You must be aware of the risks and be willing to accept them in order to invest in the futures and options markets. Don’t trade with money you can’t afford to lose. This is neither a solicitation nor an offer to Buy/Sell futures or options. No representation is being made that any account will or is likely to achieve profits or losses similar to those discussed on this web site. The past performance of any e mini trading system or methodology is not necessarily indicative of future results.
Daytrading Involves High Risks and You Can Lose A Lot of Money.
Hypothetical or simulated performance results have certain inherent limitations. Unlike an actual performance record, simulated results do not represent actual trading. Also, since the trades have not actually been executed, the results may have under or over-compensated for the impact, if any, certain market factors, such as lack of liquidity. Simulated e mini trading programs in general are also subject to the fact that they are designed with the benefit of hindsight. No representation is being made that any account will or is likely to achieve profits or losses similar to those shown.
Additional Cautions
There are no guarantees or certainties in trading. Reliability of trading signals for mechanical systems are in probabilities only. Trading involves hard work, risk, discipline and the ability to follow rules and trade through any tough periods during the methods off times (and all methods or systems have off times) – If you are looking for guarantees, trading is not for you. Most people lose trading. One of the reasons is that they are not consistent and lack discipline. A method of system can help you become consistent, BUT you have to stick to the method like a formula. The ability to be disciplined and control your emotions is even more important than any technical indicators a trader may use. Worrying about the money aspect of trades (which is an emotion) can contribute to and cause a trader to make errors. It is important to trade only with true risk capital. You can find further information at: www.sec.gov
Today is Tuesday, January 12th and the momentum has slowed the last two days.
Todays Index’s were down across the board, with the NASDAQ getting the worst, followed by the S&P -10 points and the Dow, -30 points. We are very close to the extended March 6th trend line support on these index’s. If that support breaks, it will be the first clue that we may have turned the corner on the rally. But still it remains intact and all is well.
As I had thought, today we saw the first signs of life in the futures market, with volume coming in at over 2 million contracts. Just what I was saying yesterday, that 2 million contracts traded in the emini futures market is considered good volume and we hit it today. It has been a long time, probably longer than a month with this kind of volume.
As day traders, we need volume to push the market around, otherwise it becomes more difficult for traders to make money. It is always easy for them lose money and with low volume, bingo, you are there.
Most traders do not know how to trade in shallow trading ranges and end up getting beat up pretty bad. But if you know how to Scalp Trade this market, taking a little out of the middle, you can survive in any kind of trading environment. That is not easy to do for most people and there will be those that say it is foolish to try. Probably because they were not able to make it work for them. Traders are doing this all across the globe and they are taking it from those who think they can.
Some people only scalp trade and that term can mean different things for different people. To me, taking 2,3 or 4 ticks, will qualify as a scalp. Others will call taking a 2-4 point profit on the S&P emini’s, a scalp. So, the term is used widely. If I can make a profit on these small trades while keeping my losses to an equal amount 1 to 1, I am doing OK, because my percentage is pretty high. You need to have 60% or better with the better being more like 75 and up.
When I trade, I look for both kinds of trades. If the market will give me an extended move, often I position myself to capture it. At times I take half off early which gives me the extra ability to ride the move out. It’s a good way to trade.
In my trading today, I did not do as well as I had wanted, but I had a few bigger trades to cover myself. I came in late in the day and missed some big moves short. Overall I think a came a little short of my daily goal because of commission, but close. I had 10 trades 5 gains 5 losses, but had a few trades for higher point returns. As I said I was off. Lack of concentration and I did not take a break from a training session I had with a student.
My timing and concentration was off, with the first two trades as loses. They were not good entries and it cost me. I could have avoided some of the lose by closing the trade out early as I normally would do once I start to lose the edge. To me and my method, the Trading Edge, is clearly defined and when I lose it, I need to get out, often avoiding my full stop out of 1 S&P point. I start out with a 1 point stop on all trades, but it almost instantly goes to three ticks when I get one tick of movement in my favor usually when I am in scalp mode.
Often times I am able to catch trades for several points as I did last Friday with a 4 and 5 point gain. It does depend on the price action and what the market gives you. If the markets clamed up and its daily trading range shrunk, many traders would suffer, because they only know how to trend trade. When its choppy, they often stay out, but only after they got burned by non directional non moving market. Being able to Snipe or pick off a few trades makes life a lot easier, providing that you can do it. You end up having the ability to pull a few points a day out of the market, no matter what kind of market you have.
I will make a few comments from where I left off yesterday, about needing all three components to become successful as a trader. It does not matter what you trade, these are things everyone in this business needs.
We all need to know how to trade, by following a methodology or system of some kind. Next you need trading discipline, as it is often talked about. The last thing is, you need to be aware of the forces that are naturally working against you. What forces are you talking about? Well, for starters, yourself. When trading, there is something called our human nature. That nature says many things about us and our ability to become profitable. It is to often, the unseen things that holds us back from realizing our dreams. ————————————————————————————————————————————————-Let me focus on one point and see how far we go. GREED. That is a human emotion that all of us are faced with. We did not learn it, it comes very natural for most of us. I believe, we need to unlearn it or decide ahead of time, by an active decision to not allow this emotion to take root in us. If we can, it will make so many things better not only for our trading endeavors, but in every other area of our lives, good stuff.
The only way we can ever address it, is if we are first aware of it. After that, what are we going to do, to get a handle on it? This emotion has been one of the leading causes for traders to blow up there accounts.
We need to be content with modest gains when we have them. The opposite of content is discontent and the twin brother of discontent is greed.
Unless you are content with your piece of the market, you will continue to strive for more. In trying to get more, you will lose what you have. Take control of your trading and your emotions. Trade with a purpose and a goal.
Today is Tuesday April 14th and another large gain for the day.
I had a nice return on my time invested today for solid gains. I will get right to it with the stats. I had 20 gains, 3 break even trades and 3 loses. One of the losses was rather large, with a double position and a little larger stop than I usually take. That was early on, but came right back to forge forward into new equity highs. I ended the day at + $3,000 with very little draw down except that early trade.
Very happy with the results overall. I missed the large swings in the early trading. That makes it a lot easier to get the hit and run trades that I like to put on. It is harder to trade a slow moving market because it keeps you in the trade longer. Any time you are in the actual trade, there are forces working against you, straight up. You cannot get away from adversity, but it is how you handle it. A very large part of success is between your ears and we all need to remember that. Every other trader across the globe is having to deal with the same issues on a daily basis. The difference is going to be, who is going to handle the pressure and come out on top?
Having targets and stops built in, is a way to cut down the adversity that takes place. Many people argue that if you have small targets, it is not enough to make up for your inevitable losses. That can be true, if you have more losses than you have gains. In addition, if you stay too long, you may lose your concentration and give back your hard earned equity. All things to remember, especially if you are fairly new to the game.
I have heard it said that when you start and open a trading account, don’t deposit too much into it, because you are going to lose it ALL. This is actually not too far off and it’s really true if you try and go it alone. The world is full of S&P day traders who think it won’t happen to them. That’s the kind of thing that happens to the other guys, but not me. Well, I hate to break the bad news to would be traders who think they have a handle on this, work on your discipline after you know how to trade and what your looking for.
If you have one without the other, you are doomed. You will need to exercise discipline, just like a group of muscles at the gym. If you zero in on that quality, you can improve it and get stronger. This may be a foreign idea to you, but it is totally necessary to your success.
Here are a couple of ideas. I stated before that your environment has an effect on your trading results and that is true. A clean, neat work space, that is organized and in place, makes and has an effect on you mentally. It can have a reflection to your inner world, which translates into clear thinking, patience, focus, etc, resulting in better trading performance.
Now just think about other elements in your life that can have a similar effect. I don’t mean to get personal, and maybe I can just talk about myself to make my point. My goal is to create a home life that is balanced and also in order. By tending to the things in my life that have real true meaning, it helps establish a foundation of stability which gives me a sense of well being. This may not be for everyone, although I feel what everyone needs to know is “Why are we here on this earth?”
I ask myself this question often and it reminds me of what is really important. It is a way of centering myself with the busy lifestyles we all tend to live. The answer to that question is going to be different for everyone and I cannot answer that but for myself only. I get a great deal of peace when I reflect on this question, which then helps me to become a better husband and father to my grown children. It also provides the balance I need in my life to help me compartmentalize my trading goals and pursuits. If I do not exercise balance in that area, I may devote too much time into trading and letting other responsibilities get away from me – the ones that really mean the most. So it all boils down to discipline and remaining in control of your emotions and leaving your trading EGO at the door.
As a trader we will have those trades that bring us nice returns, but always need to remember that this is not easy to master and you need to remain Humble. That too is a form of discipline, to hold yourself back from becoming emotional after a nice gain. It is normal to be excited, but you need to see it as just one trade in the path of many that will eventually take you where you really want to go. That may be spending more time with your family, vacations, helping your neighbor with a project. These are all the things that a successful trading career can give you.
Just remember it’s not all about “us”. What can we do for others? You may be surprised, but that attitude will have an effect on your trading results and all for the better. It may say, “I have enough in me to give some away, whatever it is.” With that approach, you open the door for additional resources to find their way into your life, i.e., a growing trading account that seems to always expand.
This is what I find to be true in my life, anyway. I hope it helps someone out there to better handle and exercise discipline in their trading ventures. More to come on this subject. It’s a big one.
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