chipwitch 

No. It isn't. The strategy is all around you. There are many posted explicitly on this forum and other sources. Some will work for one person and no one else can get anything from it. There's even a forum where someone posted for years his/her journal. The majority of it was losing money he had been fortunate enough to make early on. He was up to 400k at one point, got down to about 100k (iirc) and then hasn't posted again for a couple years. But there it is... a strategy. There's an infinite number of them. Then, you will ALWAYS have snake oil salesmen seeking to profit from people seeking low hanging fruit. That type is abundant. There is NO one strategy that works anywhere, always. It is almost pure gambling, but not quite. If you refer to my auto auction/dealer example previously, asking this is like asking someone how much to sell a car for that you bought. Can you not see how absurd that would be? If you sell it for $100 profit you'll sell it faster than if you sold it for $200. If you sell it for $1000 profit you may never actually find a buyer. Some dealers have a strategy of buying cars and flipping them for a quick profit, dealing in high volume. Some will have a strategy of buying just one car a month to make their month. Some will seek fixer-uppers that they can put more money in. There is no one-size fits all way to make money in any industry. What makes you think the markets are any different. All people can do is tell you the model or strategy they themselves do, but why would anyone do that? If I have a strategy that's making me money, I'm not sharing it! Those are my opportunities! Do you think some car dealer is going to tell you which car to buy, how much to pay for it and how much to sell it for? That's how they make their money. Why wouldn't they just buy it themselves. This is really common sense stuff. Some things aren't knowable. If you were to ask Einstein your questions, he would respond the same way. Some things are mathematically impossible to know. The probability of rolling 7 is better than rolling snake eyes. You're looking for certainty. There is none. There is only probability and statistics. To my knowledge, you won't find any university courses on Roulette, Black Jack and Craps. But you will find university courses on statistics, probability and business. They won't tell you how to trade (or gamble in Vegas) but those are the tools to succeed there. (Hint: it's the House with the edge/business education). I find this site chock full of useful knowledge, but then I understand strategy, whether in business, poker or auto dealing is ultimately up to me to come up with. Like @bobwest said, the market is a place of competition. It's like the Colosseum where Gladiators fight to the death. Only the best of the best will survive. Even the best teacher with a proven record in battle can only advise you to keep your shield up (maintain a stop loss), only swing your sword when you have an opening (be patient, the market will give you another opportunity), always face your opponent (watch the market) etc. But the strategy is up to you. Most gladiators died in the arena. Deciding to trade is a HUGE decision and very nearly just as consequential, win or lose, as deciding to be a gladiator. Would you expect reading a book to give you any meaningful advantage in the areana? As General Mattis frequently says, "the enemy gets a vote." There are no absolutes in the market. Anyone who thinks so will be very quickly humbled. Have you read Sun Tzu's "Art of War?" It reads almost exactly like this forum, a bunch of very wise rules to help one succeed in war (and business), and no strategy. That strategy cannot be taught. It must be conceived at the moment of battle taking into account the myriad variables, size of the armies, is one more rested than the other, is the sun in your eyes, are your troops hungry, have your ships been burned to ensure victory is the only retreat. Going back to your chess analogy... There are countless books on playing chess. Some masters probably read some of them. But, chess is no longer a game of strategy. The masters don't practice strategy. Look into it. The masters STUDY past games, memorize every move, and then practice their memory and choosing which one to apply in response to their opponent. They spend thousands of hours WATCHING games played. If a book could offer a strategy that ensured a guaranteed win, how well do you think that strategy would work when a second person read it? How about when ALL masters had read it. With all due respect, I think you're trying to simplify a very complex phenomenon (market action) into something you can master. In the end, the degree of uncertainty is overwhelming. Most people are not well-suited to it. For the record, I have been around the market and traders my entire adult life. I lost a bunch of money when I was younger and abandoned the market completely. Now, I'm back, committed, and risk management-centered, but still unproven. So, this is my PRIMARY reason for not sharing my "strategies."

Thank you so much for this post, it gave me a new idea! the paragraph about chess masters watching other chessmasters just smacked me in the face with the realization that I haven't ever actually watched other futures traders trade and I might pick up some good insight from that.

TheManWithNoPlan 

Thank you so much for this post, it gave me a new idea! the paragraph about chess masters watching other chessmasters just smacked me in the face with the realization that I haven't ever actually watched other futures traders trade and I might pick up some good insight from that.

Glad I could help!

There are some pretty good ones on youtube that stream live... just be mindful that you really can't know for sure that they aren't trading a sim account. Take it all with a grain of salt.

TradesByMatt is every morning at the open. Ninjatrader has a live stream at the open and the last hour of RTH. I think FT71 also does a daily live. He's also one of the members here. I'm very new to trading. Today I had a $200 trade in the MES and I swear I think watching the NT "Closing Bars" from yesterday had a lot to do with it. It was more about the calmness of the trader. Matt is also pretty calm. It helps me be more objective. Hope it helps!

goodoboy 

I seriously wish people stop BS and making this subject so hard. Traders struggle to make money trading because there are no teachers to teach and show/prove to traders how to make money trading.

I strongly disagree with this statement, @goodoboy. I know traders here who do not BS, myself included. You know of at least one legitimate educator on this thread alone. So to clarify, here is a starting list of great teachers:

• Van Tharp (RIP)
• Bob Pardo
• Perry Kaufman
• John Ehlers
• Kevin Davey (Strategy Factory)
• Andrew Swanscott (Better System Trader)
• Jeff Swanson (EasyLanguage Mastery)
• Cesar Alvarez (Alvarez Quant Trading)
• Laurent Bernut

Ever teacher on this list has put me on the path to profitable trading, which is systematic as opposed to discretionary. I have laid it out in my journal here and on my site, both of which I am sure you have visited. A lot of the learning is free or the cost of a book or two.

I have said this once if I have said it a million times: Some people are not cut out to trade for a living. That is okay. Invest in a CTA, ETF, and/or managed account, and go pour your nest egg money into those, as I suggested earlier in this thread.

We play an infinite game when we trade. How do you win an infinite game? You stay alive, via execution of your systems/plans and money management.

Do not say people are just laying BS because you are frustrated with your own trading. That statement is a great disservice to those who contribute freely of their time here and on the interwebs, mostly asking nothing in return.

vmodus 

I strongly disagree with this statement, @goodoboy. I know traders here who do not BS, myself included. You know of at least one legitimate educator on this thread alone. So to clarify, here is a starting list of great teachers: Van Tharp (RIP) Bob Pardo Perry Kaufman John Ehlers Kevin Davey (Strategy Factory) Andrew Swanscott (Better System Trader) Jeff Swanson (EasyLanguage Mastery) Cesar Alvarez (Alvarez Quant Trading) Laurent Bernut Ever teacher on this list has put me on the path to profitable trading, which is systematic as opposed to discretionary. I have laid it out in my journal here and on my site, both of which I am sure you have visited. A lot of the learning is free or the cost of a book or two. I have said this once if I have said it a million times: Some people are not cut out to trade for a living. That is okay. Invest in a CTA, ETF, and/or managed account, and go pour your nest egg money into those, as I suggested earlier in this thread. We play an infinite game when we trade. How do you win an infinite game? You stay alive, via execution of your systems/plans and money management. Do not say people are just laying BS because you are frustrated with your own trading. That statement is a great disservice to those who contribute freely of their time here and on the interwebs, mostly asking nothing in return.

Hello vmodus,

I strongly disagree with your statements.

We can agree to disagree. I said what I had to say on a public opinionated forum. You are entitled to your opinion, and I am entitled to my opinion.

chipwitch 

Glad I could help! There are some pretty good ones on youtube that stream live... just be mindful that you really can't know for sure that they aren't trading a sim account. Take it all with a grain of salt. TradesByMatt is every morning at the open. Ninjatrader has a live stream at the open and the last hour of RTH. I think FT71 also does a daily live. He's also one of the members here. I'm very new to trading. Today I had a $200 trade in the MES and I swear I think watching the NT "Closing Bars" from yesterday had a lot to do with it. It was more about the calmness of the trader. Matt is also pretty calm. It helps me be more objective. Hope it helps!

OH thank you I have not heard of those channels (except ninjatrader because of their platform) and will give them a shot. I checked out someone named capitalhungry (who seems a bit of an aggressive child but maybe worth learning some things from in equities if you like support and resistance based trading)

I am also trading primarily MES congrats on the good day, I broke even on 2 trades (learning how to use the order book and volume profile in conjunction it's a lot of fun)

Whether you believe you can do a thing or not, you are right.

— Henry Ford

TheManWithNoPlan 

OH thank you I have not heard of those channels (except ninjatrader because of their platform) and will give them a shot. I checked out someone named capitalhungry (who seems a bit of an aggressive child but maybe worth learning some things from in equities if you like support and resistance based trading) I am also trading primarily MES congrats on the good day, I broke even on 2 trades (learning how to use the order book and volume profile in conjunction it's a lot of fun)

I don't know "capitalhungry" but the name suggests to me, someone to avoid. Sounds a little click-baity to me. Anyone with lambos, wads of cash, girls in bikinis is probably compensating for something (no, not that! A lack of trading skill).

I also like TheMovingAverage but I don't think he does live streams trading. He's mostly forex though. Al Brooks is also pretty good for non-live scalping.

Equities have their place in a portfolio, but if you're planning to day trade, futures are hard to beat. They're highly leveraged (which can be both bad and good), and depending on which one you're talking about, very liquid.

Good luck and welcome to the forum. Sounds like you're new like me. I just opened my first futures account 3 months ago. 20 some years ago I lost $30k on credit cards shorting equities and haven't traded since. Be patient and don't buy into the hype on youtube. There's a lot of good videos there (and in the futures.io webinar section), but most are only concerned with getting viewers because they can't trade. If they seem like a really bad morning DJ, stay away.

chipwitch 

I don't know "capitalhungry" but the name suggests to me, someone to avoid. Sounds a little click-baity to me. Anyone with lambos, wads of cash, girls in bikinis is probably compensating for something (no, not that! A lack of trading skill). I also like TheMovingAverage but I don't think he does live streams trading. He's mostly forex though. Al Brooks is also pretty good for non-live scalping. Equities have their place in a portfolio, but if you're planning to day trade, futures are hard to beat. They're highly leveraged (which can be both bad and good), and depending on which one you're talking about, very liquid. Good luck and welcome to the forum. Sounds like you're new like me. I just opened my first futures account 3 months ago. 20 some years ago I lost $30k on credit cards shorting equities and haven't traded since. Be patient and don't buy into the hype on youtube. There's a lot of good videos there (and in the futures.io webinar section), but most are only concerned with getting viewers because they can't trade. If they seem like a really bad morning DJ, stay away.

Thank you for the warm welcome, I have been trading part time for a few years, started in options and actually did find an edge there but had no risk management and lost most of what I had earned, but it is a tool in the belt (exploiting volatility) I was attracted to futures for the tax benefits compared to other asset classes and to become more systematic on shorter time frames and to focus on my risk management. I opened my trade station account about 3 weeks ago. I feel pretty confident in vetting my material as I have been in the IT field for most of my life so I am pretty logical when it comes to process of elimination (I only watched the guy because he seemed to be taking live trades and streams his sessions his name is very clickbaity for sure but I have never seen him flash wealth etc in fact I don't even believe in support/resistance personally as it is still something which is subjective for example what constitutes if a level will hold? Can it truly be anticipated as a break or rejection before the fact? The only benefit I can say for certain is you can define your areas of risk quite well using them, but I have personally found more merit in volume profile for that.)

I look forward to growing in my journey alongside you and everyone else here!

TheManWithNoPlan 

Can it truly be anticipated as a break or rejection before the fact?

An emphatic YES! It IS! It is one or the other otherwise it would just have to STAY at that price!

In technical analysis ALL methods, including volume profiles, are ALL subjective in predicting the future. I d on't think much of Bolinger bands or Fibonacci's but there are plenty of successful traders using them. Personally, support/resistance lines are the most reliable tech device... for me. But you certainly can't count on them to stop price or mean that it's going to break through. But, if you're looking for them to provide support for your trade, and then it punches through, you know within a point or two it's time to get out. I never play the breakout. Price bounces off more often than going through.

chipwitch 

An emphatic YES! It IS! It is one or the other otherwise it would just have to STAY at that price! In technical analysis ALL methods, including volume profiles, are ALL subjective in predicting the future. I d on't think much of Bolinger bands or Fibonacci's but there are plenty of successful traders using them. Personally, support/resistance lines are the most reliable tech device... for me. But you certainly can't count on them to stop price or mean that it's going to break through. But, if you're looking for them to provide support for your trade, and then it punches through, you know within a point or two it's time to get out. I never play the breakout. Price bounces off more often than going through.

Sure I get that, in fact I suppose what I am currently doing is really not that different because it still leads to lines in pretty much the same areas lol, I am just still searching for the certain thing that really speaks to me and allows me to clarify the market underbelly, I thought I had that when I discovered market internals and to an extent things like ADD and VOLD have given me a better picture of the markets but I really need to narrow down and hone my execution skills. What I am personally struggling with is deciding whether I should focus on volume profile or depth of market or orderbook right now, I am not sure which one would provide the supplemental knowledge I need to make decisions best but I know a lot of professionals focus on internals and those to generate an edge. I want to really see what the big dogs are doing clearly, which is something I hope to learn over time.

Do you believe there is an inherent edge in proper use of s/r levels? Do you like using trendlines as well?