Out of the Ashes: Flight of the Phoenix

[playwiththegods]

Gung-ho Student

"As long as you are disciplined and laser-focused on learning the markets, your chances of success increase exponentially. You have to be a gung-ho student. If not, you’ll end up in the poor house."

That quote was from the lesson How Much Trading Captial Do You Need For Forex Trading? It brought a smile to my face because what I’ve been doing here for the past two years is being a gung-ho student. It will increase my chances of success exponentially and keep me out of the poor house.

I see myself as someone who will always be a student in learning to trade as well as learning about myself. I have 56 lessons left. I’m on track to finish before February 2024. After I finish the course, I will still be a gung-ho student.

"In the end, forex trading is a numbers game, meaning you have to tilt every little factor in your favor as much as you can."

I’m focusing on mastering my psychology with this journal because it’s one way to tilt every little factor in my favor. It’s painful to admit my mistakes and failures because it makes me look stupid. It’s also painful because I have to take responsibility and make the necessary changes that are difficult to do.

I like what @dushimes said about making changes in yourself in one of his recent posts.

@dushimes

You don’t need a new strategy. You need a new you. There are layers of yourself that have to be peeled back in order to use a strategy successfully. But you only peel back those layers when you stick with the strategy long enough to see what you’re doing wrong and make changes in yourself. Constantly looking at other strategies will leave you at that shallow level of self-development. The new you lies in patience, study, and correct execution.

This is how I see it. I’m sure others will disagree, but this is my way.

This is the way. This is the way to change myself. This is the way to a new me. I will always be a gung-ho student learning to change myself.

"Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself."
-Leo Tolstoy

[dushimes]

@playwiththegods

This is the way to change myself. This is the way to a new me. I will always be a gung-ho student learning to change myself.

[BrunsonFX]

Hey brother, I really dig this post, I’m 40 years old myself, been through hell and back like you, I don’t live with my Mom as she’s in CA and I live in Colorado with my wife and 3 kids, however, I’ve come to a place in my life where I DO WANT TO MAKE FOREX MY PRIMARY INCOME, I just can’t because I own another company that has multiple streams of income and I can’t stop it to start another, however, I plan to go through the entire training here and get started on Trading View afterward and see where I can get to with a $1000 to start on a broker like Forex or Interactive Brokers. Let’s walk the path together, okay?

[playwiththegods]

Thanks for reading my post and reaching out BrunsonFX. I’m happy to hear about your success in business and having a family in Colorado after you’ve been through hell and back. It gives me hope.

I’m thinking about moving to Pagosa Springs. I like being in nature and want to live close to the mountains, forests, rivers, and lakes of Colorado.

Your experience in business with multiple streams of income will puts you in a good position for building your trading business. We have a long path ahead of us to establish our trading businesses. I’m grateful to walk that path with you.

Let me know if you think I might be able to help you with your studies in the School of Pipsology. Welcome to the Babypips Community. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

If you want to join an accountability group, follow me @playwiththegods and @RedEyeRishMan. We stay in touch with each other through our trading journals while holding each other accountable. We are Ildánach.

@playwiththegods

“If you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far, go together.”

That can be the motto for our team. The name of our team can be Ildánach which means the Skilled God. It’s one of the nicknames of Lugh who is my favorite god from Celtic Mythology. You can learn more about him here:

[RedEyeRishMan]

Hey BrunsonFX!

Awesome to see you’re interested in Forex, more specifically making it a primary source of income.

I’d most definitely encourage you to start a journal here in the forums to track your progress through learning. It’ll help keep you accountable and also provide opportunities for help in your studies!

Best of luck man!

Also, Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!

[playwiththegods]

Looking Back

I’ve only been able to do two lessons in the past week. I finished 307 out of 361 lessons. I’ve been spending a lot of time with family while eating a lot of food during the Thanksgiving holiday and weekend. I’m getting back into the routine of studying today.

I did take some time to review my journal and think about how far I’ve come since my first post in the babypips forums:

@playwiththegods

I just finished preschool and kindergarten in the School of Pipsology.

It’s incredible that all this knowledge is available for free.

The babypips writers did a great job in creating the lessons. The lessons are fun and simple to understand with funny cartoons like this one:

Looking back at these posts in the forums is a great way to appreciate what I’ve accomplished so far and to celebrate these small wins that help me to keep going.

One important insight I got from this journal is that I need to keep my thrill-seeking nature in check, and make sure it doesn’t make me do crazy things in trading like risking 100% of my balance.

I’ll have to learn to be okay with the boredom of trading just like I’ve been learning to be okay with the boredom of studying.

[RedEyeRishMan]

Imagine, years from now you’re in your office after an incredible trading day. Maybe. Maybe in this moment you realize you’ve made it. You pour through your old progression posts and journals. You laugh at the mistakes you made and relish in the wins and losses that made you who you are now.

Anything is possible. Never forget that. We see around us all the time the death of ambition, dreams, and hope. But not you, not you friend.

See you at the top

Ildánach

[playwiththegods]

@RedEyeRishMan

You laugh at the mistakes you made and relish in the wins and losses that made you who you are now.

I look forward to that time when I can laugh at myself and all the mistakes I made.

Thank you, my friend!

See you at the top

Ildánach

[playwiththegods]

Now, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.

I’m done with 314 of 361 lessons. The lessons in The Number 1 Cause of Death of Forex Traders and Position Sizing were fun and I had some good takeaways.

I like that pic of leverage as death. It’s a good reminder of what will happen to my account if I don’t use proper leverage.

"Most brokers want you to trade with a short-term mindset. They want you to trade as much as possible as often as possible. It’s the only way they make money. One or two pips are important to them. The more you trade the more they make on the spread. It’s not in their best interest to tell you to let your trades run longer than the same day. If you want to give yourself the best chance to succeed, first learn to trade profitably without leverage."

I had a funny thought that if I really wanted to make money in forex trading, I should become a broker. They’re making a killing off traders who don’t know how to use leverage.

"Leverage is a very powerful tool but both old and new traders use it to destroy their trading capital simply because they take its destructive force too lightly or ignore it altogether. It’s a pity, but the more of them there are, the easier it is for us smart traders to make money. Sad but true."

If I blow my account because I used leverage wrong, I’ll have to call myself the worst trader of all time because the lessons were loud and clear about how not to kill your account with leverage. I have a better understanding of why over 90% of traders fail. I have to make sure I’m not one of them.

"Destroy traders taking the opposite side of your trade. Don’t destroy yourself."

I’ll have no mercy on any reckless traders taking the opposite side of my trade. My training is making me more powerful day by day. I will be Death, the destroyer of traders.

[playwiththegods]

Drawings

If you experience a Stop Out and see the aftermath in your account, this is how your eyes feel…

Margin call warning!

ZOMG!!! I should have opened a demo account!

Why does my stop loss keep getting hit!

The cartoon with the giant teardrop was from the lesson: What is a Stop Loss?. The look on that girl’s face and that ridiculous teardrop cracked me up.

After I drew that cartoon, I went back in my notes and took photos of my favorite cartoons so I can post them here to remind me of what I’ve accomplished and what I’ve learned. If I still make the terrible mistakes from these funny cartoons, I’ll call myself the worst trader alive!

I’ve gotten back into drawing because of these cartoons I copied. I used to draw a lot when I was a kid. My favorite comic book characters to draw were the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. I’m drawing again for fun and to get better at it.

"The saying, ‘Live to trade another day!’ should be the motto of every trader on Newbie Island because the longer you can survive, the more you can learn, gain experience, and increase your chances of success.

This makes the trade management technique of ‘stop losses’ a crucial skill and tool in a trader’s toolbox."

I like thinking of the things I’m learning from babypips as skills I can develop and tools I can have in my trader’s toolbox. I’m looking forward to improving my skill in using stop losses and using the other tools in my trader’s toolbox when I start my demo account around February 2024.

I completed lessons 320 of 361. I have 41 lessons to go before I start demo.

[dushimes]

@playwiththegods

I have 41 lessons to go before I start demo.

You’re a lot smarter than I am. I didn’t stay in demo long enough, and I suffered for it.

@playwiththegods

to remind me of what I’ve accomplished and what I’ve learned.

Great job. Keep up the good work!

[RedEyeRishMan]

Keep at it bro!

P.S. - Love the little comics

[samewise]

@playwiththegods

I had a funny thought that if I really wanted to make money in forex trading, I should become a broker. They’re making a killing off traders who don’t know how to use leverage.

haha, you’re learning something that wasn’t taught in the School. At least one perspective anyway.

@playwiththegods

This makes the trade management technique of ‘stop losses’ a crucial skill and tool in a trader’s toolbox."

Yup, super important. Position sizing along with what your stop loss is (or isn’t). Biggest things I learned this year. Add in account size/funds for trading. You need enough cushion in your account down the road to be able to take multiple trades and or a string of losses. Of course, if you’re sticking with 1-2% risk per trade, you should be fine with whatever account balance you have. I started with $30.

Keep up the learning!

[playwiththegods]

Expecting Failure

"Like anything else in trading, setting stop losses is a science and an art.

Markets are dynamic, volatility is well… volatile, and a rule or condition that works today may not work tomorrow.

If you continually practice the correct way to set stops, record, and review your thought processes and trade outcomes in your journal, then you’ll be one step closer to becoming a professional risk manager!"

I like this definition of traders as professional risk managers. Another word for professional risk manager is gambler.

It made me think about how much I’m going to suck at trading for several years before I ever become a pro. I’m expecting to make mistakes and fail a lot before I master the art and science of trading.

I learned how to use stop losses and how to scale in and out of trades, but that doesn’t mean I’ll do it right when I start trading. It’s going to take a lot of steps before I become a professional risk manager. I expect to be a trader that sucks for a long time.

"A friend of mine who is very wealthy said if you never bet your lifestyle, from a trading standpoint, nothing bad will ever happen to you, and if you know what the worst possible outcome is from the outset, you will have tremendous freedom."

"If you treat trading like a game, because that is what it is, then you will find there are a lot of variations in trading, but a good process will work over time and you will get rich if you stick with it."

I got lucky with the random quotes from the lessons this past week. I got two different quotes from Larry Hite that were relevant to the lessons I completed.

I found tremendous freedom in knowing the worst possible outcome for me as a trader. I’m going to suck for several years. I look forward to it. I expect it.

I’m not going to get sad, upset, or miserable about it. Since I’m going to suck for a while, I might as well have fun with trading by treating it as a game.

[RedEyeRishMan]

I love the out-look this provides.

We’ve got a long road ahead of us and a large portion of that will more than likely suck

But I have no doubt you plan on forging the path ahead.

Awesome progress dude. Cheers

[playwiththegods]

@RedEyeRishMan

We’ve got a long road ahead of us and a large portion of that will more than likely suck

We might as well have all the fun we can even though it will suck.

Cheers

[playwiththegods]

Almost Ready to Lose All My Money

I finished the lessons in Undergraduate Senior. My training is almost complete. Will I become part of the 95% of new traders who end up losing all their money? If I do, I will only have myself to blame for not applying everything I learned.

"The forex market is like a schizophrenic patient suffering from bipolar disorder who constantly eats chocolates, experiences extreme sugar highs, and has volatile mood swings all day long."

This quote from the lesson called Be Careful! Currency Correlations Change! is so funny. It made me laugh out loud and think of this picture.

Say hello to Little Miss Forex Market.

I’ll keep this image in mind when I deal with the volatility of the forex market. Maybe it won’t be that bad if she takes all my money.

[dushimes]

@playwiththegods

Almost Ready to Lose All My Money

Why set your expectations so low for yourself?

Be careful about seeking others who have lost, so that you may find comfort in your losses. Sometimes, we laugh about our losses because we are scared to try only to fail again. It would be too invalidating for us.

Discussing losses with others should be constructive, in my opinion. It shouldn’t be about seeking solidarity in bad trading.

Eagles don’t fly with sparrows, and peacocks don’t stroll with chickens.

[playwiththegods]

@dushimes

Why set your expectations so low for yourself?

There is a method to my madness. I’m using this principle: “Avoiding stupidity is easier than seeking brilliance.”

This principle is also called inversion. Inversion is solving a problem by thinking backward instead of thinking forward. It’s based on the wisdom of Charlie Munger who said the following:

“It is remarkable how much long-term advantage people like us have gotten by trying to be consistently not stupid, instead of trying to be very intelligent. There must be some wisdom in the folk saying, ‘It’s the strong swimmers who drown.’”

“All I want to know is where I’m going to die, so I’ll never go there.”

The quotes might not make sense at first, but there’s profound wisdom in them. Inversion is a counterintuitive principle that seems to be not constructive or productive, but it is actually useful and effective.

Check out these articles if you want to learn more about inversion:
Inversion: The Power of Avoiding Stupidity (fs.blog)
Avoiding Stupidity is Easier than Seeking Brilliance (fs.blog)

@dushimes

Eagles don’t fly with sparrows, and peacocks don’t stroll with chickens.

I love that quote and the rest of the wisdom you shared. Is that an original? You’re a good writer. Have you thought about starting a blog or writing a book? I think you have what it takes to be a successful writer.

I aim to be like the eagle or peacock (seeking brilliance) by starting and focusing on doing everything to not be like the sparrow or chicken (avoiding stupidity).

It’s easier to identify all the stupid mistakes I want to avoid. It’s also fun to laugh at myself so I shame myself to never make those stupid mistakes.

[dushimes]

@dushimes

Eagles don’t fly with sparrows, and peacocks don’t stroll with chickens.

@playwiththegods

Is that an original?

Nope. Sorry.

NECRO - "12 KING PIMP COMMANDMENTS" (off the album - GORY DAYS)