let me update, 106-2
As HOG is probably hitting his head against his desk in frustration about where this thread went to I want to pull it back again and hopefully fire up the intended discussion. Here are my thoughts:
[B]Video (Live)[/B]: Only works when the pattern occurs, otherwise it doesn’t have a lot of value. You will see the trader in action, but it is just for a short period of time and doesn’t proof that the trader makes consistent profits or that his tools are profitable over time.
[B]Video (Recorded)[/B]: Again, you see the trader in action, but he has the opportunity to choose what to show. The changes are that bad days aren’t shown. So it gives some insight about the trader, but not about his tools as it is a short period in time.
[B]Account statements[/B]: They can be considered to come from a reliable source, namely a unbiased third party. They show that the trader is profitable over time, but without investigation you cannot be certain that he only used on pattern or one strategy. So this says more about the trader overall, but not his tools. It can also be that the trader missed patterns, in his favor. Also the trader can pick the statements, what leaves room for questions.
[B]Excel sheets[/B]: The same as account statements, but not from a reliable source. Also require investigation to identify that the taught strategy is followed.
[B]MT4 reports[/B]: Used for EAs. They are more reliable than excel as the system made them. BUT they are based on a script that is manufactured (hopefully) by the trader. The trader can exclude bad days in the script and rerun it, what makes it a fake report. It can also not be said that the script is from that trader and (without investigation) that it does follow his strategy.
[B]Myfxbook[/B]: Comes from a reliable source, shows real account activity. It is an unbiased representation that is reasonable reliable. It can be tweaked by the account holder by using different “Magic numbers” when using an MT4 platform. It shows that the trader was profitable, but doesn’t give certainty whether it was automated trading or himself. Also, it requires investigation to see whether the strategy used is true and includes all trade signals of the thaught strategy. When using multiple strategies, or not consistently, it says only something about the account activity of the trader and not his tools.
[B]My conclusion[/B]: It is not easy to come with clear evidence. Evidence can either be manipulated and in most cases doesn’t say something about the trader and the tools taught. It can even be concluded that you cannot rely on given evidence in any form. The most reasonable reliable appears to be the myfxbook, but that comes with disadvantages too. Based on the above I conclude that testing and verification by students is still required to identify if the tools are profitable and if the trader applied it consistently.
I think the best proof is the myfxbook over time with public history. But that means that the trader should have thought of that a while ago, or else he can only be taken serious after a while. Also the trader should one strategy consistently to proof profitablility, or make them identifiable for other traders to see.
I know this is in line with what I said before, but I am curious about the arguments against my conclusion.
[B]Important![/B] In all cases it should be determined that the evidence is related to the poster in person. All evidence (including myfxbook) is useless when this is not done. For instance: I can pick a profitable myfxbook, use the myfxbook username of that person, and create an account under that name at BP.
What could be your idea on someone who has tried a mentor before but seemingly felt like it was a scam waiting to happen? I basically didn’t have any idea of how to get the bull by the horns and went online in search of a mentor. I came across a guy he pointed me to this website, was really nice, but something felt off to me.
He always told me that he wil help me once I signed-up to the broker he told me to sign up to. He would always tell me about his “secret” but never went into detail on what I should do as a newbie. Basically he just felt like someone who was in for the gains of getting on new subscriber. I went online and searched his info and found out that he posted the same thing on various blogs,forums, and even websites word for word it was the same thing “copied & pasted” everywhere.
I am now looking for a mentor who will actually teach me what I need to learn, where he/she doesn’t feel like I am a bad invest or I feel he is/she is pulling my leg. How can I approach this in a better way where I could find a real mentor and actually make someone proud?