Changing Tack
It’s been quite a while since I wrote in here. Partly this is due to the aggressive futures trading I have been doing over the past few months. And it’s to this I turn.
I traded mainly index futures throughout December and January, with trading opens as early as November. To my surprise, I did not wipe myself out, which happens to people entering futures very regularly, I actually performed surprisingly well. Ending up a modest amount, but a result I was more than happy with. Considering many more experienced traders than I blew up horribly over this period, and I had quite a significant drawdown within that period, it has given me a lot of confidence in my approaches for the future (pardon the pun).
But during my recent holiday, hardly paying attention to the markets, I was able to relax, and sleep properly for the first time in quite a while. Even though I was not holding futures positions overnight when I was trading them, it was winding me up to a point where sleep was not fulfilling. Making me snappy and lowering my mood. This for anyone who has had a history like me is not a good thing. There is a definite price to pay for good mental health. And no money is worth that.
So, where to now? Well, I’m definitely not going to give up futures. They are just too damn lucrative when you trade them correctly. So, I am going to only trade opens on them, unless there is a trade I can’t refuse. Even though they don’t provide me the best expectancy, they provide me the best success rate, which will reduce my stress. And mean I’m not glued to the computer for lengthy periods, which can only be a good thing.
Another option (pardon the pun) that I was considering, and starting to study anyway, was option writing strategies. Passive income and protection for stocks I don’t necessarily want to sell, really appeals to me at the moment. Again this means less time at the computer, at least intraday. That is the goal over the next few months, to begin option writing strategies.
The other two reasons I want to be spending less time at the computer this year, are my study and work. My study load will be a lot higher this year. Continuing to study more in the field of energy will be a lot of fun. I am also going to be looking for work in the public service. Either in the department of environment, or department of energy and resources (state and federal equivalents of these). So much for my studies not having anything to do with things in the market! Getting into environmental auditing is potentially very rewarding. And that’s where a long term lure potentially dangles. Moving into that area is what I had planned all along, but I did not feel I had the appropriate knowledge base until recently.
All this means a reduction in my current work, moving more to weeknights, where a lot already is, and or hiring someone to take over my clinic work. The second option isn’t my favoured one. I do really enjoy my current work though, it provides a lot of fulfilment in my life, and keeps me very balanced.
And to my study. I’m looking at doing an ISC (Independent Study Contract) or research paper critiquing random walk theory in the markets, and involving probability study. I intend to write a lot of the problems I see with it here. If I don’t, you know I’m loafing. But it should be a lot of fun if I do write everything out here. I’m also looking to post-grad topics, especially carbon market study. So much for my study not having anything to do with trading/ investing!
See you soon!
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