Previous Week's Analysis

First of all I'd like to thank Adam Todd for inviting me on Juicestorm for an interview. Was an enjoyable experience and the time flew by chatting about all things trading. I've been pleasantly surprised of how positive the feedback has been from it, and more thanks go out to all the friendly comments left on my blog. The feedback was very much needed for my own head, as it has convinced me that its the right thing to pursue and encourages me to make them available to all as soon as I can. More details about the courses will be available soon so just keep an eye out. But if you can't wait then drop me an email and I will pass you on more details I didn't have time to mention on the interview.

Regarding last weeks trading all in all it was a good week. With some solid focus needed on Tuesday to recover my unfortunate incident with my Internet that cost me -251.....as mentioned on a previous post. Then taking some steady profits throughout the week I got myself into a good zone after Wednesday. But looking back I was a little disappointed with myself of the amount of losses that built up over the week. Far too many crept in that took away some well deserved profit. But the reasoning being that the markets were strong, and on occasions i was pushing a bit too hard to earn some extra pennies. In doing so I left myself in a few unwelcome positions.

I feel most of the markets were perfect for swing trading and due to the high profile races it attracted in some nice liquidity. Which in turn offered some great opportunities where markets were not only turning in direction fast, but often the true value was pushed too far in either direction. The reason a market goes sometimes further than you think, is not because someone is watching over your screen and screwing you over the second you enter the market....as it feels like at times. The reason this happens is when people get themselves in situations in which they can't instantly recover from. Like when a trader, or a combination of traders think a market is going 1 way, then it quickly turns and ends up going the other. So when a market goes the wrong direction even further against them you can see the desperation in people needing to get out at the current price. So then more traders push the price as they jump in front of the desperate money wanting out, which accumulates to a market going way beyond where the 'true price' it should be. Purely because peoples reaction to a price has forced people in losing positions to exit there trades in desperation. Their emotions take over and they rush to exit at any price available. When the market then is forced past where it should be, you will see a large bounce back of people rushing on the other side. Seeing value at the high/low position the market has now been pushed to. Also backers/layers will see the market at this position and now it provides them with an opportunity to bid/offer a price at the current position they think as value. This is how a market can fly around so quickly and can lose a scalper all there money in 1 go. Beware of knowing when to scalp and when to swing!

With swing trading you can achieve some massive moves if you can work out where other people are needing to exit there positions. In desperation they simply have to push the price further. In my eyes these are where the odds are in your favour to make profit. These are the odds in which I want to be working with, not the 50/50 situations you see on a regular basis.

Its about reading other peoples reaction to a price movement, not just the numbers on the screen. These are opportunities where you have to be able to read not where the market 'should' be at, but where you think the value is 'now' at. I hope that makes some sense as i did go on a bit of a ramble there :)

I've flown out to the UK for 10 days and arrive in Madrid on the 3rd September. Come back for my local festival - Leeds fest :) So won't be that much going on as far as trading this week. That's why the essay of a post now hehe. I'll make my post that was suggested regarding my setup when I'm back in Madrid.

I needed a plane to catch on Saturday and only could fit in 1hr and 15 mins on the Saturday. An annoying finish to a good week trading Tues - Sat

Juicestorm Interview

Adam Todd kindly invited me to have an interview with him on his Juicestorm radio show. He mentioned my blog last week and asked if I would have a chat on show 3. I got in touch and said Id happily go on. So tomorrow it is! Not sure of the exact time I'm on, but the show starts at 12:00 UK time Sat 22nd August.

If anyone hasn't heard of the show its everything gambling/trading related and is a good listen. Nothing too serious and all in good humour.

Hopefully people can tune in live tomorrow and listen in to me ramble on about trading.

If you can't tune in live its not a problem, the show will be recorded for Sat evening in the radio archive secition.

Little bit nervous but should be good fun :)

The link is :

http://www.juicestorm.com

Recovering From Losses

I started the day pretty well, plodding myself to a nice total by 16:00. Then some terrible luck hit me when my Internet went down for a good 15 seconds. Jumping over to my laptop I hoped it was my computer freezing but indeed it was the Internet. Its stupid me having no backup at the moment as these things happen now and again. But due to me possibly moving I'm waiting to install the second line.

When the Internet came back my position was terrible! The market took £1500 with the price already 6 ticks against me, and drifting like mad. I chased the damn thing up and people noticed and were just jumping in front of me knowing I'm in trouble. Damn you traders hehe! =p Long long after I finally get out for a nasty -251 all. Taking me down to a slight minus on the day. Frustrated but knowing I was trading well, I quickly tried to forget about the unfortunate incident and get on with it. I got my mind focused and went on a nice run to finish on a healthy total for the day. Recovering from losses that are your fault, or in this case not your fault are a massive part of trading successfully. Move on and keep positive :)

Teamwork

Finding an edge in trading is what its all about. In my eyes whatever makes trading easier generally makes it more profitable. If the edge comes from a super fast connection, an ultra disciplined mind or some balls made from gold. Whatever you can get your hands on or develop then it should increase the pennies in your Betfair bank.

I know only too well how lonesome trading can be. Locking yourself in a room with the blinds drawn down, trying to get yourself into the 'zone'. The computers are buzzing away, the mouse is clicking frantically and all you can hear are the same annoying voices everyday in your ear. The pundits on the racing channels I mean not the ones in your head :) Keeping your cool under these alien conditions of solitude is always gonna be a struggle. 1 of the ways in which I tackle this solitude is to talk to another trader on Skype. In the midst of battle whilst trading.
It would be interesting to hear if anyone is doing the same, or even considered it for that matter?

Ill write a quick list of some of the benefits, in theory 2 minds should be better than 1!

• Combining knowledge to analyze the markets - Trying to pick out good entrance/exit points where good 'value' is in the market.
• Keeping focused and disciplined throughout the day. Reminding each other the things not to do. Reducing the mistakes is where the profits come from. You will always make money but stopping losing it is where the challenge will always be.
• Helping each other through tricky times. Like when your fighting back from a loss for example, if you have another person in your ear saying 'keep your head, forget about it move on' you overcome these losses quicker and come back stronger

But also its important to know when to be quiet and not ramble on, ensuring you don't distract the other person from making money. Trying to be a help not a hinder! I believe when working as a team it provides us with a good array of tools to tackle the markets effectively. Making trading more enjoyable and in turn more profitable. Having someone there to chat shit to in between races is always a good for preventing ourselves arriving at the market too early, when the market hasn't properly pick up yet in terms o f 'flow'. Friend I salute you and thank you for the random conversations we have haha!

I'd recommend to anyone starting up, or even the more experienced traders to give it a go. A lot of aspects of my trading have improved since we started using the tactic of combining heads.

Not much to report as far as last weeks trading, only worked a few days. Been looking for a new apartment possibly to live, and also enjoying some time off. But looking forward to York starting tomorrow.

2 day Break

I find it very important to keep myself fresh for trading the day and evening races. To ensure this happens I have been taking Sundays and Mondays off for a while now. It's a very important process that you don't over trade....burning your eye balls out and frying your brain! =)

I've noticed that after a time-frame of 6-7 hours a day focusing intensely at flickering numbers, my eyes need a well deserved break. This 5 times a week is ample enough for me and 2 days off gives me the time to wind down. Try and look out of the window every 30 mins - 1 hr to extend those eye balls out and release any built up tension. Also I've started to do sit-ups/press ups in between a few races to keep that blood flowing and the concentration levels up. I believe you should be always looking for ways to increase your focus whilst trading. Don't be lazy!

Over time I've learnt how to distinguish my trading life from my real life, but this hasn't been easy. What i mean by this is when I'm finished trading for the day, regardless if Ive won or lost i wipe that clean from my mind and continue to enjoy my life in other ways. Separating work from play is very important. As much as it's an unusual job, for me its my work not my life. Its what makes me money and gives me a challenge, but its not the be all and end all of my existence. This helps me move forward with trading as i can overcome any losses v quickly, and also not get complacent when Ive had a good day. Keeping a level head is where consistency is born, thus increasing confidence.

For the first few yrs trading i was forever thinking about trading. Every waking hour of the day thoughts were whizzing around my head that were very hard to control. I swear i even had a few nightmares of numbers on ladders. Crazy but it actually doesn't surprise me. So many hours, financial injection and emotional energy goes into trading that's its inevitable that it will grab your attention levels well after the trading day is finished. But I think you have to try and take a step back from it all and don't let it get the better of you. Your the one in control....keep it that way! This emotional control of yourself is what separates the people who make money consistently from the people who don't. The brain is the most powerful asset we own....use it wisely!

First Post =)

We all need a little focus in our lives once in a while. After trading for nearly 4 years the drive to continually improve my totals is never easy. I make a comfortable living trading pre-race on the horses but due to my work hard, play harder moto my trading totals do get affected. Its sometimes a bit too easy to settle for a profit on the day and stop and go out for a beer. I like to earn money but enjoy spending it more. Some of you might be thinking whats wrong with that? Well there isn't anything wrong with that but that's what I've been doing for several years now. Saying I'm bored of that lifestyle would only be lying to myself, but realising I'm hitting my quarter of a century next month...the big 25! I want to refocus and make sure I don't look back in 10 years time and say "where did all that money go!"

I've read blogs and forums on trading for years and I thought id finally get my azz in gear and make 1 myself. I have to say that the totals Adam Heathcote is hitting on a daily basis is very very impressive, and don't let it get you down that your not hitting anywhere near those amounts. You have to gradually improve your trading starting small, then with experience up your stakes to a bank you are comfortable playing with. This is a guy who is on top of the game, just keep positive at all times and consistent profits will come.

I hope to try and encourage people that although the light at the end of the tunnel sometimes seems impossible to reach, trust me with hard work and persistence you can make a living from Betfair. The traders mindset you need to profit consistently is that of ultimate fine-tuning. Like a formula 1 car being tweaked to run at its optimum performance. Its often the small differences you change whilst trading that makes the difference between winning and losing. You have to perfect the basics and then fine tune everything else to make the whole package run smoothly. In writing my thoughts, I hope to improve my traders minset and the mindset of others. The number 1 rule...discipline, being able to discipline your mind at all times.

I've had a very respectable week working from Tuesday-Saturday. Hoping this blog will keep my focus.