How did you first become interested in the markets?
Alright, I've got to ask...
How did you guys first learn to enjoy following the markets?
Were you immediately hooked watching bloomberg/cnbc? watching an endless array of stock/bond prices move in small, seemingly contradictory directions?
While I understand it likely comes easy once you are immersed in it on the floor as your job, I have no idea how I can come across so many undergrads with a seemingly limitless knowledge of the markets and hunger for the latest bit of company/market news. I mean, I'm just as intrigued as the next person here when reading books like When Genius Failed, Black Swan, etc... Hell, I even tend to enjoy all of my Economics/ Finance based courses. However, when I turn on Bloomberg news I may as well be watching a CSPAN broadcasting of Al Gore on Global warming judging by my interest. I just can't get into all of these small, continual price movement alerts and info on company xyz, or the same rehashed economic prospectus by an analyst.
I'm hoping its just because I don't have a firm understanding of how the markets/fundamentals work and connect. I'm assuming that these undergrads aren't just memorizing lines they heard from analysts and brandishing them around to look cool? Do the target schools trully have such better professors/programs that they really learn the markets inside/out on top of the usual theoretical stuff?
I admit there is something very enticing about the markets and trading, as I am very interested in anything that allows you to form a "systematic" approach and try and use your knowledge to make predictions on future events whether short or long term.
** Anyway, my true question is where should I start/ what can I do to try and interest myself more in the markets? Is the only way to actually put some money in an account and starting trading? (I have tried a practice account but that doesn't give me a big enough incentive to get home from 10-14 hour work days and look further into it)






If you are at all a sports
If you are at all a sports fan, try fantasy sports or sports betting. A lot of similarites between those two and investing or trading. I would also suggest putting some of your own money at risk - the idea of turning what you have into more tends to be a great motivator.
I think it's mostly
I think it's mostly pretending.
So no one can give me their
So no one can give me their own experience?
I suppose I should first focus in on one sector/product and learn the specifics?
Since I'm most interested in the FICC side, specifically FX, I have decided to first go through a few economics fundamentals books and start following tradingeconomics.com. I also bought the book, trading currency for dummies (yes, I know).
Essentially the question is should I just jump right into it and trade my own money while being forced to learn along the way so I don't lose all my money? Or should I continue trying to understand all of the macro fundamental relationships and indicators as well as reading a few books on currency trading before I begin trading my own account?
Jumping right into trading
Jumping right into trading and losing all your money, while expensive, is one of the best lessons that you can ever learn. Waiting until you think you've got it all figured out because you read another 3 books is a terrible idea...number of books read and PnL probably has a very low correlation.
If you're planning on trading currencies on macro news you're going to get smoked - plan on it. If anything you'll break even and your tx costs will eat up your account. But, if you're serious about it, make small bets and consider your losses learning expenses. You need to get familiar with the price action if you want to be successful - there are plenty of successful currency traders that don't know a lot about economics.
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I tend to think of myself as a one-man wolfpack
Buyside strongside
Wanted to study marketing
Wanted to study marketing because it's more than just advertising. It's strategy and business development. Then I learned in college that you need to know finance for corporate strategy. I enjoyed studying business strategies and found that (fundamental) asset valuation was that. Since then adding designations helped turn it into a trade instead of filling genereal curiosity.
Wanted to study marketing
Wanted to study marketing because it's more than just advertising. It's strategy and business development. Then I learned in college that you need to know finance for corporate strategy. I enjoyed studying business strategies and found that (fundamental) asset valuation was that. Since then adding designations helped turn it into a trade instead of filling genereal curiosity.
Do any of you guys use the
Do any of you guys use the Investing IQ app on facebook ? It is very limited, but it is a facebook app so that is to be expected.
rooster wrote: Jumping right
Jumping right into trading and losing all your money, while expensive, is one of the best lessons that you can ever learn. Waiting until you think you've got it all figured out because you read another 3 books is a terrible idea...number of books read and PnL probably has a very low correlation.
If you're planning on trading currencies on macro news you're going to get smoked - plan on it. If anything you'll break even and your tx costs will eat up your account. But, if you're serious about it, make small bets and consider your losses learning expenses. You need to get familiar with the price action if you want to be successful - there are plenty of successful currency traders that don't know a lot about economics.
i am not sure i agree with the above about going in blind and expecting to blow up your account as a price of tuition. When I started trading my own money I did a ton of reading both on the product I intended on trading and on the news/fundamentals in the market i traded. I understand that maybe for some people there is a certain paralysis that comes from over-analysis and they should just jump in the pool at some point, but for me I read for months before i started because i didnt fell like throwing away thousands of dollars that i worked hard to get.
8th grade. We had to invest
8th grade. We had to invest 5k of virtual money and my competitive side wouldn't let me lose. Ended up scouring through every single stock on NYSE that day and picked three (based on the terrible, completely idiotic idea that only stocks with a p/e of 10-11 were fairly valued.) Portfolio went up 10 percent the next day, based exclusively on luck of course, and I won.
It was stupid but it got me interested in the markets....
ElliotWaveSurfer wrote: 8th
8th grade. We had to invest 5k of virtual money and my competitive side wouldn't let me lose. Ended up scouring through every single stock on NYSE that day and picked three (based on the terrible, completely idiotic idea that only stocks with a p/e of 10-11 were fairly valued.) Portfolio went up 10 percent the next day, based exclusively on luck of course, and I won.
It was stupid but it got me interested in the markets....
That's not stupid or idiotic, I'm 31 and I still rather invest in companies with low PE's.
But back to the question, Black Monday -1987 was my first real exposure to the market. I already knew what the stock market was but when I heard stories about guys committing suicide, I was like wow that's pretty crazy.
I followed the major indices after that, but didn't start following individual stocks until 12th grade.
11th grade highschool
11th grade highschool economics class
11th grade Macroeconomics.
11th grade Macroeconomics.
I win here, I win there...
Watching a tv show called
Watching a tv show called Traders . . . there is a thread with a download link for the series, it's a must see.
After listening to the
After listening to the intelligent investor (audio book) while in the womb, I started trading variance swaps when I was two years old.
I interned for a market
I interned for a market making firm specializing in toilet wine.
I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass... and I'm all out of bubblegum.
blastoise: 11th grade
I hate victims who respect their executioners
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High school economics was
When I sold YHOO for 498 3/16
Turbo leverage for capital explosion -- BD Capital
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11th grade economics class as
I help people with the tough situation of not knowing how to respond to emails.
11th Grade Macro. Plus crisis
Here to learn and hopefully pass on some knowledge as well. SB if I helped.