the "it" factor for traders

you need balls of steel!

assuming you're fortunate enough to have that stuff... are there ways to show that in an interview? or is it more that thats what youll need to get an offer after an internship, etc?

these qualities cannot be assessd fully in a 30 min internship.

i look for confidence, a little cockiness is fine, but more interest and passion for the markets.

I work as a trader so I will try my best to provide any information. My experience has been more on the hedge fund/prop trading side.

Q: everyone says trading isnt for everybody, could anyone says why is that, what is a day in the life of a trader(i checked vault but couldnt find any good one)

A: You come in early and prepare for the day (i.e. check relevant news etc). You trade during market hours and you prepare your daily P/L report at the end of day.

If you don't truly love the markets, you will get wiped out sooner or later (i.e. hit big losses, lost emotional control etc). The reason why it isn't for everyone is because sometimes your income is very volatile and not stable (people prefer stable income, obviously). Also, most people are risk-averse and they don't take risks. As someone mentioned, in order to be a good trader, you gotta have some balls. Finally, how do you feel when you work so hard for the entire day and you go home with a big loss? (or just lost money in general) Would you be able to come in next morning with a fresh mind? How do you feel when you are, say up $100K at this moment and down $200K in the next 5 minutes? How do you feel when you just closed your position with $100K profit and later found out if you held on for an hour more, you could have made 5 times of that amount? After all that, would you be able to behave normally with a few smiles on your face or would you complain and whine?

Q: tell me about the yelling thing

A: Yelling is obviously everywhere on the trading floor. Also, traders love to use the word "fk" so if you don't hear people saying fk this, f**k that, then you ain't on a trading floor.

Q: can anybody who is intelligent and hard working be good in trading, or do you need a little bit luck?

A: Hard-working is a prerequisite for trading and also the passion for markets. Good traders don't need luck; luck has nothing to do with their fortune.

...to trade on the buyside u need iron-clad discpline. That is the most important thing IMO. A distant second is the inteligence/ability to come up with good trade ideas. But what seperates a good smart analyst from a great trader is that a trader understands risk and manages his book with cool, emotionless discpline even when things around him are in chaos. You must also have a love for the markets and eat and breathe the job...i am at home right now logged into my bberg watching euro markets while watching chappelle and writing this.

Bondarb, that's exactly why trading is so awesome.