Option Fanatic, RIA (Part 4)

Today I continue with discussion of Internet posts on the subject of trading OPM.

Another voice in the crowd writes:

       “From what I have read over the years, managing OPM… has been the downfall
       of many a good (profitable) private trader… this game is psychologically
       very difficult without the added burden of worrying about losing your friends
       and/or relatives savings and having them ask you every couple of days/weeks,
       ‘how’s my $10K doing? Have you doubled my money yet?'” [1]

I have a dual reaction to this post.

First, my goal is to make money consistently. My goal is not necessarily to make money fast.

I aim to hit singles rather than triples and home runs.

All this sounds very cliche to me and I hate (remember the asterisk) that I echo outward sentiment held by many in the financial industry (i.e. “slow and steady wins the race”). This is one cliche with which I, for the most part, agree. Presentation of my trading approach will thoroughly emphasize this goal. Should I include a written test of some sort as part of the application process, I may even include a question about this concept.

Yes, I believe it possible to make money fast trading the financial markets. I also believe this greatly accelerates risk of Ruin (going bust). I might be stupid to do this with my own money but I’d be criminal to try it with others’.

I will discuss my second reaction in the next post.