Thread of the Week - Birth of a Turtle

Came across a great thread this weekend regarding Curtis Faith and his Turtle background.  Read here.  I especially enjoyed the story of his initial programming experience converting trading systems.  What a great first job.  And of course, always hungry for insights and traits into what makes a successful trader.  Here's Mr. Faith's take:

The ones who were successful had more emotional control. The ones who weren't successful were either too intellectually insecure and unable to commit to a strategy, too greedy, too emotionally invested in their financial success, too affected by the large swings in equity, or too averse to the risks required to trade well (probably due to a lack of confidence in themselves). One of the things that distinguished the good Turtles from the ones that were completely unsuccessful is their personalities. The traders with a more intellectual and systematic approach to life were much more successful than the emotional traders who really wanted to make a lot of money.

And finally, one of the most important insights Curtis makes:

...all successful people owe their success to the help of others. They therefore have an obligation and usually a desire to pass on the craft, to teach and help others.

I am thankful that such a thing is true.  I owe many thanks to the people that have helped my programming and trading experience grow in the right direction.  In a sense, we are all like those baby turtles Mr. Dennis refers to.  Just trying to make it out to sea and swim with the big dogs.  And avoid the many perils from beach to sea.

Later Trades,

MT

Quote of the Week

"There is no doubt in my mind that systems and styles which offer a rougher ride will hold up more over the long run because not as many traders and certainly almost no institutional money wants the ride.




You will make more money if you can take the pain. Unfortunately, you will make little or none if you think you can but it ends up that you can't."
- Curtis Faith -


MT

Quote of the Week

"Always swim, never sink" -- Yoji Harada

:)

MT

Interview of Programming Greats!

A really cool interview of several of the great programmers of our time: Linus Torvalds, Guido Van Rossum, James Gosling, etc. Read here.

They answer questions in regard to what they feel is the next big thing, what new technology they feel is worth learning, what makes programmers productive, etc. Really great interview. Check it out.

MT

Thread of the Week

A really great thread over at the Trading Blox forum.  Read here.

Best part was the comments by Curtis Faith in regard to "the characteristics of markets over time."  Curtis broke the markets into three classes:

1)  Fundamental Driven Markets - cleanest trends and easiest to trade;

2)  Speculator Driven Markets - perception driven and harder to trade;

3)  Aggregated Derivative Markets - averaging out effect dilutes momentum.

Plus, I always enjoy it when Curtis shares his Turtles experience.  His coffee story reminds me of a few trades from my Melba Toast story. 

Also, pay attention to Barli's mention of optimization and the effect lack of cash has on your results.  This is a very hard lesson to learn.  Most backtesting platforms will drop trades due to lack of cash.  Thus, you only see a sample size of the actual results.  There are a few solutions to this problem...but that's for another time.

Later Trades,

MT

Quote of the Week

"Every now and then go away, even briefly, have a little relaxation, for when you come back to your work your judgement will be surer; since to remain constantly at work will cause you to lose power."  --  Leonardo da Vinci

Well, I had a little break.  And during that break I moved my family to Missouri!  Yes, we are now in Missouri.  Things are going good.  Still have so much unpacking to do.  But, was able to mow the yard (grass is different here than Texas) and find my grilling supplies for a good steak dinner with a corona or two.

The break did me good.  No computer, time spent with the family, and change.  Plenty of change.  Change does the mind good.  Breaks you out of your comfort zone.  And that's a good thing...even though it doesn't always feel like it when undergoing the change.  Here's more on breaking out of your comfort zone from Dr. Brett.

And that's the update for yours truly.  Oh, and I start my new job this week.  Very excited.

Have a great week!

MT

Quote of the Week

"If you've been pounding nails with your forehead for years, it may feel strange the first time somebody hands you a hammer. But that doesn't mean that you should strap the hammer to a headband just to give your skull that old familiar jolt." -- Wayne Throop

This quote rings so true.  :)

Happy 4th everybody!

MT