Hey,
Today I want to talk about something that's near and dear to your heart—something you may have been avoiding because it can be uncomfortable if things aren't going well with your trading.
Let's be honest: You got into trading to make money, correct? Whether building wealth or generating income, you want your trading to produce results. You want it to be a financial asset.
Trading Is Not Passive Investing
Here's something crucial to understand: Trading is not like other investing where you put your money in, it works for you, and you don't have to do much except keep an eye on it.
Trading is a job. You're self-employed. If you don't trade, you don't make money—it's that simple. If you're not putting in time, you're not going to generate returns. This is an active profession, and it's vital that you recognize you need to be getting paid on top of the return your money is bringing in.
What's Your Hourly Rate as a Trader?
Let's examine this honestly. Is your time at least being covered?
Say you're used to earning $25 per hour—a very conservative figure. If you're putting in 20 hours a week trading, that should yield you $500 a week, or about $2,000 a month. If your trading isn't paying you that much, your time would literally be better spent elsewhere.
Consider this thought experiment: At the end of the year, would you have more money in the bank if you:
- Worked a $25/hour job
- Put your trading capital in a savings account where it made minimal returns but didn't lose value
- Continued your current trading approach
This is an exercise in opportunity cost. Are your time and money better invested in trading the way you're currently approaching it? Your money comes and goes, but time you never get back.
The Decision Point
If you're not making at least $25 an hour as a trader, you have a decision to make:
Do you want to continue investing all this time without getting properly compensated? Sure, trading offers intellectual stimulation and psychological lessons—but that's not why you're in it. You're in it to make money, not for life lessons and personal growth.
There are better ways to grow personally than taking financial beatings in the market.
The False Hope of “Just Keep Trading”
Many traders believe that somehow, magically, things will turn around if they just keep trading. I see traders who come to me after 5, 7, or even 10 years of not making money, still trading with anxiety and stress, losing sleep over it.
You can't just continue trading and expect it to magically turn around. You have to do something different.
Yes, you can watch YouTube videos, attend webinars, and buy new strategies. That's what everyone does. It makes intuitive sense—if a strategy isn't working, try a different one. But the strategy itself is not the key.
Do you need a decent strategy? Of course. But the strategy alone won't make you money. YOU have to become the trader with the skills and knowledge necessary for success.
The Six-Month Rule
Six months is a reasonable timeframe to evaluate your progress. If you've been trading for more than six months, and you're not at least 80% of the way to your goals of trading profitably, comfortably, and enjoyably, it's time to step back and reconsider your approach.
Don't just keep buying strategies, indicators, or spending thousands on new trading systems. Instead:
- Focus on investing in yourself
- Become a better trader
- Learn the complete skill set required for trading success
Trading requires far more skills than just placing trades and operating a platform. You need to know:
- How to get organized
- How to filter through countless questions to find the right strategy
- How to properly test and validate your approach
- How to take a strategy to the markets with confidence and proficiency
- How to manage your psychology effectively
These are specific skillsets—not just discipline and focus. There's a process to this, a very specific step-by-step method to taking a strategy to the markets in a way where you know the odds are in your favor.
The Cost of Delay
Every month you're not making the money you should be, there's a real cost. If you've been trading for a year without making money, but should be making $2,500 a month, it's costing you $2,500 monthly to lack these skills.
At some point, you expect to get paid. You shouldn't go on for years with no compensation.
The truth is, trading shouldn't take that long to learn. It's not such a sophisticated profession unless you make it hard. You can achieve proficient, businesslike, calculated trading in six months. It only takes a couple of months to learn the skill set and a few more to really hone it.
Be Brutally Honest With Yourself
I read a book recently where the author shared three rules for his 40 years of success building one of the most valuable companies in his industry:
- Be brutally honest with yourself
- Know what matters
- Take action
If you've been at it for a long time and what you're doing plainly isn't working, be honest with yourself and decide to try something different.
Ready to Transform Your Trading Results?
Join me for my upcoming masterclass:
“Maximize Your Profits in 2025”
In this eye-opening session, you'll discover:
- 3 different ways you're leaving massive money on the table
- How to get out of the win-some, lose-some cycle and actually keep your profits
- How to win more and lose less
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR THE MASTERCLASS
This masterclass is specifically designed for traders who are tired of inconsistent results and ready to treat their trading like the serious business it is.
To your trading success,
Brian McAboy
Inside Out Trading
P.S. If you'd like to discuss your specific trading challenges before the masterclass, book a call with me at InsideOutTrading.com. Let's identify what's holding you back and create a plan to get you making the money you deserve from your trading.
