How Much Do You Spend A Month?

[higgmond]

@former_trader

I think the worst part of being a trader (there are many good ones by the way) is bringing your day home. Your entourage knows right away if you had a good day or bad day. Impossible to hide it. And if you had a bad day you aren’t too pleasant to hang around with.

Almost every profession has this. I’ve never been a trader, so I’m only guessing, but at least when you go home your day is over.

[Greenman72]

@former_trader

For every year I worked as a futures trader, I lost 5 years of life expectancy.

Why do you say this?

I have no idea what a trader really does, or what their daily schedule is like.

[former_trader]

@geo

^ Does this apply to more the prop guys or the bank guys as well? If I dial up my FX man at Big5 shop, he’s not really taking sizeable positions right? He’s just more matching buyers and sellers and taking his pips. Or the guys trading money market for 3bps spreads? I always figured these guys have it made, easy hours, no position stress, and probably decent coin.

I was referring to prop traders. Prop trader and the FX guy at a bank are doing 2 different jobs. The latter plays more of a role of matcher and uses his contacts and relationships in the industry (his biggest asset to a firm) to get his clients trades filled. He’s more in an execution and “sales” role (get this big trade filled and I can get you more volume in the future or I’ll talk to you first next time if I have a big trade).

The sky is the limit for prop traders. You eat what you kill. Where I worked, one guy made 8 figures a year, a couple did 7 figures and a good chunk were in the 250k-750k range. There are no politics in prop trading and there is no grey area on the value you provide to the firm (P&L talks) and a great trader has more power than a manager (who you think the company will keep when there is a dispute, the guy making the company half a mil or the manager?). Also, you can decide to go medidate in the mountains of Tibet for 6 weeks and no one will ask questions or come in with a hangover at noon.

So, there is a higher reward as a prop trader but better exit opportunities in the former job. Not much transferrable skills as a prop trader, especially if you sucked at it.

[former_trader]

@higgmond

@former_trader

I think the worst part of being a trader (there are many good ones by the way) is bringing your day home. Your entourage knows right away if you had a good day or bad day. Impossible to hide it. And if you had a bad day you aren’t too pleasant to hang around with.

Almost every profession has this. I’ve never been a trader, so I’m only guessing, but at least when you go home your day is over.

It’s multiplied exponentionally as a trader. Imagine if you come home with 50k more in your bank account than the previous day, or 50K less.

[former_trader]

@Greenman72

@former_trader

For every year I worked as a futures trader, I lost 5 years of life expectancy.

Why do you say this?

I have no idea what a trader really does, or what their daily schedule is like.

You have no base salary. Also, events outside your control could cost you a sizable portion of your year too. Examples include a technical glitch where your screen freezes during high market volatility or being in an overnight position during a terrorist attack (London July 2005) or a Fed speaker giving a surprisingly dovish/hawkish speech or the Fed unexpectedly moving interest rates or a major event happening while in a trade and you’re late catching on Bloomberg if Bloomberg reports the event on time at all.