Playing & Trading Strategy

So...I should dig up my HSX strategy I wrote out a while back...not with me right now...but here is the gist of what I posted that time I think.

After a few months of avid playing, patterns became very obvious. I could post news...little news...like say: "The Piano" will open the Cannes Film Fest (PIANO).  That particular type of news bit was worth I would think about $1 or so of movement, til maybe 5p or 6p the next day. I knew that news posts of this type would require me to vacate/flip my position at around that time. If PIANO was a stock valued between $15 and $1, I would flip. Priced higher and I might not flip but simply get out as it would not drop off low enough to give me a return of higher than 2%.  2% is the magic line in the sand...make 2% plus and you are moving forward.  You can look at the Old Boy stock for instance.  Look at the graph and run your mouse over the lowest point and drag the line up that cute mountain.  Note where it drops (I haven't done this by the way =).  I posted the news about Will Smith and Spielberg's interest in that. There is a stock that saw some nice growth and news worth a lot more than say a film fest slot.

If you want to effectively daytrade, my modus operandi was to log in at key times. What are those key times?  Reset 12:50a. 7:00a east coast breakfast, 10a West Coast breakfast, 12n east coast lunch, 3p West Coast lunch...etc etc...following people's usual work/school patterns. I check news sites...most important to me as a day trader as I want to post that and get in on the ground floor before a stock reacts to it. Those times should all be followed by "-ish".  ;-)

Day Trading is playing the players. You buy the new ipo, you weigh how traders react to it, and you know when to get out of it on a daily basis. Those are easy day trades.

Percentage wise, I believe I noted that 100% - 110%+ used to be nice jump off points for some traders.  As are nice even $ amounts like $50,000 or $100,000.  News stocks were more percentage based while reset stocks were more $ based.

News like the Old Boy stuff...you might see a dip of one or two clicks during the steep climb...those would be false peaks...cause it would then reverse right back and head up some more...that is when your instincts have to be good...was that a real peak or fake...do I sell and flip or do I hold on cause it will go up more?

I have been bold...I have been a chicken...nothing worse than looking over my portfolio and thinking...it is time to get out...or flip...not do it and BLAMMO...it reverses on me! I have good instincts on playing the players, I just don't always follow them. lol

This experience came from playing really avidly from about January 2007 to October 2008. the patterns are similar now but probably a little more sluggish I think. Some of that is due to trading controls in place or fewer players. For my 2008 ytd, I had everything pegged pretty nicely...but I didn't have solid internet access in October and got a break from the addiction. My goal was 750m and I ended around 550m.

Now that I am a part-time day trader, I look at my port on Saturdays about 2am and shake my head at the losses there...clean em up...and move on forcing myself to be happy with my 2.5 to 3m a day average.

Anymore questions...ask away...gotta run.