The following is a short interview with longtime member PRIVATEER who has been with Trading the Post from the very beginning (see more on our results page). In the room, PRIVATEER is trading a handful of names with laser focus. He is an example of a trader who has found their lane and is continuously adding to their skillset.
We thought, we ask PRIVATEER a few questions. So without any further ado, …
Q: Do you want to give us a little bit of your background and trading style, and how that developed up until now?
I just retired from Policing, but I have been trading part-time for years. I was having trouble finding a legitimate trading course and came across the Wall St Jesus website, where I found the Master Course in the fall of either 2017 or 2018. I ended up taking the course from Lucci and joining the Steamroom community. From there, I learned of Ron and his TTP style. I was fortunate to be able to be in the first group to join the TTP room. The rest is history – still here learning everyday from Lucci, J, and Ron.
Q:I have observed you trading a small number of names with a lot of focus. What made you do so? What advantages do you see in this approach?
When I first came to the Steamroom, I would follow and trade what everyone else was trading. This did not work for me at all. I ended up having more losers than winners. In trading, I think you either find a way to win or you find a new hobby. Losing pushed me to find another way to trade. When I joined Ron in the TTP room, I wanted to focus on his style. Ron keeps it to a smaller basket of names which I started to emulate as well. This immediately improved my trading. My priority was to soak up as much information and skills from Ron as possible. You really don’t need to trade many names to do this, you just have to be willing to trade a few well, and when you don’t, you need to be willing to adapt. I’m actually still doing this and not focusing on big returns … just quality trades. Money will come with skill and confidence … which takes time and is easier when you narrow your focus, in my opinion.
Q: I have also seen you progress or move from writing options ($FB) to playing more directionally ($AMZN). What are your reasons, what changed?
I am still trying to figure out AMZN, but when you get it right, one trade and your day / week is made. I do better when I don’t overtrade and I enjoy trading AMZN. In the end, AMZN is not an everyday scalp trade, so you do have to have a small basket of names to trade. I like to watch AMZN, GOOGL, NVDA, AMD, TSLA, and a few others. Of course, there is also stuff that pops up from the J’s flow that I keep an eye on, but that is about it.
As for FB, I really just hate FB and the Zucker so when I can short it or write it, I will try when the opportunity is there.
Q: What are some of your personal learnings, what are your current guiding principles of how you approach trading? Were there any pivots or turning points where it clicked for you?
Don’t over-trade and don’t try to force a trade to happen. The turning point for me was being able to have access to Ron in the TTP room five trading days a week. When you are able to see a professional go about his business while at the same time he is sharing his rationale of why he is doing what he is doing … It turns out to be a great learning environment.
Q: What do you perceive as your personal edge? What makes your trading work?
I don’t give up … but this can be a double edge sword. Sometimes you need to walk away to fight another day. I need to learn to do that more.
Q: Can you comment on the influence and impact of Ron, TTP?
Truthfully, I would not be here trading without Ron and TTP. Lucci and J as well. The whole package has given me an opportunity to be successful in this game.
Q: Can you comment on the influence and impact of Lucci, and the broader Sang Lucci Master Course?
Lucci, as people in the Steamroom know, has crazy tape reading skills. The Master Course showed me something that I didn’t know was possible. Incredible course. If I can’t sit in on all the classes, I watch every class on tape and always learn something new. Really incredible that once you buy the course, you can retake it year after year.