MY FIRST STEP
I was already fascinated by the capital markets in my early days as a teenager. Driven by the fascination with Wall Street, I also wanted to become a “big player”. After months of following a “guru” offering gold stock picks, it was time for me to make money too. But in order to make an investment, money must be raised first. What this means for me is that the summer holidays had to be canceled. A job was announced at an automotive supplier. As soon as the money was raised, I went about it with youthful naivety. The “guru” recommended a stock via (premium) newsletter and the share was on its way to doubling in price. That almost always worked. What didn’t always work out was the optimal exit of his followers, including myself. I attended his seminars. It filled an entire exhibition hall with like-minded small investors everywhere who wanted to make a lot of money, just like me.
But why only trade stocks that regularly double when you can earn tens of times that with leveraged products? Fortunately, the “financial industry” offered the right products. Thanks to a broker with a strong media presence, the entry into the CFD market was perfect. Just sitting together with friends and being able to pay for the next round with a few clicks? That was a great feeling! In just a matter of two days, I already tripled my capital. From that point, I realized how much money I had made with just a few clicks.
As fast as I tripled the account, I lost all that money. The euphoria suffered a severe damper and I was forced to look back at the price movements, which were definitely profitable in retrospect. I had to restore the capital again. My job had to serve as a means to an end. The result of the second attempt to become a “Big Player” led to the same result just like the first time. However, this time without multiplying the account beforehand. My strategy of not having a strategy was unsuccessful. I’m getting more and more involved with analytics. I browsed stock market forums and tried to learn something from the “pros” there. I attended trade fairs, road shows and spent tens of thousands of euros on seminars, with money that I borrowed. The quest for the Holy Grail should be worth it.
With what I thought I knew, I tried over and over again to make a fresh start. To this day, I don’t know how many times I’ve succeeded. Ultimately, this intoxication always led to disillusionment. This happened so often that I ended up going broke and feeling like I ruined my life. I was frustrated and tried to run away from trading, but I didn’t succeed. Again and again, I said to myself: “Kostolany and Co. went bankrupt again and again. You can do it, that’s your thing.” What felt like the 100th attempt went better. I obeyed the rules. Losses accepted. Made me aware that multiplication of capital is usually not a problem, but was always associated with significant risk. Anyone who is not aware of this has no place in the markets.
MY EXPERIENCES AND TEACHINGS
I moderated myself as much as possible. That was the most challenging time in my life. “Be frugal, not greedy. Earning only what you need and only if there is really an option to make money beyond that.” It was an uphill journey. I gained more and more experience, experiences that helped me to get along better with the market. Above all, it was a struggle with the mental attitude. I got off to a flying start professionally as a project manager for foreign exchange trading in my early 20s. My studies in commercial law had to be paused. This chance came only once. But with success at work came failure on the stock market. I kept telling myself that because of my qualifications, I was a so-called magician of the markets. I failed again and lost everything.
I broke everything, even my studies. I enrolled for the state law exam at the university, but why should I only settle for being a commercial law student? Studying was easy for me. I withdrew more and more and learned from home. My boredom strikes again. The idea of becoming a “big player” was there again.
Constant profits could be achieved, even if it was bumpy from time to time and you kept falling back into old patterns. I learned to smoothen the tips of the old patterns. I already had a lot of fun sharing my knowledge as a project manager for foreign exchange trading. Sitting alone in front of the monitors for years, I finally now had enough. This was followed by going into self-employment. The trading school was launched.
MY REALITY
A lot of people wanted to pay me to teach them how to trade the stock market. People who approached things with too much ease failed. Apparently, the fallacy of competitors that you could get rich by clicking the trading platform on your smartphone on the beach with a cocktail in your hand was too big. But the reality is that only those who study it more intensively are the ones who are successful today and can make a living from stock market trading. Now, I could bring you closer to your dream, but you have fulfilled it yourselves.
My fame continued to grow. The people who had no desire and time also wanted to profit from the stock market, without any commitment in the form of work and time. A reference account has been opened with a broker. Trading went smoothly. A few percent profit per month was possible. Not enough for people who are looking for a “passive income”. More profit had to be made. A few hundred percent in a few months. Realistic? Possible? Yes! At what risk? If I go to my bank today and say I’d like to be 800% risk-free in a few months, the advisor would look at me wide-eyed.
He would do that himself if I wanted to win him 0.8% sure profit. The profits made were surrendered. Those who were not there from the beginning were even at a loss. The culprit was clear. Of course, nobody realized his profits before, although every individual could have done that at any time. An eightfold increase wasn’t enough. Instead, each individual has already calculated when they can take early retirement. Since then I have been an unsuccessful trader, a trader who always loses everything. At least, that’s the perception of people who wanted to passively profit from the stock market.
Trading is a battle with the trader’s mental toughness. Every day on the stock market is a challenge. This is what makes this job so exciting and just as exhausting. Many people can analyze the markets, but only a few can trade them profitably. That’s why I teach stock exchange trading and why I pass my experience on to people who also want to be successful on the stock exchange. If every client can incorporate a few percent of my experience, this can protect against high losses and I have achieved my goal.