I was a data analytics specialist in Singapore who got to know about the markets in 2010. In Dec 2021, I retired early from the corporate world by trading the markets, having accumulated enough trading profits. Below chronicles the steps I took in my trading journey.
- Getting To Know The Markets (2010 – 2011)
- Exploring Trading Possibilities (2012 – 2013)
- Awakening (2014)
- Scaling Up (2015)
- Implementing Trading Framework (2016 – 2019)
- Upgrading Trading Framework (2020)
- Retiring From the Corporate World (2021)
- Lessons Learnt
- Conclusion
Getting To Know The Markets (2010 – 2011)
I started off as a buy-and-hold investor, and bought only Singapore stocks via traditional brokerages. Profits were modest during these initial years.
I ingested mainstream investing guides and analyst reports, hoping to become an investment guru. However, I sadly remained a noob at the end of this phase.
Exploring Trading Possibilities (2012 – 2013)
I opened various CFD accounts to explore the trading universe. CFD platforms offered a wide range of markets and asset classes, and facilitated different trading styles. It was like Star Trek – CFD platforms opened up strange and wondrous new worlds to explore. I tried trading different markets, industries, asset classes and trading styles. It was a time of intensive experimentation and inconsistent performance.
Awakening (2014)
I finally found a combination of trading strategy, trading instrument, asset class and market sector that worked for me. Collectively, I shall term it my trading framework. As I started to refine it, consistency improved and for the 1st time, I managed to earn a 6-figure sum from trading over a year .
It felt amazing, and I thought to myself, “Wow, it really is possible for trading to change my life!” I felt hope and excitement, but also recognized that I still needed to continue to improve.
Scaling Up (2015)
I worked on scaling up my trading position sizing to reap full benefits from my trading framework, and forced myself to endure the increased discomfort that every rise in position sizing brought. The process was akin to punching myself a little harder everyday to get used to higher levels of pain, and wondering why I was doing this to myself.
It was a painful process, but it was necessary in order to be able to generate enough profits to retire early via trading.
Implementing Trading Framework (2016 – 2019)
With the scaling up process finished, I completed the development of my trading framework. Position sizing is an important part of the trading strategy aspect of the framework.
I used the framework from 2016 to 2019 without major changes to it. Up till 2018, it proved to be reliable most of the time. I was coasting along, thinking I could continue to depend on it to retire early by trading. But it stopped working in 2019. Market behavior had unexpectedly changed and rendered it useless.
Upgrading Trading Framework (2020)
I reviewed my trading framework and made changes to it adapt to the changed market behavior. The upgrade was finalized in 2020. It was more difficult to implement than its predecessor. I had to be more aggressive and take more risks, while being nimbler and more adaptive to changes in market conditions. But it started working again, so that was all that mattered.
Retiring From the Corporate World (2021)
I decided to retire early from the corporate world in Dec 2021, having accumulated enough profits to feel comfortable living without a stable monthly income. Looking forward to spending more time with my family, continuing trading and pursuing other interests!
Lessons Learnt
The most important lessons/reminders I gathered from my journey are as follows:
- Be prepared to adapt your trading strategy to changing market behavior
- Persevere on any idea that you have calculated to have a good chance of success
- Avoid blindly following other trading strategies and principles, instead adapt them to your own personality and cognitive strengths
- Do not be afraid to try out your own entirely original trading strategies
- There is no such thing as absolute slam dunk certainty in markets
- Stay humble even if you are successful, as it helps you keep true to your real self
- Continue to spend time with family and friends, because they are more important than trading profits
- Invest continually in your health to avoid disruptive and disabling health issues
Conclusion
It has taken 2 years of investing + 9 years of trading to earn enough profits to retire from the corporate world. I had a full-time job during these years, so it was tiring at times. I did not have a mentor, and I pretty much developed my own framework from scratch, so I probably took longer than some others to arrive at this stage. But one advantage of not rushing through the journey is that I had enough time solidify my foundation at each stage.
I hope that this sharing can help at least some of you in your own investment/trading journey. Please feel free to share your views or queries on this, I will be glad to hear from you.