“You Should Never Put Yourself in a Position Where You Think You Might Know What Will Happen” @Darren_Chin
In Members in Profile, we interview stand-out members that show strong aptitude and work ethic. Our goal is to highlight different folks so that you can see the effort that our members are putting into their trading and hopefully learn from their experiences of the Convergent Trading Community.
We hope you enjoy hearing what @Darren_Chin has to say!
What brought you into trading?
After graduation, I started my career in the banking/wealth management industry. The financial market has always been part of my life. Like many, I started investing in stocks and funds and had been through all the ups and downs. After a while, I realized investing and trading are different in nature. Trading, particularly, in futures eventually became a career that I wanted to pursue.
What do you like most about Convergent?
I purchased indicators, participated in various forums, talked to friends in the hedge fund industry, and I finally settled in the community of Convergent Trading. I enjoy being part of a team/community as there is always someone around who can answer your trading question or be a part of an Accountability Partner/Group who can talk to you about your good and bad days. On top of the news feed, the most valuable offering are the trading insights from the Mavens and leaders during the Trade Talks, Study Halls, and Group Mentoring Sessions. Not to mention a handful of unsung heroes behind the scenes working out their daily plan on other products and sharing their experiences in the forum.
How have these aspects helped you grow as a trader?
That really helps me to prepare for the day, to center myself, to do the right thing during the session, and continue to review and refine my trading process.
Do you have a favorite community quote or webinar?
By FT, various times:
As a Trader, you should never put yourself in a position where you think you might know what will happen. This will cause you to anticipate a level or zone holding before it does. The job is to see that there is a response and jump in as early as you can by using whatever tools you are comfortable with to do so.
Do you have any advice for new members?
Take risk management seriously. Take one setup, trading one product until you are in the competent stage.
Like the Mavens said, prepare yourself to take 3-times longer than what you think it may take to be successful, and be aware that you are investing not only time, but also your physical health and mental health. All the Mavens work during the weekend, and if they are doing that, I know I need to do more than that. Trading full time is more than a full-time job from what I can see, so you really must take care of yourself (and loved one) in order to carry on this journey in a more sustainable way. For me, that’s when meditation comes in. This may not work for everyone, but the point here is you will need something else in life to balance it out.
What is your favorite non-trading activity/hobby?
Before I had kids, I enjoyed scuba diving. I have done hundreds of dives around tropical islands and waters in Malaysia and Indonesia. Now with young kids I enjoy going out in nature and enjoying the sun by the beach or along the river, or simply riding our bikes in the neighboring park.
Have you participated in the #TradeRight program/challenges? What discoveries have you made?
Go through Trade Right Program wholeheartedly, it really helps to put you in a very realistic position to start with. I realize that I really have to define what sort of trader I am, based on my personality, the timeframe and the product that I want to trade. This is one of the greatest pieces of advice from the Mavens and was not heard of outside of the Convergent community.