The Impact of Mentorship in Trading
Let me introduce myself, I go by James_Carlo in Convergent Trading (CT) and have been an active member since June of 2021. I came into trading in January of 2019, “gambling” part-time while I had a fulltime job. In January of 2020 I went full time into trading; experimenting and developing a system.
Initial Struggles and Joining CT
I struggled a lot that first year trading everything, but mostly MNQ. It became my only product. I was a stubborn person. I would not ever admit that I needed outside help and felt trading communities were just a scam. However, there were a couple traders I followed regularly. FT71 was one of them. He traded similarly to the way I imagined myself to trade. In 2021, I finally gave in; I joined CT.
The main reason was that I got access to head traders with the Group Mentoring Sessions. All I wanted was to be a profitable trader, and I felt the best way to do it is to be mentored by profitable traders, so I made it an imperative to participate in every Group Mentoring Session I could.
Facing the Truth and Making Adjustments
It showed instant results. Before joining CT, I knew nothing. I kept to myself. Didn’t know anyone in the futures community so simply put, I didn’t know how much I didn’t know. It was shocking, but I was willing to learn. In my first meeting, they inquired about my product and size. I shared I traded the MNQ and only one lot because of a drawdown limiting me to one. Immediately, they suggested trading the RTY because it was less expensive, thus allowing me to trade 2 lots, spread my risk out, and provide my account time to survive my learning curve. Plus it’s like trading the NQ on training wheels. I spent an entire year learning to trade the MNQ. It was a hard pill to swallow, but I did.
I’m still learning to trade my setups. I have a couple setups in my pocket. I’m losing less money. A few months later, I returned with my stats sheet in hand, they reviewed and saw that I don’t trade the open as well as I thought I did. They recommended I sit out the first 15 minutes. I drew the line here and negotiated two trades in the first 15 minutes because my two setups were opening trades. 6 months go by, they reviewed my stats again and I am showing zero control in the first 15 minutes. FT71 was kindly firm with me and advised me to sit out. I finally conceded. My stats improved significantly.
FT71 and crew have trained many traders and I chose not to take their advice. I wasted several months until I could no longer hide my poor performance. Lesson learned.
One of the hardest issues traders face is seeing the truth. I believe some of us are stubborn by nature, otherwise why would we take on a career that has a 95% failure rate. We are selective in what we choose to see in our performance or behavior. I saw the 3 or 4 winners a week I took in the first 15 minutes and saw myself as an opening bell trader. They saw a trader that took 3 attempts in the first 15 minutes before getting that winner or hitting their daily loss limit in the first 15 minutes. I wasted six months trying to prove them wrong and instead I proved them right.
The Value of Mentorship
The point of the story is that it’s not just the knowledge of the markets that we don’t know as beginning traders, it’s also the bad habits, weak edge, lack of discipline that we as inexperienced and stubborn traders inadvertently refuse to see or accept as information we also don’t know. In some cases it takes an experienced trader calling us out for us to even see it, let alone act on it. Sometimes a trader just needs some direction because they feel lost. I have found them a great resource to get me back on track.
Having access to that insight was key in my development. I believe it has helped me improve substantially faster and would have been even faster if I didn’t ignore some of their advice. I’m going to keep attending until I make it or they finally get sick of me. I suggest everyone goes at least once, provided they don’t take my slot. Just kidding.
– James C. (@James_Carlo, Long-term Member at Convergent Trading)
Note from CT: As aspiring traders, we must be open to constructive criticism, adapt to new strategies, and shed our preconceived notions. The path to success in trading often requires us to step out of our comfort zones and accept that we may not know everything. By actively seeking guidance, staying humble, and continuously learning from mentors, we can develop a stronger trading foundation, overcome challenges, and ultimately, achieve our goals as profitable traders. If you’re ready to begin improving your trading, as James has, join us today to start your journey to consistency! [Group Mentoring and Trade Right Program available exclusively to Quarterly and Annual Members]