Tomasz Przybycień on proptrading and trading on the US Stock Exchange [Interview]

Tomasz Przybycień is a trader on the US Stock Exchanges, living from trading since the end of 2007. He runs a proptrading group remotedaytradergroup.com and is the author of the blog day-trader.pl. Thanks to Tomek's kindness in an interview with Forex Club readers, he presented the key aspects that he thinks are needed to start living exclusively from trading. In addition, we raised several issues regarding proptrading offices and development opportunities in their structures. Once again, thank you Tomek for your time, and I encourage you to read.

"Quick profits are a problem for beginners"- Tomasz Przybycień

Be sure to read: Interview with Arek Balcerowski about the work of an analyst and the global economy

1. Your proprietary Day-Trader.pl service is one of the most popular and most visited portals on the subject of trades. Could you tell how you found the motivation to start it? What are your beginnings in trading?

I founded it at the end of 2007. Then I started working as a trader in a proptrading office focused on US stock exchanges. It was a kind of diary in which I described my development at that time. My assumption was simple, thanks to writing I will see what changes over time and I have a chance for more regularity in trading development.  Over time, the blog developed into a mini site and became the seed for the development of my own proptrading group after leaving the office where I started.

I started broadly understood investments in 2003-2004. It continued until 2007 without much success. Only a professional approach and regularity in development caused the first successes since the end of 2007.

2. At Day-Trader.pl you describe your approach to trading. Why did you decide on daytrading? What suits you best in it?

In fact, I just worked out in day trading. I decided to stick to what allows me to earn stably on the market. I didn't have this stability, certainty of play and strategy when I traded on forex or WSE. It was quite a lottery trading not enclosed in any meaningful framework. The development in the proptrading office has radically changed my approach to session preparation, positioning, etc. I stick to this market, which brings me regular profits and at the same time feels confident in it.

3. What element of analysis do you consider the most important? Is there any particular thing (indicator, formation etc.) that you pay attention to?

In trading, the most important thing for me is the volume and size of the transaction. From this information, in connection with the building of the trend, I "read" the most. My strategy is largely based on the so-called tape reading, i.e. reading from the tape and quotes. This is the foundation for me that I have been learning over the years. In fact, if I was cut off from the charts with only the tape and quotes, I would have managed without a problem.

4. What advice would you give to a person who wants to start their relationship with trading? Is talent and special skills required, or rather a lot of desire and determination?

I was bathed in hot water myself. When I started something, I hoped for success best within a few days 😉 I passed when I met traders who dealt with the market professionally. Their earnings depended only on how much money they would get out of the market. It showed me that it is possible, but it requires proper work, dedication and determination. Look at the whole in a broader perspective, in particular getting to the right place where there are already experienced players not from night to night. Only at a specified time when there is appropriate development in your own trading.

I believe that the desire for quick profits is a pain for many beginners. They want to jump over several levels like in a computer game, which is why the size of the positions opened, the deposit, and the volatility of the traded shares is too high in relation to what their knowledge, experience and emotions can bear at the beginning. I always suggest stable development in the proptrading group, from smaller positions and less volatility. When the results appear, the change of these parameters, not in steps, but proportional to the generated results. So that the head works well when we change the size of the traded position.

5. Is there a book that you particularly like?

One good trade - teams from SMB Capital and Flash Boys - Micheal Lewis. One shows a practically identical path that I have traveled myself. Hence it is just close to me. It also has a lot of good advice. The second one is also about American stock exchanges - how changes in technology affect trading. At the same time, you just have to accept it 🙂

6. Proprietary trading is still a fairly fresh topic, especially for beginner traders. What do you think are the development prospects in the coming years? How to start with your own office?

It seems to me that the subject of proptrading is quite well rooted in Poland. I mean stock exchanges. This is a form of cooperation with traders that is directed at a narrower group of people, so there is no focus here on any dynamic development. This is my approach, what counts is quality not quantity. Hence, certain clear rules of cooperation and, above all, an attitude towards people who already have their own trading strategy (in the case of remote trading).

The situation is slightly different when creating a proptrading office. A lot of people have such intentions without results. I suggest this form to traders who want to teach their strategy to others and thus increase their scale. Otherwise it can be a very expensive undertaking.

7. Living only from trading is still an abstract topic, in purely psychological terms. How do you deal with losses? Do you need to develop proper habits to be an effective trader?

Work in propie taught me how to cut losses very quickly. In this case, have no mercy. Otherwise it would be quite tragic. If we treat our own trading as a business, then there may be a situation in which we allow ourselves greater losses than we anticipate. Not to mention the losses that would zero profits, e.g. from several months. Imagine we have some other business. Would we allow ourselves to make regular mistakes that would lead to the loss of generated profits from previous months?

For me, losses are an indispensable element of trading, but with a certain effectiveness and proportionality to the generated profits - they do not have any importance in the final settlement.

In worse trading periods, however, I reduce the size of the position and take time off. Not to build a desire to make up for loss at all costs. It is better to go back to trading with a clear mind and calmly do your work as usual.

8. Finally, I would like to ask you if you have such a transaction that you remember in particular?

I try not to live with already completed transactions. Surely, great sessions are mentioned in terms of the financial result achieved. But even now, if I had to remember what I traded at such sessions, I don't remember. Basically my approach is that I trade the pattern, not the company. There is a layout and the volume that interests me and I am opening a position - simplifying, of course.

I think that the best transactions are still ahead of me :).

On behalf of Tomek, we invite everyone to the Facebook group, which deals with trading issues on American stock exchanges. 

DAY-TRADER.PL GROUP