Yeah, I've not found paper trading to be of much use. It always seems much easier on paper. Just can't seem to duplicate the real thing. And when your actual money is on the line, I seem to pay a lot closer attention. <g> Starting out with small trades, 50-100 shares in slow moving stocks, works better then paper. You have to go through the actual real motions under actual conditions. And even if you all you do is break even, making enough to cover the commissions, it's the real world practice you're interested in.
And if you get losses, trading small lot sizes keeps them small. It also gives you practice in taking real losses. Hardest thing for a trader to learn, take the lost. When should you take the loss? When it's small. <g> Not when it's become so big you're going, I can't lose THAT much money. By then it's the nightmare trade that just keeps getting worse.
Besides, no way to paper trade the ES to practice small scalps. It wouldn't even come close to duplicating trying to get into and out of the trade. Most of the time you're watching the range and pick what looks like a good entry point only to look to see what the volume is there and everybody else is already there. Do you get in line (at the back) or try jumping in a 1/4 point up. It trades in 1/4 points. About half the time if you jump in front it then drops down and takes all those out in the line. Of course you get in the line, and it never gets there. <g> Enough to drive you crazy, but one of the things that makes it so fun to trade. And it's the big boys that move the price around. Us little guys just try and not get stepped on. And it can be breath taking when you suddenly see $3-4 million in contracts trade in a few seconds. Remember it's highly leveraged. The 2 contracts I'm trading cost $4,000 and control about $115,000. Wild stuff.
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