People on social media said that trading is some kind of spiritual journey that we, as a human, grow up along with our account. But, somewhere along the way, I feel that trading stopped being a journey and started being a performance. Not for myself. For your followers. Your Telegram channel. Your X (formerly Twitter) audience. Your fake Discord friends who vanish when you post a red day.
It’s 2025. The market stopped trending at the end of January.
No more easy breakouts. No more “send it” rallies. No more “just buy support” strategies that age like milk. We’re deep into the sideways jungle now—chop, grind, range, reverse. Liquidity traps, baited breakouts, zero follow-through. And yet somehow, your feed looks like a highlight reel of financial miracles. Everyone’s making five figures per trade. You’re over here fighting for five pips and a sip of self-respect.
Barrier to entry? Practically nonexistent.
You don’t need a license. You don’t need a finance degree. You don’t even need pants. All you need is a gadget, internet access, and a dream—and just like that, you’re a trader. That’s enough to get in. But it’s nowhere near enough to stay in long enough to actually see consistency, let alone profitability. And in that yawning void between “starting” and “surviving,” the fake gurus thrive.
They know your type. They prey on it.
They tell you it’s easy. Join the group. Pay the lifetime fee. Get the signals (with a DYOR disclaimer so they can blame you when it rugs). Follow the leader. And boom—you’re Scrooge McDuck.
This delusion wouldn’t survive five minutes in any real profession. No one buys a stethoscope and expects to perform heart surgery next week. A doctor trains for years. Fails exams. Interns. Sacrifices weekends and sanity. Meanwhile, some guy on YouTube tells you all you need to do to make it in trading is watch two courses and subscribe to his Telegram channel. And you believe him—because he rented a Lambo and filmed it in front of someone else’s house.
And here’s the kicker:
Apparently, a niche group of edge-lord kids with zero market experience were crowned the prophets of profitable trading. CT (Crypto Twitter) decided that slick memes, aggressive confidence, and Post Malone PnL screenshots were more trustworthy than boring risk management or silent compounding. Trading is undeniably one of the hardest jobs in the world—yet somehow, we started thinking that a Discord-fueled cult of teenagers in their mom’s basements represented the top 1% of elite traders.
Spoiler: they don’t.
No one is opening a position every day and printing profit every time.
Sure, you can always be in a trade. But you’ll end up bleeding slowly—death by a thousand floating drawdowns. It’s not about always being active. It’s about being optimal. It’s about knowing when to strike and when to sit on your hands and watch the market eat itself alive.
But guess who never tells you that?
Your mentor.
Because they need to sell you the illusion. The “keep grinding” narrative. The “you just need this new indicator” pitch. The “use this risk tool after a big liquidation” wisdom. When, in reality, the actual hard truth is this:
Survival is the edge.
In this market, it’s no longer about direction. You can be right on the macro call and still get blown out by poor sizing, bad timing, or pure randomness. DYOR? Yeah, do it. But don’t expect it to save you if you fade a squeeze or ape into a chop zone.
So ask. Always ask. Always clarify.
Don’t let someone who posts only after the win teach you how to trade.
Ask yourself:
— Are they showing the full picture?
— Would they survive if they weren’t charging for Discords or flipping NFTs on the side?
— Have you really tested what they preach?
Because in the end, no one cares if you lose. Not them. Not CT. Not your favorite thread-boi. Only you.
And so your joy gets outsourced.
Not to the charts. But to the likes.
You no longer chase trades. You chase validation.
And that’s how it ends. Not with a blow-up. But with burnout.
Yes, Success Is Possible (But Here’s the Catch)
Let’s not get it twisted—trading success isn’t a myth. It happens. Some retail traders do make it. Some used to work at funds or prop shops. Some quietly built their edge while working a 9-to-5, risking slivers of disposable income—not their rent money. Some succeeded not because they chased every candle, but because they endured long enough to build a system that worked.
But even they didn’t jump in full-time, no safety net, full throttle. Not even the single ones with nothing to lose.
Yes, there are exceptions. There are always exceptions.
But before you tattoo someone else’s breakout strategy on your soul, remember this image:
This is a WWII fighter plane. The red dots show bullet holes on aircraft that made it back. You know what’s missing? The data from the planes that didn’t return. You don’t see where they got hit.
That’s survivorship bias.
It’s also your Twitter feed.
Just because you see someone making it, doesn’t mean that’s where you should be aiming.
So sure—chase the dream. But anchor it in reality. Start small. Keep your job. Build slowly. Learn to manage yourself before you try managing risk.
Success in trading isn’t impossible. It’s just rare. And rare doesn’t mean unreachable—just expensive.
Now go. Trade smart. Or don’t trade at all.
And when the fog comes back, you know where to find us.
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