· By Kohout Jan
Stefan over $8 100 Paid
Can you briefly introduce yourself – where are you from and how did you get into trading?
My name is Štefan, I’m 44 years old, married, and have a wonderful 3-year-old son. I’m from Stropkov, a small town in the northeast of Slovakia.
I got into trading in 2018 when, on my brother-in-law’s advice, I bought 50 Tesla shares without knowing anything about investing, financial markets, or price charts. The plan was simple – buy and sell when we left the Netherlands. At the beginning of 2020, I had about a 150% return. But in March, when COVID hit, I couldn’t hold on any longer and sold with about a 5% profit. That was also my very first trade. We all probably know what kind of rally came after that. I must admit, it was very hard to watch. That was the moment I started getting more interested, reading various articles about the financial markets and opportunities. This later led me to trading and to Dominik, who was my first teacher and whose courses I took.
What did you do before you started trading? Any unexpected career path?
Just over a year ago, we returned from the Netherlands after 15 years, where we had a small tailor’s workshop making 100% hemp clothing, mainly trousers. We’re now considering whether to continue in Slovakia or in Spain, which we fell in love with during our caravan travels and where we’d like to move in the future.
What made you decide to try the EverTrader Evaluation?
EverTrader Evaluation seemed like a great way to learn how to trade with larger capital and with a huge advantage.
Honestly – how did your first attempt go? Was there any disaster, or did it go well from the start?
My first attempt was a disaster. Honestly, it was one failure after another, and I burned through several accounts. I couldn’t control my emotions, which was my biggest problem – and controlling emotions is key in trading. Still, I tried to treat each evaluation as tuition and learn from it. It’s astonishing how many repetitive mistakes a person can make and how powerful emotions can be. I realized trading is an extremely emotionally demanding activity for me, and it’s essential to stay aware of that and keep working on myself.
What was the hardest part during the Evaluation – and how did you manage it?
Definitely controlling and managing emotions. Emotions will always be part of trading, and it’s important to learn how to work with them and define their main triggers. Early last year, I took a longer break. I focused more on education and reading books about trading psychology. I also completed a mindfulness course, which helps me immensely. I learned to be more disciplined and to follow my trading plan.
What would you say to someone who’s hesitant about trying it?
If you’re already thinking about it, you should definitely try. The fees for evaluation are not that high. Since I’m not a supporter of demo accounts from a psychological point of view, I think evaluation is a very good choice for beginner traders who want to test their skills without taking on major financial risk. Plus, there’s a lot of educational material that traders can use.
How does it feel to trade with capital that isn’t yours – but the profit is?
It’s a good feeling. I think it’s also less stressful.
What was your first payout like? And if you can share – what did you buy with it?
It was $3,450. I decided to invest in further education and bought another course and a monitor.
What’s the difference between trading your own small account and trading through EverTrader?
At the moment, I only trade through EverTrader and don’t have my own account. But I think the big difference is that traders can trade with much larger capital and less risk. At the same time, you have to be very careful with the maximum daily drawdown and total drawdown rules.
What’s your favorite setup or instrument?
I use various strategies such as bounces from support/resistance levels and trend channels, breakouts, pullbacks, reversals, buying and selling below/above the previous candle, and consolidation in trend. It all depends on the overall daily context and the premarket. For support/resistance levels, I also use pivot points, high/low from the previous day, previous day’s close, and the week’s open. My main timeframe is 5 minutes, but I monitor others too. I’m a scalper and trade very short moves – just a few seconds. I use two indicators: VWAP and Volume Spread for VSA, which is my favorite strategy – trading imbalance between the previous and current candle spread and volume.
I only trade Nasdaq, but I also follow Dow Jones and DAX.
What are three rules you follow no matter what?
- Enter without hesitation.
- Don’t chase the market.
- Exit as soon as the market stops doing what I want.
How do you manage risk and emotions, especially during losing periods? (specifically: RRR, strategy, etc.)
I try to keep a positive RRR. While trading, I pay attention to my thoughts. I constantly remind myself that losses are part of trading and unavoidable. I take breaks away from the screen, during which I read a short excerpt from a trading psychology book, or do a 5-minute meditation or breathing exercise.
Has your approach to trading changed since you started trading on the EverAccount?
Yes. I trade smaller, I’m much less aggressive, and if I’m up a decent amount in a day, I stop trading.
What’s helped you grow the most – books, mentors, YouTube marathons?
Definitely the books Trading in the Zone and The Disciplined Trader. Other books worth mentioning are Best Loser Wins by Tom Hougaard and The Mental Game of Trading by Jared Tendler.
As for mentors, they’re Tom Hougaard and Al Brooks, from whom I recently bought a Price Action course in addition to his books.
Do you trade alone or as part of a community?
I trade alone.
What’s your next goal as a trader?
My next goal is to open a real account again and improve my strategies.
One thing you wish you’d known at the start of your trading journey?
How emotionally demanding trading would be for me.
Have you ever yelled at the screen? What happened?
Many times. Mostly at myself. I probably don’t need to get into specifics. Let’s just say I broke every rule possible.
If your trading style had its own soundtrack – what song would it be?
Probably Higher Ground by Stevie Wonder
What would you say to people who still doubt prop trading or EverTrader?
Prop trading is becoming increasingly popular worldwide. I think it’s definitely worth it for the small risk in the form of the fee.
