I’ve encountered failure more times than I can recount. Some failures are etched in my memory—being dumped by a girlfriend, cut from a team, losing a crucial game, rejected or fired by a client, and suffering significant financial losses. Yet, despite these setbacks, I consider myself remarkably successful. Success, after all, is a highly personal construct.
For me, success begins with my family. I am fortunate to have a loving, supportive wife and four healthy children who are the center of my world. I’m also blessed with a robust network of friends and family, as well as a deep faith that anchors me. I run my own business, which has afforded me the means to support my family—an accomplishment I hold in high regard.
However, this journey has been anything but smooth; I’ve had to navigate my fair share of challenges. Each failure has left its mark, but these battle scars have been invaluable in preparing me for success and keeping me grounded. They’ve also instilled in me a relentless work ethic, and I firmly believe that hard work breeds opportunity and, ultimately, luck. What often appears to be "overnight success" is usually the culmination of years of unrecognized effort and perseverance until everything finally aligns.
I’ve been in this business for nearly 25 years, and there have been moments when I wanted to quit—times when my confidence was utterly shattered. I vividly remember being fired by my biggest client due to poor performance while I was on vacation with my family and my in-laws. I had three young toddlers and a newborn at the time, and the uncertainty was overwhelming. I wasn’t sure if I would make it through.
Yet, there’s always been an inner drive that refuses to let me quit, urging me to keep moving forward. Often, our greatest victories emerge from our darkest moments. Quitting is the easy path; digging deep, grinding it out, and persevering through uncertainty is the road less traveled.
Earlier this year, I lost my mom to a sudden, massive
stroke. Her loss has been a profound blow, but her words continue to resonate
with me. She would often say, "This too shall pass," a phrase I used
to hate. But she had an unwavering conviction in her faith, frequently
reminding us, "Talk to the Lord; He will answer your prayers." I
never got the chance to tell her, but she was right. I miss her every day, and
her guidance has been instrumental in helping me and my siblings navigate our
failures and ultimately find success.
Reflecting on my experiences in trading, one of the most critical lessons I've learned revolves around risk management. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, during the height of the internet boom, I was a newly hired broker’s assistant, working for two exceptionally successful brokers. Their impressive gains during this period were inspiring, and I decided to open my own trading account, following their recommendations with enthusiasm.
Initially, my investments yielded impressive returns. It was an era where almost any stock purchase seemed to appreciate in value, reinforcing a false sense of invincibility. However, this apparent success was short-lived, and I soon encountered a sobering reality.
I began to pyramid into winning positions, culminating in a substantial investment in Nortel Networks. When Nortel released its earnings, the stock’s dramatic decline resulted in a 60% loss of my account in just a few days. In hindsight, this was a cheap lesson in risk management, but at the time, it was devastating. I had lost in a few days what had taken me more than six months to save.
Although the loss was painful and a significant setback, it ultimately set me on a path toward rigorous due diligence. This experience compelled me to spend years developing a strategy designed to mitigate substantial losses while capitalizing on potential gains. Without that harsh lesson, I wouldn’t have become the profitable trader I am today. As my mom used to say, “This too shall pass”—and it did. I learned from my mistakes and dedicated myself to the effort and research that now underpin my trading strategy.
This is just one chapter in my trading history. I have accumulated numerous battle scars over the years, but I’ve managed to sustain a 25-year career trading capital markets without a major blow-up since my early days. This experience has reinforced my belief that failure is a crucial step toward genuine success.
