My First Steps Into Day Trading

From Curiosity to Commitment

At first, I didn’t assume that trading and the stock market (capital markets in general) could become a way of life. In January and February, my interest was at its peak, but the number of unknowns was overwhelming. Every day brought new terms I didn’t understand, and I had more questions than answers. It was confusing and discouraging.

Still, something in the back of my head told me: “Paul, you’ve handled tougher things in life.” So I kept pushing forward through the market chaos.

Small Breakthroughs on the Learning Path

In April 2025, after completing a course in stock analysis and portfolio construction at the Investment University, the dots started to connect. Concepts slowly formed clusters that lit up the dark sky of question marks. It wasn’t yet consistent income—in fact, losses still outweighed gains—but it gave me the outline of a path toward building a day trading strategy.

I began organizing scattered knowledge into a framework: What vs. Priority >> When

• What – the indicators providing data, divided into Important and the Rest (which shouldn’t be ignored).

• When – the timing of when each indicator is more or less important.

This mix helped me start climbing out of the stream of losses. By late May, more trades were closing in green.

Building a Trading Setup and Workflow

That’s when I decided: the stock market would become my part-time job. I built a dedicated trading PC setup—no more juggling windows on a single notebook. With a mini workstation, two monitors, and a Stream Deck, trading became smoother. One click, and everything was ready: TradingView, Saxo, IBKR, FT. Two monitors = pure joy.

As one Polish movie quote goes: “Here, it feels kind of luxurious.”

Defining Clear Financial Goals

By the end of May 2025, I realized that trading on “gut feelings” or “this looks good” was a direct road to blowing up my account. If I was serious about making this my business, I needed clear goals:

• May – lost (majority of drawdown)

• June – $400/day

• July – $500/day

• August – $600/day

• September – $700/day

In early June, I started getting close to $400/day. But bad habits and greed (“more, more”) pulled me back. Morning sessions in the U.S. (3:30–5:00 PM CET) often brought $300–400 gains, but in the evening I gave it back.

I needed therapy—self-therapy. So, from June 9th: earn $400 and shut it down. No chasing. Tomorrow brings 5–8 new opportunities.

Tracking Progress and Building a Strategy

With $12,000 in trading capital, I traded on Saxo and tracked daily account balance in Excel. Green cells for profits, red cells for losses. Slowly, the account grew—$50–100/day at first, then more.

This discipline helped me recognize patterns. What started as scattered rules turned into the skeleton of a strategy. Four months after starting, I finally had a logical structure, still incomplete but visible both in my head and on paper.

Lessons Learned as a Beginner Day Trader

• It took me four months to grasp the basics. Long or short? Hard to say. But the path is clear: constant learning and practice.

• Successes don’t take years—they can appear seconds after placing a trade. Losses can come even faster.

• Careful review of both wins and losses accelerated my learning curve dramatically.

For a beginner trader, I think that’s a solid result. The key is connecting the dots and turning scattered knowledge into a working system.

Final Thoughts: Where Will the Journey Lead?

This business is unique: markets bring fresh opportunities every day. My journey has just begun, but the results show that persistence pays off. The real question now is: where will this road take us—me and you—in a year? Or in two? Let’s find out.