Today is the weekend, and most financial markets, including the stock and foreign exchange markets, are closed. Even the 24/7 cryptocurrency market experiences minimal fluctuations during the weekend, so there is really no need to waste time on market trends.

Just in time, at the age of 40, this uncle is sharing his 18-year trading career and inner journey with everyone, which may bring you some insights. This 18-year trading career mainly focused on the foreign exchange and gold markets, but from a trading perspective, whether it's foreign exchange, gold, or cryptocurrency, aside from slight differences in volatility, there is actually no distinction.

Over these 18 years, I went from being a novice who didn't even understand candlestick charts to having my own trading system, achieving stable annual doubles. I experienced the financial crisis of 2008, the Greek debt crisis, the Swiss franc black swan event, Brexit, as well as the trade war and pandemic downturns. I believe these experiences, along with their ups and downs, can serve as a mirror for everyone to reflect on what stage their trading career is at, what they will face in the future, and how to avoid taking detours and missteps.

1. A tragic life triggered by a book

I come from a rural area, but my father did business when I was young, and our family was well-off. He was the first in the village to install a telephone, the first to buy a motorcycle, and the first to buy a truck. I was a good student growing up and always considered myself an upright person, aspiring to attend Renmin University and later work in the anti-corruption bureau to punish corrupt officials.

However, around 1998, my father's business went bankrupt, and our family went from being well-off to being in debt. I spent my high school years in poverty and didn't perform well on the college entrance exam, failing to get into Renmin University. I was admitted to Henan University as my third choice. It was because of the tight situation in high school that I longed to have money in the future. Therefore, I filled in Finance (Investment Direction) as my first choice for university and Law as my second choice, and ultimately was admitted to the Finance program at the College of Economics at Hubei University.

During my four years in college, I still lived in poverty, with a monthly living allowance of 200 yuan, which was hardly enough. Therefore, I spent a lot of time working odd jobs and doing business with classmates. I didn't study well, nor did I earn much money. So, in the winter of 2006, during my senior year, I was worried about what to do after graduation, aimlessly walking around the campus of the new Hubei University.

During my four years in college, I rarely visited the library. That day, for some unknown reason, I found myself in the library and borrowed a book titled (The Hidden Rules of the Stock Market), suddenly feeling as if I had found direction and glimpsed a bright future.

(The Hidden Rules of the Stock Market) is a book written by American Michael Parness based on his experiences.

In 1998, Michael Parness followed the advice of a stockbroker and invested his entire savings of $150,000 in stocks. However, the financial crisis in October of that year wiped out 80% of his assets. Parness carefully reviewed everything that had happened and ultimately decided to make a comeback. In January 1999, he opened a brokerage account online and within just 15 months, turned an initial capital of $33,000 into $7 million. After that, Parness launched an online trading site, TrendFund.com, helping thousands of traders become experts like him in various stock markets. His story was even selected by a Hollywood producer as material for a movie.

At that time, I was deeply enchanted by the charm emitted by professional traders like Parness; it was a kind of peace that transcended human nature, greed, and fear, a freedom not bound by time and place. Of course, what moved me even more was their affluent lifestyle and their ability to turn stone into gold.

After that day, I was determined to become a great trader and trader like Parness. So, I started searching online for information about recruiting traders and traders. However, in domestic securities or futures companies, they typically required you to bring in funds or do business, which I didn't like and didn't meet the requirements. In the end, in 2007, I saw a Canadian company, Swift Trade, with a branch in China that had fewer requirements, so I submitted my resume. After multiple rounds of tests and interviews, I finally began my trading career.

However, in the following many years, what awaited me was an unexpectedly tragic life.

Next episode: I became a Day Trader at LSE

To be continued