Should I Buy Day Trading Courses?

Summary

The Trading Farmer argues that day-trading courses are usually unnecessary, since much of their material—such as how to identify a bull flag—can be found online or in books. Some courses may offer useful information or services, but he says many are overpriced, repeat freely available material, or make misleading promises about trading alerts and rapid success.

He recommends taking time to decide whether day trading is a serious commitment before spending money. In his experience, learning took 14 months, and he cautions that a course is unlikely to compress a process that may take years into a few months. He says he learned without buying a course, having had little money available after reaching roughly $25,000 in his account. He paid about $10 for an audiobook of Mark Douglas’s Trading in the Zone, which he says was also available free on YouTube.

Suggested Approach and Cautions

• Practice in a simulator with paper money before risking real capital. He presents this as a way to protect money while learning and to test whether someone will consistently show up and practice.
• Use free or low-cost learning resources. He points to online searches and trading books as alternatives to expensive courses.
• Assess your commitment over time. He says day trading requires sustained practice and persistence through losses, setbacks, and false breakouts; enthusiasm for only a few weeks may not be enough.
• Vet course sellers carefully. He recommends researching instructors of all genders and looking beyond prominent Google results, including checking Reddit for independent discussion.
• Be wary of promises of quick wealth, secret methods, or reliable trade alerts. He says no course offers a guaranteed fast track and cautions that most aspiring traders fail; some may lose their capital.
• Consider affordability and value. He leans against buying a course at current prices, especially when courses cost thousands of dollars, and expects competition to push prices lower.

He describes the course market as saturated and says the $10,000 course model may be losing traction. He suggests prices could fall further, though he does not predict a specific future price. He also expects interest in day trading to grow as internet access expands globally.

Assets, Instruments, and Terms Mentioned

• SPY, discussed in the context of a course seller claiming to trade it
• Stocks and day trading
• Crypto coins, mentioned generically as an example of a supposed overnight jackpot
• Paper-money trading simulator
• Bull flag and false breakouts, which are trading concepts

Key Figures and Timelines

• 14 months: The presenter’s stated time to learn day trading.
• About $25,000: The account level he says he had just reached when he had little money to spend on a course.
• About $10: His stated cost for the Trading in the Zone audiobook.
• $1,000, $5,000, $6,000, and $10,000: Examples of course prices or spending discussed. He characterizes some courses as costing thousands and the $10,000 course as an increasingly outdated model.
• Two years versus four months: He rejects the idea that a course can reliably shorten a roughly two-year learning process to four months.
• 2020, 2022, and the early 2000s/2010s: Periods he references when discussing the course industry’s past popularity and changing prospects.

Disclosures and Performance Context

The presenter makes no quantified performance claim in the subtitles. He speaks from personal experience and says his own learning worked out without purchasing a course, while acknowledging that this may not be the case for others. He cautions that there is no guarantee of success or quick profits, and that day trading is difficult.

Presenters and Sources

• Presenter: The Trading Farmer
• Questioner: John, calling from Cincinnati
• Other sources mentioned: Mark Douglas’s Trading in the Zone; Google; YouTube; Reddit