Day trading is considered one of the most stressful and riskiest professions in finance—in one day you could lose everything. Some surveys estimate the failure rate for day traders is above 90%. But while intraday trading is difficult, it’s not impossible.

So what are the secrets to becoming a successful trader? In the video above, Alpha 7 Trading Academy partner Doron Yoets shared with Yahoo Finance’s Seana Smith the characteristics that separate those who succeed from those who fail.

“You need to have drive and passion.” said Yoets, but also a deep knowledge of the markets. “The first thing they really need to understand before anything is gauging the difference between a good market and a bad market.”

“Something you have to feel”



Yoets says it’s all about what’s moving now, not about what’s moving later. Traders need to be able to determine the difference between market performance and market climate, he says.

“Market climate is different from market performance because market performance is quantitative, while market climate is something you have to feel,” said Yoets. “No matter what type of strategy you have, nothing works 100%, so in order to really increase your odds, you have to know when to be in and not to be in the market.”

Specific trades during Trump’s presidency

Now that Trump is in the White House, the big question for all traders is what’s next for the market. The post-election rally following Trump’s surprise victory has seemed to fade, as uncertainty over the new administration’s plans to shake up regulation and taxes come into focus.

So how should day traders take advantage of short-term movement in the market? Yoets suggests looking at Alcoa, gold and the utilities sector. “We could see these trades move on Trump’s $1 trillion infrastructure plan.”