Dear Brent,
I would like to say a heartfelt thank you for all of the time you have put into your study tools.
I have read a good many books on trading and your book Universal Principles of Successful Trading is wonderful breath of fresh air. Reading this led me to my all time favourite book, Universal Tactics of Successful Trend Trading which is hands down THE best and clearest guide to practical trading I have come across.
Before discovering your resources I was swimming in a soup of indicators and analysis.
You have cleared the air.
I only wish that I had discovered your excellent website earlier.
I have now completed the PST intermediate course and bought a copy of Universal Breakout.
The path is clear.
Thank you Brent.
Dear Brent Penfold,
I discovered your website a few years ago.
Your book The Universal Principles of Successful Trading is the BEST book on trading. I have read it hundreds of times, it helped to create my trading strategies ( I am a small trader with a huge experience of losing my trading capital 🙂 ), but I still could not get my trading working. Your book helped me to float above water.
This course (Introductory course: The Truth About Trading) gave me another life, I have found out my mistakes and understood the principles of trading (at least I think so 🙂 ). If it is true in 5 years time I will send you a BIG THANK YOU email.
Your course is the best education on trading.
Maybe there are good traders and courses on the net, but the simplicity of your course is outstanding. This course is designed for traders, who are willing to work hard, in my opinion.
Your book and course reveals things that I did not find in any other books, or those things are mentioned as small problems.
Thank you very much for your course.
Once again thank you for your course. It is really the best investment I have ever made.
I'm a Chinese reader from Taiwan and I really like your book ideas! I've been learning about price action trading (or smart money concept) for 2 years, but not really sure why it's not that consistent, until I saw your book, I finally got some insight.
Basically what I learn is trading only EUR/USD. At first it seems great, making many RR, but the mentor eventually fall into category of "data mining", when the market goes wild after Ukraine war. Basically they don't know how to deal with the situation when only trading one pair and that pair didn't go with their history data.
Then they start making more rules around it, which I believe is called "curve fitting" here. By doing this they can rationalize any move in the market, but the only thing they didn't do is show their Equity curve.
I'm just so glad that I encounter your book at the book store, and I just finish both of them yesterday, read them since May 10, 2022, and I can't stop reading them, cause I feel I'll miss something and go in circles again if I didn't read what you've shared in your books.
Overall thank you for sharing your ideas in these books! I have had a great time reading your book for the past 2 months. The name of your Chinese books are translate into "Trading Bible". So your Universal Principles is called "Trading Bible 1", and Universal Tactics is called "Trading Bible 2", not sure do you know it or not? But I think your books do really deserve these name. :o)
交易=Trading 聖經=Bible
Hello Brent,
I just read both of your books (UPST and Universal Tactics). I have to tell you: the UPST book is absolutely THE BEST book I have ever read about trading. You keep it real. Three pillars are spot-on. I have been around the markets since 2001 and can relate to everything your book is talking about.
Thank you for sharing your insights; they validated many of my thoughts about trading.
Regards and profitable trading.
Hi Brent,
Having recently purchased your latest book (Universal Tactics of Successful Trend Trading) I have to write and tell you it's "Brilliant"!! Of all the trading books I've read it's the best out there for actionable content and no BS. I read it from start to finish in under 2 days and never missed a page. All I can say is congratulations on such a great effort. I wish I had read something like this 30 years ago. Anyway I have just ordered your other book (Universal Principles of Successful Trading) now as I want my children to have them as reference books for the future.
Best wishes.
Hello Brent,
I am a Portuguese trader living in the UK and I have just finished your most recent book (The Universal Tactics of Successful Trend Trading). It was eye-opening to say the least. I come from a school of heavily filled screens with heavily tweaked indicators that have only caused me frustration and confusion. Your takes and clarifications in trading and system building are so clear. I can only thank for all the shared knowledge. Your review about Xxxx Xxxx baffled me with its simplicity. Can you please update me on the current XXXX performance?
Thank you for all your hard work putting this book together. It definitely propelled me to become a better trader.
Dear Brent,
I read your first book "Trading the SPI". It was really a transformative experience, even if I already read your "Universal Principles of Successful Trading". Maybe it was simply refreshing to read the same principles with different nuances. Thank you very much for your sharing of skills and knowledge.
Hello Brent,
I would like to start off by saying a very big thank you. I've read two of your books which was the Universal Principles of Successful Trading and also the Universal Tactics of Successful Trend Trading. Before these two books I have only ever completed reading one book in my life then as soon as I picked up your books I couldn't put them down.
I can't believe how much you have changed my trading, everything you wrote makes so much more sense, beforehand I was just trading blindly.
I have bought another book now that gives a guide on how to do coding for trading so that is my next step to learn how to code.
Hey Brent,
I just wanted to reach out and say thank you!
I bought your book many years before taking the time to read it or attempt to read it. I initially got as far as the chapter that introduced me to the ‘risk of ruin’.
I went away to practice what I had learned and came away very profitable.
A few year later I’ve lost some and gained more. I have fine tuned my trading as a master musician. I now know the reasons why I am constantly and consistently profitable. Equally and perhaps importantly I have discovered patience.
Today I started reading your book again in the hope to get to the end and perhaps discover more insights to trading.
I’ve read a lot of books, some I’ve completed others I’ve left partially completed. The Universal Principles of Successful Trading is one book I will finish because I have the time and the calmness of a master trader.
I trade using day time frames, my ‘analysis’ takes 10 seconds and I’m done. My stats today are remarkable as I average a consistent monthly using a very low drawdown and low risk of ruin.
Once again Thank You for sharing your journey and knowledge.
Dear Brent,
I want to say thanks for all the information you share in your book and your coarse at Udemy.
Trading now successfully for many years my own complete automatized statistical approach, I still learned much from your prospective.
Thanks a lot and a happy new year to you and your family.
Kind Regards
Hi Brent,
Just to confirm I have received the Key Level trading system book in the post, thankyou for getting it to me so promptly.
I love the simplicity of the strategy 'not a wave count in sight!' thanks so much for sharing it.
Kind Regards
Dear Mr. Brent Penfold,
Hi, my name is Kxxx. One of your big fan from HongKong.
I'm just finish your bookin Chinese version. In Chapter eight, the Chapter about money management is outstanding. The best money management guide i ever read!
Bravo!
In the end of your book, you mention a tool named, Risk of Ruin simulator. Could you send me a copy ? Have a good day,
Hi Brent,
Cxxxxx here from Perth. After going through your book "The Universal Principles of Successful Trading", to me is like hitting a jackpot. I have been looking for this type of book for years, finally i found yours, this is the best book on the subject of trading that I've ever come across.
Best Regards,
Cxxxxx
Hi Brent,
I totally LOVE your Book, read it twice the last days! OMG, sooo many take aways and gold nuggets, and I am trading for 19 years now....
Awesome job, thanks!
Hi Brent,
I’ve transferred (the money) to your account…. appreciated … I think this will be my sixth workshop – they are always good value and always interesting.
I’ve seen a lot of things over the years….but your UTT strategies are simply wonderful – their simplicity makes them wonderful. Anyone who is willing to put the work in to code up the strategies will see the value in the workshop.
Hi Brent,
LOVE your book and have recommended it very strongly to every trader I know (I do warn them not to expect a sunshine and rainbows fantasy about trading, but it should be required reading for every trader, IMO!)
I am currently reading it for the 3rd time.
Brent,
Thanks a lot for your excellent (Idx24) course and emails. Please, let me know when you will be teaching your commodity (UTT) trend trading course.
Sincerely,
Hi Mr. Penfold,
I already trade for almost one year. Your book “Successful trading”is one my first five books about trading. First time, I read it, I can not catch the point. But after trading few month, I read it second time again recently. It’s really helpful about set the position size. And suddenly, many questions are resolved. I just want to say thank you! I think I will be the best loser in the near future. Thanks for your time to write this book. I wish you happy and health everyday.
Thank you!
Hello Brent,
I am pleased to announce that I have now been one of your proud trading students for over 10 years.
I remember clearly stumbling across your website in mid-2002 when I was totally confused. By that stage I had blown up 3 trading accounts worth $45,000 and was ready to kick trading out the window.
Your newsletters, strategies, presentations (workshops), books have taught me the many basic fundamentals on how to approach and trade the markets. Your insight into the whole mechanical vs discretionary landscape helped give me an edge and trade right beside you and;
a. Survive, and
b. Profit
The strategies and newsletters you teach are not perfect. But they have an edge and I’m still here placing the same orders with my broker that I was back in 2002.
It really is that simple.
Sound money management combined with strategies with an edge.
In fact this year I experienced a combination of winning trades in my portfolio of strategies that you teach. This series of winning trades pushed my net total profitable trades to above $250,000.
It has not been easy.
Drawdowns. Broker Errors. Terrorist Attacks. Recessions. Wars. Banks/Brokers Filing For Chapter 31. Global Financial Crisis (Just to name a few hurdles).
So, I would simply like to say THANK YOU.
A big thank you from me, for teaching me, about trading and how to make it work for me. I currently trade;
- IndexALERT,
- IndexTRADER,
- KL (Key Levels), and
- KE (Key Exhaustion)
I look forward to learning much more in years to come and hope that you continue to provide us students with the opportunity to do so.
Kind Regards,
Thank you for your guidance through IndexALERT these last few months. Its certainly been a positive experience for me and I thank you for that.
Hi Brent,
Just a bit of feedback for you: I can now trade IndexTrader and Key Level independently of your newsletters (and I do shadow you), but I find it convenient to use your newsletters for forwarding to the Broker for the live trading. My current newsletters are: IndexALERT (as a proxy for IndexTrader) and ForexALERT (as a proxy for Key Level). Brent, it’s a credit to you that I’m looking at using all of your services. My wife and I are very grateful for you helping us over the last few years – a big thank you.
Hi Brent,
I really just want to thank you for your systems. Both Index alert and Forex alert have more than paid for themselves already, and its only 5 months in. I know there will be drawdowns in the near future (but shouldn’t be as bad as my XxxxxXxxxxSystems share account -45%!) – But I have already taken the cost of your reports out from the profits, as well as the cost for your seminar, so I'm very happy!. So thanks so much for making available your systems. Really appreciated, and cant wait for the seminar! Warm regards,
Excellent, I'll schedule the payment ASAP and let you know when to expect it in your bank. I should be thanking you for providing such an honest and reputable service, with so many sharks out there you are a refreshing change! You've got my support for a long time, as I am committed to being a successful trader and with your help I know I can get there. Regards.
I began using IndexALERT in 2005 and found it to be a very convenient way of trading Futures. Trading Futures is a great way to "turbo charge" your investments, but the losses can also cause financial ruin. Brent manages the trades with clear stop losses, so you know how much of your capital is at risk. Like any investment, the best performance is achieved over time and the same goes here. IndexALERT has provided great returns over the past years and has begun 2009 with an unbelievable result. Keep up the great work Brent and lets hope 2009 continues at this rate.
I have just returned from a delightful trip to Cambodia and Vietnam, having left my son to action my Index Alert Account in my absence, and what a pleasant surprise to return to. Of all my trading experience to date I must say Index Alert seems to me to offer the most reliable and steady long term growth opportunity. Brent, I have learned a lot from you in the relatively short period I have been with you, and again, would like to thank you for it.
Dear Mr. Penfold,
I am Japanese, and live in Tokyo.I bought your book and was gratefully impressed.It is very good that I read your book before I start Forex trading.
I can whole heartedly recommend your namesake (Brent XXXXX) at XXXXXX in Noosa. I've been doing IndexAlert with him for a year now and taking actual brokerage and slippage into account I easily keep ahead of your posted results.
Thanks for IndexAlert, (I) have taken every trade and gradually added all markets traded and from my 12 months it performs as stated so full credit to you for that, there are many people/so called educators or experts out there who promise allot but deliver very little.
..... on the 20th January I received your email “Starting the Trading Year with a Fresh Edge”.
This was a timely reminder to start thinking about trading the SPI, in my case, as I had decided to cash up all my funds management investments in the middle of 2008 and take control myself.
This new adventure into what began as share trading again in November 2008 culminated in some successes during November and early December, but I did not feel confident and was certainly confused by the myriad of advice in the market place and all the technical analysis tools.
Having received your offer I immediately surfed the net for your website and was amazed at the fantastic testimonials for your book.
Names like Larry Williams, Darryl Guppy and Nick Radge were familiar to me, having met the later two and listened to Larry years ago on a satellite broadcast.
Your book and Index Alerts had to be for me. I offer this testimonial as an example of “Fresh Eyes” wanting to learn more about futures trading with confidence and to build my tools in share trading. Your book is simply fantastic! It offers all the tools, money management, equity curve, simple techniques to enter, manage and exit trades. I have now found the confidence to trade in the markets you suggest, accept managed losses and take profit.
IndexAlert added the benefit of your many years of experience and allow me to follow the rules, your rules, to hopefully make me a long term trader and work towards becoming one of the 10% of traders that have longevity in the markets.
I can honestly highly recommend to anyone new to trading or traders with some experience purchase your book and watch your daily recommendations for successful trading. Lets face it, Larry Williams puts it perfectly, and it is for me “The Most Comprehensive Trading Book I Have Ever Read” Your book and IndexAlert are a must have!
I want to congratulate you on providing an excellent service.
I have enjoyed it (IndexALERT) so far. It has been interesting to watch the trades you put on and see how well they go. I decided to put on your trades from day one as I personally cannot experience anything unless I actually am involved financially. As the service I believe you offer a very good one. Quality of orders and presentation is excellent and I find it very easy to follow (I did have to sit with my wife through the first few to explain what SCO and other Acronyms mean). It is easy to see where you strike and then the risk management. I have only seen one other and I would say this is definitely superior.
I have found your Index Alert service to be outstanding. The ease and speed which I have entered into the Index arena …. is a real credit to the quality of service you provide your clients. ..Probably like most of your clients I print out the first few pages & scribble down fills as the broker emails them … long may it continue, its certainly got some awesome results behind it, and has certainly added another string to my trading bow.
Thanks for your latest Score Board figures. June is looking fairly healthy. Your service is superb. Recommendations arrive on time (or earlier). All the information is there. No chasing around through google to Chicago to find out what the initial margins are; no enquiring about the trading times; no calculations on the back of an envelope to find out the possible losses in AUD$. How many brokers in the world offer this service to their clients? Your attention to detail is all that could ever be expected.
I joined in the 2nd week of August and proceeded to lose $2500 in my first day of trading. (is this a record?). I have faithfully followed your recommendations since then thru XXXXXX at XXXXXX. They have been fantastic, as has your newsletter. I fully understand the tough times your recommendations have had, but if it was easy, there would not be any opportunities to make money. Your service has been fantastic, and I am really enjoying the process ... I hope you have a successful and safe year, and I look forward to hearing more of your family experiences, not just the times when your son (is it Beau?) keeps you up all night!!
As a very new comer and beginner in this costly business, your Daily alert is very helpful to determine global future market. I always print all your alert daily, and discuss with my very local broker (very small man!!) to be our reference when entering the market. I loss once two days ago when I predicted the Hang Seng to be down, but you said to buy!!
It’s been a little over 7 months since I first discovered and subscribed to IndexALERT. I must say that it has been a very positive and exciting experience. Thank you for supporting me through the initial phase from understanding the daily orders to working with my broker. I now wake every morning with the confidence that IndexALERT will arrive in my inbox in an easy to understand layout providing me with an edge when trading. I currently trade the ASIAN portfolio using IndexALERT and look forward to sticking with it over the long term. Thank you again and I hope that you have a safe and very rewarding Christmas/New Year holiday. Cheers,
I think you are one of the few advisory which has an honest assessment and unabashed about it.
I am very impressed with the newsletter and your services so far.
Hi Brent,
I have been trading since 1997 and I have been trading full time since late 2001. My track record from 1997 to 2001 was probably like most part time novice traders, a few small wins punctuated by the occasional large loss which wiped out all the gains - and some!
I have always traded using some kind of system but my main difficulty was following the system. I was always trying to second guess the system and so had difficulty pulling the trigger, letting profits run and cutting losses quickly.
I realised that my own psychology and behavioural make up was the main problem and so I have been working on changing myself for the last 4 years. I have also continued to develop systems with some success.
I mainly trade the SPI and I have developed my own system which has a (hypothetical) 37% expectancy and generates one trade per day i.e. has high opportunity. Hypothetically it has done very well since 1992. I started trading it for real in January 2003 and as expected, real returns were less than those implied from back testing (probably due to curve fitting) but still considerable with an expectancy close to 25% after all costs, over that 2 year period.
I continue to develop systems and I am currently working on a share trading system.
I explain this so that you can put my comments in context. I find that testimonials lack value unless I know their source and the background of the person providing them.
Your website is the most honest and complete trading site I have yet come across. In the past, I have subscribed to many vendors for systems and trade recommendations and I have found few that are willing to put their COMPLETE track record to the test - even hypothetically. Most simply massage their results to omit losers or, more often, do not even provide any track record (these days, many "new" services have no real track record to provide). Many make vague recommendations and leave the trader to make up their own mind as to when to enter and exit, where to place stop loss orders and how much capital to risk etc. Most seem to concentrate on trade entry and ignore all other aspects of successful trading. I congratulate you for going against the grain. Your trading instructions are clear and very specific and easy to implement.
I am also impressed that you use the concept of expectancy. I have read Van Tharp's book many times and have tried to integrate his principles into my trading at the emotional level. For example, I don't focus on my current trade or any individual trade. It's the overall expectancy that counts (if I keep telling myself that, eventually I'll believe it!!).
You also do not pull any punches regarding potential drawdown. I find it hard to take a string of losers. Even though I know that strings of losers are normal and the overall expectancy of my system will prevail, I can't help having that feeling of doubt when I take the next trade after 7 losers in a row (my longest string of losers so far is 15). Unlike the roulette wheel, the market can change and it's that uncertainty which keeps me worrying.
Thanks again for your comprehensive and honest web site.
I have been trading for 4 years full time. I have attended a few training courses, but learnt most from research on the Internet, books, and by my association with a small and diverse group of traders.
I attribute most of my success to my programming and Engineering background.
Most of my present trading is based on discretionary trading but I am actively looking for diversification. System trading will provide this diversification. I have researched plenty of my own ideas for mechanical systems as well as commercially available systems. Very few short term systems make the grade.
I evaluated the SPI Trader “trade by trade” results provided to me by Brent and was happy that SPI Trader had the statistical evidence of a robust system. I was satisfied that I could trade this system.
When I received ‘SPI Trader’ (now called IndexTrader) my first objective was to do my own back test to confirm Brent's results. (This process gives me additional confidence in the system, and is also the learning process I required). I decided to use Trade Station to perform the back test. At first this was fine and I got results that were 80% correct overall. At this stage I could see the system working but obviously I wanted to achieve 100% match. Part of the error was due to the data I was using, the contract roll overs were massaged. Having changed over to un-massaged data I could see other mis-matches were due to what I found were the difficulties in Trade Station in handling multiple positions.
So faced with this problem I reverted back to what I normally do – I wrote my own program to perform the back test. After a few questions Brent answered for me I did achieve 100% match with Brents back testing.
I first came across Brent in 2005 after reading Trading the SPI – which I found was a great education for me in regard to trading futures.
After reading Trading the SPI, and then meeting Brent, I decided to purchase IndexTrader and have been trading that system for the last 3+ years. As I work full-time, I was looking for a EOD mechanical system that was fairly easy to trade, was based on a verifiable methodology and also utilized sound money management practices. IndexTrader fitted the bill and I am still actively trading it today.
As it is a “fully disclosed” system, the setups and triggers are fully explained. They are also easy to understand and implement; and of course Brent was always ready to answer any queries, etc.
Like any system that one can trade, IndexTrader has had its up and downs. But a look at the system equity curve shows that the basis of it is very sound and matches the “hypothetical performance” statistics for the system.
I feel that I am very lucky to have come across Brent, as he is approachable and is always ready to answer any questions regarding the trading of his systems. A great mentor to have!
As well as IndexTrader, I also trade other systems that Brent has developed. Key Levels for trading FX, as well as the ForexAlert newsletter. As with IndexTrader, Key Level is fully disclosed that I have found easy to understand, implement, and trade, etc.
With ForexAlert, as it is a newsletter/subscription service, it is not fully-disclosed. However the beauty of this service is that there is nothing to do but trade the signals that Brent provides. And as with the other systems that Brent has developed, it seems to be based on a sound methodology and money management. Regards,
.. the emails have been great and IndexTrader is so easy to complete the daily work for.....
..... another Yahoo!! for IndexTrader, what a system, go ...... (editor’s deletion)
I notice you have included on your morning emails a plain English explanation of the long term results of IndexALERT. I suspect you may be fielding some negativity over IndexALERT's performance of late (2007) so I thought I should let you know that I for one appreciate your efforts and believe that the long term performance of your mechanical system are exceptional and given the amount of effort we subscribers have to put in we are handsomely rewarded. Keep up the good work.
As an owner of IndexTrader, and Key Levels for over a year, I can say the key attributes of all of Brent's products are unparalleled support and transparency. His responses to any questions are always timely and helpful. The mechanics of each system is fully explained and backed up with complete trade histories and real-time copies of orders sent to his broker. The end result is those new to trading can begin with a level of confidence not found elsewhere. Regards,
Thank you for sending me my copy of IndexTrader. I received it yesterday. I must say the it is what you promised, very simple in design, which excites me greatly as I believe that simplicity is the strength of any trading mythology.
I'd been trading for about 6 months when I first discovered Brent's trading methodology. At the time, I knew it all and wasn't prepared to pay for anyone's advice, support or knowledge. Three years later I returned much wiser (and poorer) and happily purchased Brent's IndexTrader system and I continue to subscribe to IndexTrader’s daily email service that is only available to owners of IndexTrader. He explains everything very clearly in his system and gives you the option of going it alone, or trading alongside him. Being able to trade the system with Brent AS IT HAPPENS is extraordinary, and although I haven't become rich through trading yet, I've become the most successful trader I've ever been - I now have a true trading plan and I trade that plan thanks to IndexTrader.
I have started to trade in live IndexTrader … with XXX and the first trades went very well (thanks to the XXXX Strategy ;-)). You never know what can arrive after that but, at least, that’s a good start! Thank you for the quality of your newsletter. Even if I know the strategies, that’s a really good support and I don’t feel alone in the morning when I send my orders to XXXXXX 😉
..... by the way I think your site is a great effort at giving a balanced and educated view on trading systems. I have been trading for a long time and there is a lot of garbage out there. Well done .....
..... BTW I like your _ _ _ _ _ (editor's deletion). I was looking at a different method but your _ _ _ _ _ (editor's deletion) looks good. I've always thought that most system designers didn't give enough thought to, in your words, a _ _ _ _ (editor's deletion). I guess when its your own money you think of such things.....
.....Thanks for your system. Your manual is excellent.
..... your system is superbly robust!!!!!!!! it is PURELY based on _ _ _ _ _ (editor's deletion) and the good thing is that there is no parameter to set and ALL the thing is changing in the market except _ _ _ _ _!!!!!!! (editor's deletion)....... is this the BEST system you have ever traded in your life so far ?!?! I wish it is because I think it is the BEST one I have ever seen so far in my life.....
Hi Brent. I got the manual last night..... I had a flick through your manual, read the first 13-15 pages and I have (had) a brief read of the money management and psychology. I will go through the whole manual in detail later. I have some comments and a few questions. The psychology part is the MOST interesting I have ever read. I (have) read a few trading psychology books and none of them depicted trading psychology as "realistic" as yours. The _ _ _ _ _ (editor's deletion) is very very important and I never thought about that.....my plan is that I will start with $20,000 for one year, make sure I can trade it flawlessly, then I will get serious, using more capital since you need a big capital to make the most of money management well to get good profit, as shown my your calculation.....
..... I am enjoying SpiTrader very much so far, I couldn't agree with you more regarding our group, thanks to your foresight in developing this unique group I and others will benefit greatly from it.
I had browsed the SpiTrader site some time ago due to your advert in the QLD ATAA news letter, the system cost $1,500 then.
I had SpiTrader in my favourite web sites and visited from time to time checking monthly trade results (very sneaky), by this time the price had gone up to the current price and I thought you silly bugger serves you right for stuffing around so long.
BUT wait, fortunately now there was more, this is probably the only time stuffing around has paid off for me, now I could trade with the Trader as a Buddy, that was the clincher for me.
Your daily emails help to make it all come together.
If the Trading Buddy offer wasn't there I would probably still be procrastinating instead of doing.
.....I'm impressed with you and SpiTrader...
..... the SpiTrader agreement is on its way to you. I contacted XXXXX XXXXXX after reading his testimonial on your (SpiTrader) web site ..... and he was full of praise for you and your system. I am looking forward to joining the club!
..... I want to take this opportunity to thanking you for your friendship and guidance over the past year. I consider myself lucky to have come across a good person like yourself and wish you the very best that life has to offer in all facets of your life for the year to come.
I've been in Real Estate for 20 years and traded the stock market for about 12, and wanted a change.
I opened my futures trading account in March '98, having paper traded and studied for 4 months prior to that. I had studied trading systems basically through Gann methodology (via David Bowden's Safety in the Market), and it seemed that here was a way to make money with a reasonable amount of effort.
Over the next 3 years & 8 months I traded erratically and mostly unprofitably, until at the end of that time I had lost just on .........(editor's deletion). Typically, I had some big wins, but not the control to hang onto it. I have no problem with the Gann methods and if I had been disciplined enough, and prepared to study harder (and there is plenty of study required for Gann!), I believe that it could be a profitable way to trade.
However, there is too much subjectivity in Gann for me, and I needed a more mechanical defined approach if I was to keep trading. I wasn't looking for the "easy" way to get rich, because I've seen enough to know that such a beast doesn't exist, but I wanted to keep trading and couldn't afford to take any more losses.
If there is one thing I learnt more than any other over the last 4 years of trading, it is that no system, no matter how good, will be profitable over the longer term without the discipline to trade it rigidly.
That's where SpiTrader (now called IndexTrader) comes in. It's filled my "discipline void".
I began trading Brent's system with my first trade on the 15th of November 2001, and have since taken six trades identified by the system with a ratio of 5 wins to 1 loss. Two months is obviously not sufficient time to grade a system, but I have back tested it also, and I know that it works.
I'm far more at ease now knowing that I don't have to decide whether to enter or exit a position tomorrow or not, because SpiTrader makes the decision for me if the triggers are hit.
Of course I have to identify the triggers, but that's easy. For my personality, it's great. I know I can trade it profitably, and build up a sizeable nest egg over time.
I thank Brent for handing me the discipline to keep me in the game.
..... my procedure is to write out my order before I look at your email and I am getting most of them right now, but am still making the occasional slip up. It is great to have the email as reference. I then fax the broker so there is no verbal confusion. Thanks again.....
.... I have done excel templates to record my trading...... and trading plan. I have typed up my own daily routine as well. Now I am paper trading and I have been following the daily routine for a few days now and it seems (to be) running well. I do all the things, updating my plan ..... looking up the patterns myself, and writing down (the) orders. Then I check your SpiTrader email to check if I get it correct. Hopefully I will sort out the broker in Nov and start to trade with real money on 1st December.....
....thank you for sending out SpiTrader so quickly. I have read it through several times so far and I'm sure some of the fog will clear in time, looks great. "The Futures Hand Book" is excellent helping to clarify some of the terminology. Your E-mails are beaut and will certainly help the understanding process....
..... this is a nosy question, how many SpiTrader (systems) have you sold so far? I just want to know how many people have this "awesome" system. Personally I have it is a "real gem". You must have spent lots of effort to develop this. You don't have to answer it if you don't want to....
..... Brent - wow I'm impressed with SpiTrader. A great system resulting from your experience, hard labour and brainwork!.....
..... you have put a lot of effort into this and it looks good. WELL DONE!.....
I think buying SpiTrader was one of the best decisions I have ever made in my life. It redefined my way of trading and it is a great tool to learn trading with discipline.
I was trading shares for two years before moving onto the Australian futures market.
Before commencing trading I had completed a full year course on technical analysis (TA). I had attended some trading seminars. I had read about one hundred books on trading, system testing, money management techniques, psychology etc. I then bought a famous trading software program, got a data vendor, found a broker, so before I started trading I actually had a very good concept of what trading TA was about. I had my complete business plan laid out before I started trading.
Finding the right methodology suitable for my personal style and taste is one of my biggest challenges! I found that I couldn't completely follow what I learned in the seminars I attended and correspondence courses I completed.
One of the reasons was because of their subjectivity.
Successful traders argue that it is this subjective element that makes ordinary traders extraordinary.
I was lucky in those two years as I made a little money. First year I broke even, the second year I made around 10% p.a.
However, I was in a state of chaos.
I was trying this and trying that and spent heaps of time modifying the systems to make them better, tweaking this and that and I was lost and confused! I had a tendency to add more and more indicators......my time frame was getting shorter and shorter, I even came to a point where I was day trading the SPI for two months!!!!!!!
Then I realised I had a big problem so I stopped.
I stopped everything for two months.
I was very depressed during that time cuz I had spent so much time and energy and effort in the previous two years to learn the craft and at the end I felt that everything was out of control and that I couldn't trade at all!
Soon the "911" case arrived at my door and I thought it was a good time to stop and review myself.
I came to a number of realisations.
Firstly, I realised pure TA is an invitation to disaster.
I know it cuz I have tried it.
I believe you need fundamental analysis to filter out those shitty companies, those companies that tend to make false breakouts on charts. And that using fundamental analysis for trading shares meant HEAPS of work!
Secondly, I realised I'm not an artistic person at all! Good traders (or supposedly good traders) argue that TA is half art and half science....so that ruled out TA for me!
Thirdly, that I needed to concentrate on fewer shares.
So I decided to focus my trading on the SPI, following a 100% mechanical method since only mechanical methods are able to provide me with facts from back testing......no artistic subjectivity for me!
I no longer look to trade shares but invest in them instead based on a 95% mechanical system I designed and have backed tested for 6-7 years.
I now trade the SPI based on SpiTrader's signals.
I found SpiTrader in the ATAA newsletter. I hadn't encountered a pattern trading system before so SpiTrader was the first.
I love it!
It perfectly fits my trading style and criteria.
I can follow it comfortably because it is backed up by objective back testing and has a positive expectancy, giving it a good probability of continuing to work in the future.
Thank you for offering the IDX24 strategy to private traders. I attended the workshop in 2017 and now trade all signals in 2018. The workshop was very thorough and covered all that is necessary to test/validate the strategy and commence live trading. Over the last 9 months my account balance has grown by over $30K. All this during a very volatile and treacherous period for the financial markets in 2018. I commend you on the course material provided during the Workshop and especially the follow-up support. Your detailed review of the mechanical rules and how they can be applied is exceptional. The exact system rules that you disclose, and specific index markets selected to trade are simple and easy to follow offering a diversified approach/strategy. The analysis you presented on drawdowns is very reassuring and the capital management techniques highlight the importance of money management. I have been one of your students for over 10 years. IDX24 forms an integral part of my portfolio of strategies that I trade. So, a big thank you for continuing to offer private traders like myself the opportunity to engage with the markets and profit just like a professional. Regards,
Brent's Idx24 Workshop is the most complete mechanical short term index trading system I've been exposed to. If you do the work (and there's a lot of work) you will have a positive expectancy in the markets and survive as a long term trader.
I've been following Brent's work since 2013, and I'm still trading many of his systems with real money in real time. His systems are unique in that they do not heavily depend on traditional indicators, are 100% mechanical, have little to no parameters to optimize to keep it working, and works in multiple markets and time-frames (a key sign of robustness). What's more, it works with smaller accounts, and yet it can scale with position sizing. They are not by any means perfect, and you need to do some work, but that's the reality of this business. He also provides great support after the sale. I must have sent him dozens upon dozens of emails and spreadsheets trying to get our backtests to match, and he always got back to me personally in a timely manner. I highly recommend his Idx24 and UTT programs - it would set you years, if not decades, ahead in your trading!
Great workshop… Excellent trading strategies… Thank you for continuing to educate us private trader’s…
Thanks Brent, A very good workshop – and the skype worked very well cheers
Thanks for a great and productive workshop, Brent. And thanks to Andrew as well for his time and support.. Skype made it possible for traders like myself to learn about your work, which otherwise would not have been possible that easily. It was really great to be in company of like minded traders. Looks like i have got a lot of work slated already for myself ... 🙂 Regards
Idx24 strategies have done well steadily for long time in not only bull markets but bear markets, and have overcome various hard market conditions in many world markets. Trading many markets with many Idx24 strategies leads to a smooth uptrend equity curve. I learned such robust strategies in Idx24 Workshop, which I can't find anywhere else.
The IDX24 workshop is a great experience for all beginners and experienced traders. The workshop in addition to the comprehensive acquisition of IDX24 setups, allow you to get great ideas that can be used in other strategies, and Brent himself is a good and patient teacher who answers all the questions exactly.
I have known Brent Penfold for 15 years, having followed and traded his strategies since 2003, which have helped me towards achieving my goals. Even today, my methodology incorporates a lot of his step by step techniques and rules, especially those clearly spelt out in his latest, and by far his best release - IDx24. For any day or short term traders looking for an edge to help you stay on top, I'd highly recommend you learn Brent's precise calculations and winning advantages contained in his Idx24. It has worked for me.
As an owner of IndexTrader and Key Levels for over a year, I can say the key attributes of all of Brent's products are unparalleled support and transparency. His responses to any questions are always timely and helpful. The mechanics of each system is fully explained and backed up with complete trade histories and real-time copies of orders sent to his broker. The end result is those new to trading can begin with a level of confidence not found elsewhere. Regards,
Hi Brent,
Just a short note to say how impressed I am with ForexAlert.
I have been trading FX CFD’s for many years and I have to say the transparency of your recommendations and the simplicity of them is top rate.
The fact that you also trade your recommendations I think is testimony to your belief in your trading model.
Since receiving ForexAlert over the last few weeks I have watched with interest the outcomes of your recommendations and whilst not all of them have been winners it is obvious that you recommend more winners than losers.
I have just today started to trade your ForexAlert recommendations today and I am confident that they will prove to be very profitable over time as your historical performance results have shown. I look forward to sharing in the success of your reports with you! Best Regards,
..... Hi Brent....a big thanks for taking your time out on Saturday to help us out..... time is such an important commodity in these times and it certainly was most appreciated. As for SpiTrader it all looks pretty exciting, and I am getting organised to hit it. I will speak to Man this week to get my account organised and negotiate brokerage etc., and then try to get my VBA moving a little more to enable me to complete the testing. What was really exciting for me was one the simplicity of SPITRADER, and secondly this is the same approach I have been taking on the SPI since October last year..... I tell ya it was so uplifting for me on Saturday when I realised it was on the same track I had been travelling.....
..... thank you so much for your generosity in sharing your system .....I believe you have thoroughly and diligently applied yourself to this are being justly rewarded. Short term system trading is the way to go for me..... I shall return the agreement shortly.....
.... it certainly was nice to catch up with you all.....trading is such a lonely pursuit and it certainly provides great benefit to share our experiences with the group. It is a kind of therapy in that we get to see that we are all facing similar hurdles. Brent thank you for allowing us to trade your system. I am aware of the time and effort you have expended on its development, which has been over a period of many years. Your strict discipline in regards to testing does in fact give us a nice level of comfort. I have taken your points with respect to our personal testing. That is something you have stressed since I first met you 15 months ago and have done ever since. I totally agree it should form the basis before an idea can become reality. I have been at this since 1997 and I have learned so much in that time but your experience adds another 10 years of sweat to my tally and I appreciate your honesty in imparting what you have learned in that time. I will sign the docs and return them to you asap. I am really looking forward to trading SPITRADER.....
..... Brent, I echo the groups sentiment and greatly appreciate your generosity.....it is so valuable to have someone in the group who is willing to share their years of knowledge and experience.....I will return the confidentiality agreement next week.....p.s I'm off to Penfolds now to get my graph paper!.....
..... congrats on the presentation in the manual - it is clear and easy to understand with even my limited knowledge of futures and I have enjoyed everything so far.....
Hi Brent,
Still here in Oz.....my immigration papers are taking a little longer to approve then anticipated!
It was really nice to catch up with you last week and hear a little more about what you are up to.
Well done on your projects at hand, and I really wish you all the very best.
It is so refreshing to see someone doing something really positive for all the traders out there and most importantly willing to provide them with some direction. I believe you will do really well with SpiTrader for the simple fact that you are willing to back up what you preach or teach.
People are not as stupid as some other promoters might like to think, and I believe you have demonstrated this respect for your target market with your product.
I will be watching your progress closely and look forward to trading your stuff when I return to OZ. As I mentioned..... if you need any testimonials to kick start the website...pls feel free to use my name to write one.
I offer this because of my respect for you firstly as a reputable person, and secondly as a trader who has paid their dues over the years......
I got to know Brent and listened to him on a podcast for the first time. At that time, listening to him was like a breath of fresh air. He does not mince his words and is upfront with difficulties and challenges involved in becoming a successful and profitable trader. The market place is fraught with gurus who promise the Sun and the Moon and the Stars. Brent will not promise you any of that. Instead, he will teach you rigorous methods with a positive expectancy that have stood the test of the time. He will lay a solid foundation of good work habits that are needed to become a successful trader. Throughout the class, his focus was not on students memorizing the methods, but understanding the underpinning behind the methods and the human psychology involved in the patterns. You will be provided with a detailed study manual explaining all the minute details you need to know to execute his methods. Brent kept stressing the importance of sensible money management throughout the course. In a nutshell, you will learn and go away with methods that will build a solid foundation for you to become a disciplined and successful trader. Highly recommended for any serious trader.
Thank you very much for the workshop and learning us. It was a great pleasure and a very valuable experience. Some ideas from your strategies I applied in my own strategies, and their results have improved a lot :o) Thanks again for workshop and for the attached file, and let me know if you ever want to share UTT. :o)
Hi Brent, Skype worked wonderfully I got to see most of it it but as I was looking after the kids too I ducked out of the home office for the odd crying emergency 🙂 I noticed there were a few email addresses on the Instant Message component of Skype so I am guessing there is a workgroup underway. If so can you please add my email address in. Great presentation Brent. Kind Regards,
Hi Brent, Thank you once again for sharing your knowledge and wisdom. I got floored actually when I saw how Idx24 also worked in the P24 portfolio! Talk about robustness... very impressed. I'm still recovering from the workshop (lol), but I'm looking forward to get the manual so I can start working on this. I'm planning to work on all the swing-chart based system first and I'll probably do all of them in succession.
Hi Brent, Can't believe it's been three month already. It's been a enjoyable experience, both your workshop and the live trading has worked out great for me, so thanks!
I met Brent in 2005, and have done several of his workshops over the years, including Idx24 and UTT which are excellent. I really liked Brent’s approach from the start – building simple & robust trading systems and then doing the hard work to rigorously prove the results. Brent’s workshops are high quality and good value. All of the system’s results are substantiated by data (uncommon in this industry), and the support Brent provides is excellent. There are no easy roads….after attending one of Brent’s workshops, you will learn a very structured approach to trading and need to do some hard work, but it is a journey worth taking.
I've attended Brent's Idx24 workshop in June 2017, it was beyond my exceptions. Firstly, the material was well structured and well explained. It was definitely an action packed day so get yourself prepared. Brent started with a quick introduction of the system and the terminologies and then went through all his 9 strategies in details through out the day with Q&A in the end of each session. He not only explained the setups and formulas but also the premise as well. Secondly, what I got from the workshop information pack was actually what we had gone through in the workshop, so you are expecting nothing less. Lastly, this workshop stands-out for me is because the strategies are real stuff. Not only does Brent actively trade them but they are also robust. The edges stand for times and different markets. So IMHO if you are comfortable trading equity futures with daily charts, don't bother to trade less frequently and believe in robust systematic trading style, you will certainly benefit from this workshop, and it certainly worth the cost. Cheers
Dear Brent,
I am so happy with your first book that I am going to buy your second one “Back to Basics with The Key Level Trading System” for FX trading 😉 Please let me know what I need to do for that. Thank you. Cheers,
Hi Brent, I received my BBTT Key Level book today.....and once again, it looks very impressive....and a very practical system.
Win or loss, following a proven trading system that provides objective entry and exit points for proper trade execution such as those in the ForexALERT newsletter is a start to a good trade. Recommended!