Jerry Parker, Turtle Trader and CTA, talks about trend following, how to approach wins and losses, dealing with drawdowns, managing correlations in asset classes and how changing market dynamics have impacted trend following and the solution. He also gives us some tips on systematic trading including how he trades without relying on optimal values of the past.

Topics discussed

What types of characteristics Dennis and Eckardt were looking for in the Turtle traders program
How the Turtles were taught to approach losses
Common traits amongst the most successful Turtles
The hardest part of trading as a Turtle
How Jerry overcame the fear of taking trades
The biggest lesson being a Turtle
What Jerry did with the Turtles approach after the program ended
The impact managing other peoples money can have on trading
The key factors that make trend following work
Managing correlations between asset classes
Long-term vs short-term trend following
Dealing with drawdowns
How changes market dynamics have impacted trend following and solutions
How to diversify to lessen the impact of any one parameter
How to trade without relying on optimal values of the past

PLUS questions submitted by listeners:

The difficulties in knowing when to adjust strategy parameters
Adjusting your system for whipsaws
Tips to avoid data mining
Do the Turtles systems still work in the todays markets?
Are there any markets where the strategies no longer work?
Short versus Long trades
Overcoming emotions in trading
Biggest mistakes and the lessons learnt
What todays Turtle program would look like

Disclaimer:
Trading in the financial markets involves a substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for everyone. All content produced by Better System Trader is for informational or educational purposes only and does not constitute trading or investment advice. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results.

017: Jerry Parker from the original Turtles trading group shares 30+ years of trading experience in trend following and systematic trading.

Better System Trader