The Truth About Trading: No Lambos, No Courses, Just Pain And Maybe Profits

This won’t be a tutorial on how to get rich and bang hot chicks, and no, I’m not trying to sell that in a course either. (Which, on its own, is sad that I even have to start with that.) This is not a:

"💯💯💯🔥🔥🔥 110% FOOLPROOF HOW I MADE 4000 GAZILLION DOLLARS IN A WEEK"

or a

"HOW I BECAME A MILLIONAIRE OVERNIGHT WITH THIS ONE INDICATOR 🤑💸😱 🤑💸😱"

kind of recipe. I just want to get some things straight because day trading and the stock market have become bigger buzzwords than AI, and every 17-year-old kid is posing as a financial advisor, trying to scam 13-year-olds into buying his course to "escape the rat race." At this point, basically every baby is born with an IBKR or Thinkorswim account.

The whole finance / trading / investing industry has become more toxic than all my exes combined, and I usually date women who were or will be in the psych ward (and once, one who was in there while we were dating, but that’s a story for another time).

This dry, psychology-heavy, math, and, analysis-based profession is being sold as an easy, get-rich-quick lifestyle. People open their phones and try to make money on securities and complex financial assets that even some legit hedge funds back away from. And I find this whole thing so f*cked uo. I started Bearman Brothers to get people more involved in finance and to boost real financial education. Unfortunately, nothing about money or economics is taught in school, which is why people get tricked, backstabbed and quite possibly, bamboozled.

Fake Gurus vs. Boomer Dinosaurs

Let’s talk about what the retail finance field has actually become. We’ve got YouTubers and TikTokers screaming, shouting, and, as mentioned above, scamming literal kids out of their savings. They’re selling bullshit courses, flaunting demo account trades as “proof,” or straight-up photoshopping their results. (I wish I was exaggerating. I am too lazy to dive deeper into to call them out one by one with proof but if you are interested in that, the legendary Coffeezilla and ImanTrading do that on youtube, you should check them out.

Half of them don’t even trade. They just pretend to so they can sell a course to some 14-year-old who thinks SPY is a protein shake. They flex Lambos they don’t own, show fake MetaTrader screenshots, and call it a “six-figure strategy.” They’re not teaching. They’re not helping.They’re pumping delusion for a quick buck. And they’re dragging the entire profession through the mud while they do it.

I think it’s clear that I hate these fake gurus. But the other side of the spectrum is just as bad—the old boomers who started businesses back when collage tuitions were the price of a Big Mac. They sold their companies in the '90s when the markets were on fire and now Livin’ la vida loca, trying to tell you:

• dAy tRAdInG iS jUsT gAmBlInG.

• 90% oF tRaDeRs fAiL

• yOu sHoUlD jUsT iNvEsT iN aN iNdEx fUnD

• gEt 30 rEnTaL pRoPeRtIeS bEfOrE yOu'Re 30.

They don’t know what they’re talking about. Well… they’re not wrong. The stuff they preach does work, and a lot of them have good intentions. But here’s the thing, you will never be able to live off investing or trading if you don’t take bigger risks than these kind hearted old timers. They’re cool with 1–2% gains a month, some even per year. Their asset portfolios are massive. But if your total net worth is ten bucks, a 20-piece chicken nugget, and your d*ck, you’re playing a whole different game. You’ve got to work smarter, and yeah, you’ve got to risk more.

So what is trading exactly?

Let’s break it down real simple, because sadly, a lot of people don’t even know what the word means. They just hear they can make money from their phone. So let's jump into professor mode, * Adjusting glasses, opening dusty notebook, clearing throath *:

Trading is the act of buying and selling financial assets, like stocks, options, or futures, with the goal of profiting from price movements.

THAT'S IT. Nothing more nothing less. Trading means buying and selling securities on any market. Options, futures, stocks, ETFs, whatever. (I won’t go into the details of what each of these are, you can Google that or click this link.)

But basically, you buy, let’s say, a share of Tesla, and you plan to sell it later. No matter when you sell it, in 1 minute, 1 day, a week, a month, or even in 10 years, you just executed a trade. You exchanged money for a share, then exchanged the share back for money. That’s it. That’s what trading is. Participating in the markets.

What is day trading?

Now onto the buzzword that makes me hate my own profession: dAy tRaDiNg. It means you buy and sell within the same day. That’s it. You buy at $10 at 10:00 a.m., you sell at $11 at 4:00 p.m. Boom. Trade done. No other bullsh*t. Of course, there are different types of trading like shorting (betting on price going down), scalping, swing trading, options trading, etc., etc., etc. But if your grandpa bought IBM shares back in the day and eventually sold them, congratulations, he’s a trader.

“90% of traders fail”

This is the most often used term when it comes to trading. That statement is both true and false.

Let’s start with why it’s bullsh*t

In that stat, “traders” include everyone who ever bought a stock. Like your grandpa who bought one IBM share in 1973. Just because I once fixed an AC or changed a tire, would you call me a mechanic? Or because I once cooked dinner for a goth chick, am I a chef?

OF COURSE F*CKING NOT.

But in trading, everyone who ever registered on a broker platform and bought 2 shares of TSLA back in college, realized gender studies might not pay rent, then sold at a $20 loss to buy Billie Eilish tickets... yep. That’s counted as a “trader.” Same box as someone who's been running hedge funds since ‘85. Again I wish I was joking, but I’m not.

Now, here’s why that stat is also kinda true

Becuase these people define themselves as traders. After two YouTube videos and a RedBull-fueled FOMO session they think of themselves as active participants on the markets. The market is accessible, yeah but just because the door's open doesn’t mean you’re ready to walk in. I’ve had so many friends hit me up in the last few years, sending me their accounts, flexing because they're “up,” acting serious while parroting some random bullsh*t they heard in a Discord server. They watch Tesla earnings and Nvidia keynotes without knowing what the three financial statements even are. It’s ridiculous. And I hate it.

Just because there’s no license required doesn’t mean you're qualified. Real finance, especially short-term trading, is a profession that takes time, knowledge, and skills to master.

To become a doctor, you need to study for six years. Same goes for engineering, attorneys, even F*CKING GENDER STUDIES. But people think they can learn one of the hardest professions in life, trading, in under a week… while wasting years on their sh*tty diplomas.

Literally, some of these clowns spend more time learning TikTok dances than studying the market. And now I am overdramatizing it for effect. I actually don't really care how they lose their money, but it is really true. You don’t have to become a trader actually, very few people do. It is a demanding, soul-crushing, analytical, and boring profession, but it is very rewarding if you master it. But it is not something you pick as a Plan B and try to master over a weekend just because the job hunt isn’t going well lately.

Now, all I’ve talked about is the gloomy “why you’ll never succeed” part which, even though it might not seem like it so far, I’m actually not an advocate of. So let’s ask the real question:

Can you become a trader on your Own?

Short answer: Yes.

Now, to all the snobs who claim you need a PhDs in math, statistics, MBAs and finance masters to trade professionally and even then, you need to do it at a huge institution because retail “never works.” FALSE. There are many retail traders with proven statements.

So can you study on your own? YES. But it will be hard.

In today’s world, with not just the web but even AI, you can study literally anything on your own. You can fix your car with a random Indian guy’s help in the form of a YouTube tutorial. You can build your own bike, renovate your home, you could even do surgery (although I wouldn't recommend trying it, and if you do, don't quote me on your court hearing). What I am saying is that, the information is there. It’s just way harder to find the right information and to master it on your own.

In school, or even in old-school guilds, you had experienced mentors to guide you. They gave you proven knowledge and helped you fix your mistakes. That’s what makes learning easier and faster. If you already understand companies, balance sheets, how business works, you’ll absorb trading concepts faster.

But yes, you can do it alone. It’ll just be a hard-ass time. You’ll doubt everything yourself, your sources, your trades. You’ll make so many mistakes you won’t even know what to correct. Like flying a plane with no instructor and a blinking dashboard of buttons.

But if you start somewhere and stick with it, you can master this. As the legend himself said:

Hard work beats talent every single f*cking time.

Should you even study this sh*t?

Definitely yes… and maybe no. Let’s break it down. I advocate for understanding finance. Not necessarily becoming a full-time trader, but knowing how money works. Money makes the world go 'round. Whether you’re an actor, singer, athlete you still need to manage your finances. Sure, you can hire someone, just like you can hire a chauffeur, but it’s better to understand it yourself. And the more broke you are, the more skills you need. Broke people gotta cook, clean, change their own oil, and manage their money. Even understanding basic finance helps you optimize your life and build toward freedom. It won’t make you Elon Musk, but it will give you a leg up. Knowing not to buy that TV on credit, or when to sell your car—that stuff all adds up and matters.

Should you be a full-time trader?

A full-time trader makes their living from the markets. That could be a billionaire collecting 1% monthly on low-risk capital, or a broke guy flipping $100 to make rent. Should you do it? That’s up to you. It won’t be easy. It won’t be quick. But in a world where housing is f*cked, wages are stagnating, and the planet’s on fire, you’re not wrong for wanting financial freedom. Boomers who say “no one wants to work an honest job anymore” don’t get it. Honest jobs don’t pay anymore. You can’t clock in for a 9-5 and be rich. But you can build your carrier and have a rather comfortable life as an engineer or a lawyer or be famous as an actor or even a tik tok influencer.

You can also start your own business, create and build something, publish your own book, make your own movie, etc. All those roads are out there. Many start on them, but many never reach the end of the forest. Trading is the same, with one exception, and this is totally my take:

When you start a business or try to sell your script or book, you can pour a lot of money, time, and effort into it, and it won’t have an immediate effect. Sure, your skills can improve, as an editor, a writer, an actor, a marketer, etc. which are all useful skills. But still, at the end, you might have nothing to show for it. Or rather, you do have something: a finished movie, a printed book .So the money you poured in doesn’t seem so wasted. You paid a graphic designer for your cover. You poured $4,000 into marketing. You got some cool Facebook posts, impressions, maybe even clicks or likes... But you had NO SALE. And from a business standpoint, that’s a waste. You put in $100, and maybe you got a book cover, but if there’s no sale, that $100 is gone.

There’s one reason I personally love the market. When you fund your broker with $100. You either lose it, or make more. That’s it. No fluff. No illusion. Just clarity. Also, you can pick up where you left off. With a business, you can fail, learn a sh*t ton, and try again but with trading, if you lose your first, let’s say, $100, you don’t “try again.”You continue. You never stop. Both with trading and with a business idea, you’re in a forest. Your goal is to get out aka reach your goal and make money.

But with a business, you can get lost and wander for 10+ years without a map, and you don’t know if you’ll ever get out or not. With trading, they give you the map. Sure, maybe it’s flipped upside down and in a foreign language, and it’ll take you years to figure it out, but if you’re willing to put in the effort and time to study and learn that map? You will get out.

There’s no such thing as a small trader

With everything else, you can get stuck at partial success:

• A small café owner

• A YouTuber with 10k subs

• A one-book author freelancing now

But in trading? The only "small traders" are the ones still learning. If you learn how to make money from $100, the principles, the markets EVERYTHING IS THE SAME (more or less, with a little exaggeration, but still). There’s nothing stopping you from writing a couple extra zeros behind that hundred and multiplying everything by 10, or 100, or 1,000. And that’s why traders are glorified. That’s why this profession looks so sexy, because the learning curve is parabolic. As a movie maker, writer, or influencer, you have ups and downs. You have huge rallies where you make a sh*t ton of progress. Sure, stuff gets easier, but it never becomes a repeatable process.

With trading, it’s painful to learn how to do it right. If you're building your own brand, first you have 100 followers, then 1,000, then 10K, then 1M. Progress is exponential but you can still get stuck at 1M. With trading, you make $0 for a year. Maybe you lose money the next. Then you break even for two more years. Then, in year five, you make $100. But then you realize, you’ve got the skill. You’ve got the knowledge. And suddenly...

• Week 1 of Year 5 — you make $100.

• Week 3 — $1,000.

• Week 4 — $10M.

(Slight exaggeration, once again—but this is the truth.)

So no, you don’t have to be a trader. Most people shouldn’t be. But if you're gonna do it, do it right. Study it like your life depends on it. Respect it like a real profession. Because behind all the TikTok hype, the boomers yelling from their yachts, and the kids Photoshopping profit screenshots there’s a real, brutal, rewarding craft here. If you’re built for it, it’ll pay you like nothing else. But it won’t hand you a damn thing for free. If you decide to jump in all I can say is: Welcome to the trenches soldier, I hope you make it back home alive and as a hero.