Inside a Prop Trading Firm: A Day in the Life of a Trader

05.06.2025

Education

A prop trader is not an astronaut or an ascetic monk. He does not go into outer space. He does not reset his ego desires. His mistakes in the "open market" are not fatal. And the main motive for work is to materialize his ideas about a high standard of living.

A prop trader's working day is not a dangerous task, but anticipating the twists and turns of an interactive series on economics. It is better to participate in it from a comfortable workplace. Watch it on a good screen. It is easier to concentrate in comfort. You can maintain concentration longer.

Before a new episode, it is worth remembering what happened in the previous one. A morning analysis of yesterday's transactions will help here. Then it is worth imagining the most likely moves of the scriptwriters. To do this, it is better to collect information about today and sketch out an algorithm of your hero's actions.

You can start with a trading plan. It does not matter what happens. The prop trader is ready for everything. Entry and exit points are defined. The risks are calculated. It remains to get comfortable and enjoy the new series. Enjoy watching.

1. Why evaluate yesterday?

Few people liked to do homework. This time could be spent on entertainment. But for a trader, this is a valuable tool. It can not only improve results, but also significantly shorten the path to the major league.

The ancient Greek historian Diodorus Siculus said that "Yesterday teaches how not to become its prisoner." Nothing to add. It can only be translated into the language of a trader. If in the morning, before new transactions, you analyze yesterday's transactions, all ideas for improving trading will be with the trader in the present.

When "yesterday" was profitable, you can see the reasons. Become optimistic. Repeat. When "yesterday" was unprofitable, you can become cautious. Refresh your memory of mistakes. And not only reduce the likelihood of their repetition in a new day, but also avoid the most unprofitable cognitive distortion. When a series of bad transactions is recorded as a market debt.

The market never owes anything to anyone. It is just a mirror. Until a trader with a professional attitude to trading appears in the reflection, the market will take money. Analysis of yesterday is one of the attributes of a professional. And the morning is the best time for an objective assessment of yourself. Emotions are gone. There is a lot of strength. There is enough time.

2. The trading plan is most important

If the assessment of yesterday is an auxiliary element. Then, developing a trading plan for today is the basis of everything. When it is drawn up, real trading is over. Now you need to implement the plan with minimal deviations. The smaller they are, the more professional the trader is.

A trading plan cannot be mental. It is always written down. It contains a set of transactions for the day. For each, the entry point, exit point, volume and justification are indicated. If the trading strategy gives signals during the day, you need to first write down the parameters of the transaction in the same way. And then place an order or open a position on the market. If it becomes difficult for a trader to keep records, this is a sign of fatigue. It is time for a week's rest.

3. Other work

Usually, it takes up to 1.5-2.0 hours to evaluate yesterday and create a new trading plan. Depending on the trading strategy and professionalism, the time spent may vary. The main thing is to never enter the market without notes. In the long run, this is guaranteed to bring losses.

Otherwise, prop traders are individual. The set of tasks during the working day can vary greatly. Some are crazy about the market. In parallel with trading, they watch thematic films, news, read books, practice promising trading strategies "on paper". They blog.

For others, the background they have gained is enough. Then the prop trader watches the market. Does everyday routine. Pulls up other areas of knowledge. Architecture, painting, literature, history. This helps not to get hung up. Maintain objectivity.

It is better to finish the trading day at the same time. By the middle of the American trading session, all movements are usually already made. Operations are closed. For the rest, take profits and stop losses are set. A strict schedule creates a distance between work and personal life. There is time for rest and family.

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