Chat With Traders

318 · Dave Mabe - The Shift to Systematic Trading — Building Backtested Confidence

When Dave Mabe backtested his strategy, it outperformed his own discretionary trading — and changed how he approached everything. In this episode, we discuss gapping breakouts, expectancy, systematic trading, drawdowns, and the reality gap between backtests and live execution. A practical conversation for traders serious about building durable edge. In this episode, we explore: ·        How Dave got introduced to markets: From early exposure to investing through his family to actively seeking more control over his capital and moving from swing trading into day trading. ·        Why rules matter: The transition from discretionary decisions to systematic frameworks — and why trading without a process is a fast path to inconsistency. ·        Backtesting as a “superpower”: What backtesting really does for strategy development and confidence in your edge. ·        Reconciling backtests with real life: Practical realities of execution, slippage, and market structure — and how to build a feedback loop so your live results get closer to your simulations. ·        Drawdowns and mindset: How to handle periods where a strategy doesn’t behave as expected, and why many traders quit in drawdowns rather than at all-time highs. ·        Scaling a trading business: The difference between scaling size versus scaling breadth — and why uncorrelated strategies matter. ·        Practical first step for systematic traders: How to start adding structure to your trading with backtesting, even if you’re not a programmer.   About the guest:   Dave has been a professional trader and technologist for over two decades. As a former CTO of Trade-Ideas, he has unique experience at the intersection of algorithm design, real-time market data, and automated execution. Outside trading, he writes a popular daily newsletter on backtesting and systematic strategy development, and hosts the Line Your Own Pockets podcast focused on systematic approaches to markets. Links + Resources: · Link to Better Backtesting [http://betterbacktesting.com/?utm_source=cwt] —Dave’s free multi-day email course on building strategies and improving them over time. · Trade-Ideas, Amibroker, RealTest — examples of backtesting and strategy development platforms discussed in context.   Sponsor of Chat With Traders Podcast:  Trade The Pool:  http://www.tradethepool.com [http://www.tradethepool.com/?afmc=1am] Time Stamps: Please note: Exact times will vary depending on current ads. 00:00 Intro and Background 08:29 Stock Selection and Systematic Trading Rules 11:32   Position Sizing, Expectancy and Risk Management 16:50   Discovering Backtesting and First Backtests 18:40   Backtesting Principles, Sample Size and Common Pitfalls 20:34   Gradual Automation and Live Trading Implementation 22:17   Trading Journal and Reconciling Backtest vs Live 27:27   Scaling through Automation: More Trades, Better Results 29:26   Drawdowns, Psychology and Handling Setbacks 34:14   Tools, AI and Software for Backtesting and Coding 39:56   Common Trading Myths Debunked (Partials, Stops) 48:01   Getting Started: Practical Steps, Resources and Closing   Trading Disclaimer:   Trading in the financial markets involves a risk of loss. Podcast episodes and other content produced by Chat With Traders are for informational or educational purposes only and do not constitute trading or investment recommendations or advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

317 · John Assaraf - The One That Shows Up — The Identity You Practice

In this episode, Ian sits down with John Assaraf, entrepreneur, behavioral neuroscience educator, and founder of NeuroGym, for a conversation about the invisible forces that shape performance — long after planning, analysis, and good intentions are in place. John shares his personal journey from a turbulent upbringing to building multiple multimillion-dollar businesses, and the pivotal moment at age 19 that reframed how he thought about success, identity, and commitment. From there, the discussion moves into the neuroscience behind habits, automatic behavior, fear, and why people often snap back to familiar results — even when they know what to do. This is not a trading tactics episode. It’s a conversation about execution, follow-through, and the human side of performance — in trading, business, health, and life. About the guest: John Assaraf is a serial entrepreneur who has built multiple multimillion-dollar companies, including helping scale a real estate organization to over $4 billion in annual sales and co-founding a technology company that later went public on the NASDAQ. He is the founder and CEO of NeuroGym, where he focuses on applying neuroscience to performance, habits, and behavior change. John is also the author of several New York Times bestselling books, translated into dozens of languages, and has been featured in films such as The Secret, where many people were first introduced to his work.   Links + Resources:  Free eBook: The Power of Visualization [https://www.myneurogym.com/ebook/power-of-visualization/?utm_campaign=program-812&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_source=spiffy&utm_content=6049&a=6049&_aff=%257B%2522_s_aff_812%2522%253A%257B%2522aff%2522%253A%25226049%2522%252C%2522cid%2522%253A1474229%257D%257D]    Sponsor of Chat With Traders Podcast:  Trade The Pool:  http://www.tradethepool.com [http://www.tradethepool.com/?afmc=1am]   Time Stamps: Please note: Exact times will vary depending on current ads.   00:00   Intro and Background 11:16   Mindset Shift: Interested vs. Committed 11:46   Behavioral Neuroscience and Goal Achievement 16:17   Conscious vs. Subconscious Mind 17:12   Creating Permanent Behavioral Changes 21:22   Emotional Regulation and Decision Making 25:30   Overcoming Self-Sabotage 35:20   AddressingFear in Decision Making 42:37   Inner Size: Exercising the Mind 44:27   Self-Sabotage and Financial Set Points 48:21   The Science of Goal Setting 50:17   Visualizing and Embodying Goals 54:40   How to reach John   Trading Disclaimer: Trading in the financial markets involves a risk of loss. Podcast episodes and other content produced by Chat With Traders are for informational or educational purposes only and do not constitute trading or investment recommendations or advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

316 · The Turning Points That Shaped Great Traders

Over the years, we’ve recorded hundreds of conversations with traders across different markets, strategies, and generations. And while no two trading paths look the same, certain moments tend to repeat — not moments of big wins or dramatic calls, but quieter turning points. The moments where something shifts internally. Where progress depends less on the market… and more on how the trader evolves. In this special episode of Chat With Traders, we revisit excerpts from past conversations with traders who reached those inflection points — moments that reshaped how they thought about risk, discipline, accountability, and longevity. It’s a collection of turning points — the decisions, realizations, and hard lessons that changed the trajectory of a trading career. Links + Resources: Episode039 [https://chatwithtraders.com/episode/039-tom-dante-speaks-to-the-competitiveness-of-trading-and-essential-skill-sets-for-profitability]     Tom Dante      Episode236 [https://chatwithtraders.com/episode/236-lance-breitstein-the-ultimate-day-trader-pt-3]     Lance Breitstein Episode249 [https://chatwithtraders.com/episode/249-jack-kellogg-valet-driver-turns-20k-into-11mil-over-6-years-after-wipe-out]     Jack Kellogg Episode036 [https://chatwithtraders.com/episode/036-peter-brandt-trading-since-1975-lessons-from-40-years-of-extraordinary-returns]     Peter Brandt Episode255 [https://chatwithtraders.com/episode/255-vincent-bruzzese-aka-hari-seldon]     Vincent Bruzzese Episode212 [https://chatwithtraders.com/episode/212-kristjan-kullamagi-breakouts-home-runs-exponential-returns]     Kristjan Kullamägi Episode286 [https://chatwithtraders.com/episode/286-jason-shapiro-overcrowded-trades-what-everyone-else-is-not-seeing]     Jason Shapiro Episode260 [https://chatwithtraders.com/episode/260-patrick-petersson-breathing-in-breathing-out-intuitive-hits-on-the-markets]     Patrick Petersson Episode259 [https://chatwithtraders.com/episode/259-lukas-frohlich-executing-agenda-trading-strategy-for-stratospheric-returns]     Lukas Frölich (The Short Bear) Episode163 [https://chatwithtraders.com/episode/163-john-rambo-moulton-an-evening-with-a-veteran-trader-live]     John “Rambo” Moulton Episode250 [https://chatwithtraders.com/episode/250-sunny-harris-methodical-day-trader-thrives-through-4-market-crashes-and-still-going-strong]     Sunny Harris Time Stamps: Please note: Exact times will vary depending on current ads.  00:00 – Intro and Background 01:10 — Tom Dante - A moment of accountability that forced change — and lit a competitive fire. 02:35 — Lance Breitstein - Why the best traders bet exponentially when the odds are truly skewed. 04:00 — Jack Kellogg - The cost of obsession, burnout, and relearning how to live after the grind. 05:25 — Peter Brandt - Market tuition, mistakes, and committing fully to a process (Featured in Jack Schwager’s Market Wizards) 06:55 — Vincent Bruzzese - How wealth mindset — not strategy — shapes risk and decision-making 08:25 — Kristjan Kullamägi - Scaling up, earning the right to push risk, and long-term conviction 09:55 — Jason Shapiro - Contrarian trading, positioning over prediction, and embracing discomfort (Featured in Unknown Market Wizards) 11:25 — Patrick Petersson - The lesson learned at absolute rock bottom — and the cost of not cutting losses. 12:55 — Lukas Frölich (The Short Bear) - Running trading like a business — and how progress compounds quietly. 14:25 — John “Rambo” Moulton - Detaching from money to trade with clarity and consistency 15:55 — Sunny Harris - Taking control after realizing professionals can lose, too. 17:30 — Closing reflections 20:20 — Outro / End Sponsor of Chat With Traders Podcast:      Trade The Pool:  http://www.tradethepool.com [http://www.tradethepool.com/?afmc=1am] Trading Disclaimer:  Trading in the financial markets involves a risk of loss. Podcast episodes and other content produced by Chat With Traders are for informational or educational purposes only and do not constitute trading or investment recommendations or advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

315 · Jamaal Ghauri - From Early Crypto to 0DTE Options: Fast Money, Fast Reality

We’re joined by Jamaal Ghauri, a trader and fund manager who began his journey unusually early — first exposed to crypto markets as a teenager during Bitcoin’s early adoption phase, before moving into stocks and eventually options. Jamal walks through the full arc of his development as a trader: early overconfidence, aggressive options bets, a rapid run-up followed by a major drawdown, and the hard lessons that ultimately forced him to rethink risk, position sizing, and process. From there, he explains how he rebuilt by focusing on more structured setups, volatility awareness, and consistency over time. We discuss the evolution of his core strategies — including swing trades, breakout-style setups, and short-term options structures — and how those approaches are now applied within a multi-strategy fund he launched in 2025. Jamal also shares how he thinks about trade distribution, win rates versus loss severity, and why discipline and risk management ultimately mattered more than finding the “perfect” setup. As always, this conversation is about understanding how a trader thinks, how strategies evolve over time, and how real-world risk shows up differently than it does on paper. Links + Resources: * Connect with Jamaal on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamaal-ghauri-282947172/ Time Stamps: Please note: Exact times will vary depending on current ads. 00:00 – Intro and Background 02:37 – Early Interest in Financial Markets 07:08 – Transition to Stock Trading 08:46 – Early Stock Trading Experiences 09:37 – Shift to Options Trading 10:32 – Learning Options Trading 11:22 – Developing a Trading Strategy 14:51 – First Successful Trades 19:04 – Account Growth and Setbacks 21:00 – Impact of the COVID Crash 32:06 – New Trading Strategies Post-Crash 37:24 – Becoming Profitable 38:22 – Performance in 2022 and 2023 41:07 – Establishing a Hedge Fund 44:40 – Hedge Fund Strategies 50:34 – Current Challenges and Advice Sponsor of Chat With Traders Podcast: Trade The Pool:  ⁠http://www.tradethepool.com⁠ [http://www.tradethepool.com/?afmc=1am] Trading Disclaimer: Trading in the financial markets involves a risk of loss. Podcast episodes and other content produced by Chat With Traders are for informational or educational purposes only and do not constitute trading or investment recommendations or advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

314 · In the Middle: The Demons We Trade With

A quiet, end-of-year reflection on the middle stage of trading — where progress is subtle, patterns are familiar, and the real work happens internally. Sponsor of Chat With Traders Podcast: ●       Trade The Pool:  ⁠⁠⁠http://www.tradethepool.com⁠⁠ [http://www.tradethepool.com/?afmc=1am] Trading Disclaimer:  Trading in the financial markets involves a risk of loss. Podcast episodes and other content produced by Chat With Traders are for informational or educational purposes only and do not constitute trading or investment recommendations or advice. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]