We butt heads in this episode, arguing about the value of portfolio-level backtesting, one of the key feature differences between RealTest and Amibroker.

Is portfolio-level testing essential, or simply premature optimization?

---

Before you go!

The next time you find yourself in a drawdown, I want you to stop what you're doing and head on over to betterbacktesting.com to sign up for my free backtesting email course.

I hope to see you there!

We discuss:

• How to optimize so you have to re-optimize as little as possible
• How better columns directly translate into more robust strategies
• Hold a rule "in reserve" so you can apply it when needed without full re-optimization
• Documenting previous optimization decisions will make the next strategy better
• And much more...

---

Before you go!

The next time you find yourself in a drawdown, I want you to stop what you're doing and head on over to betterbacktesting.com to sign up for my free backtesting email course.

I hope to see you there!

We discuss:

• Similar to taking partial profits, moving a stop to breakeven is more about psychological comfort
• Profitable trading requires tolerating discomfort, as difficult as that is at times
• It seems like a simple idea to test, but it quickly adds significant complexity to a backtest
• How to actually test this in a backtest

This is a great example of the platitudes you often hear from people who are good at talking about trading, but don't actually trade.

---

Before you go!

The next time you find yourself in a drawdown, I want you to stop what you're doing and head on over to betterbacktesting.com to sign up for my free backtesting email course.

I hope to see you there!

You didn't get a fill on your original entry.  The trade would have been profitable for a bit, then it comes back to your original entry price.  Do you take the trade?  We go in-depth, answering this common dilemma.

• Your default should be to take the trade if it still matches your system
• There's more information to decide on - what can you add to your backtest?
• What are post-entry columns, and how can they help?
• How deep thinking about the issue can help you create brand new strategies

Here's the original article Dave wrote on this topic.

---

Before you go!

The next time you find yourself in a drawdown, I want you to stop what you're doing and head on over to betterbacktesting.com to sign up for my free backtesting email course.

I hope to see you there!

Michael and Dave discuss NASDAQ's initiative to tokenize all securities and the implications for traders. They discuss:

• What tokenization is and what that means for equities
• How it affects settlement and paves the way for 24/7 trading
• Prediction markets and positive externalities of betting ("Betting is a tax on bullsh*t.")
• Dave proposed a bet to Michael based on the volume traded in the opening and closing crosses in the future

And much more...

---

Before you go!

The next time you find yourself in a drawdown, I want you to stop what you're doing and head on over to betterbacktesting.com to sign up for my free backtesting email course.

I hope to see you there!

We've got news for you - there's nobody who cares enough about your stops to go "hunting for them."

And getting stopped out by a penny is frustrating, but it's actually a good sign.

• Blaming an algo or anything else for your trade getting stopped out is counter-productive
• Why most traders are completely wrong about placing stops
• How to select stops for your strategy in a data-driven way
• Much more...

---

Before you go!

The next time you find yourself in a drawdown, I want you to stop what you're doing and head on over to betterbacktesting.com to sign up for my free backtesting email course.

I hope to see you there!

In this episode, we tackle this popular question. Dave polled several traders he coaches and got some surprising answers.

• How much is trading like, say, poker, or something that is even more up to chance?
• Even starting a business can be called gambling if defined purely as "risking money on uncertain outcomes."
• Does having an edge make trading less like gambling?
• In a casino, is the house "gambling" because it has a strong edge?

What's your take?

---

Before you go!

The next time you find yourself in a drawdown, I want you to stop what you're doing and head on over to betterbacktesting.com to sign up for my free backtesting email course.

I hope to see you there!

In this episode, we discuss the best way to use alternative data in your backtest.

• What is alternative data and how can you use it in a strategy?
• Examples of alternative data
• Using it in real-time versus a backtest
• How to automate the process for backtesting and real-time trading

Other episodes mentioned: Using News in Your Trading Strategy

---

Before you go!

The next time you find yourself in a drawdown, I want you to stop what you're doing and head on over to betterbacktesting.com to sign up for my free backtesting email course.

I hope to see you there!