Patrick McKenzie (patio11) and Ricki Heicklen discuss Ricki’s innovative approaches to teaching trading. Trading is traditionally taught only by practitioners, to practitioners. The curricula that trading firms use are not published externally, to avoid empowering competitors. Ricki explains how she teaches trade mechanics, how markets and traders react to new information, and the security mindset necessary for trading, including protecting sensitive information and avoiding signaling strategies inadvertently.

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Full transcript available here: https://www.complexsystemspodcast.com/episodes/teaching-trading-ricki-heicklen/

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Sponsor: This podcast is sponsored by Check, the leading payroll infrastructure provider and pioneer of embedded payroll. Check makes it easy for any SaaS platform to build a payroll business, and already powers 60+ popular platforms. Head to checkhq.com/complex and tell them patio11 sent you.

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Links:
https://rickiheicklen.com/

https://bayesshammai.substack.com/

https://www.bitsaboutmoney.com/

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Twitter:
@patio11
@tradegal_

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Intro

(00:58) Ricki’s background in trading

(01:07) Teaching trading: pedagogical approaches

(03:47) Challenges in learning trading

(07:08) The importance of adverse selection

(08:02) Crowdfunding and market dynamics

(11:49) Understanding order books

(19:53) Sponsor: Check

(21:07) Liquidity and market microstructure

(27:48) Teaching trading through practical examples

(35:14) Reacting to new market information

(36:47) Understanding order cancellations

(41:29) Order types and other oddities

(56:00) Introduction to arbitrage

(01:05:00) Teaching position sizing and risk management

(01:10:05) Thoughts on quant trading

(01:12:44) Trading simulations and mental models

(01:13:08) Simulated insider trading exercise

(01:20:18) Security mindset in trading

(01:24:41) Information leakage in trading firms

(01:38:17) Final thoughts

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Complex Systems is part of the Turpentine podcast network.