B The Trader Engineer developed a Strategy for People with Full-time Jobs
Apr 7, 2025
Don Juan, a former nuclear engineer, transitioned to day trading and achieved six-figure profits. He shares his journey from a structured 9-5 to developing a disciplined gap-up trading strategy. Juan discusses the importance of tracking data like volume and market cap and explains how he managed risk with specific loss rules. He also highlights the challenges of trading outside regular hours and emphasizes the necessity of a resilient mindset. His insights offer a powerful roadmap for those balancing a full-time career with trading ambitions.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
From Nuclear Engineer To Small-Account Trader
- Don Juan studied nuclear engineering, worked a decent job, and began trading after seeing ads and trying crypto in 2017.
- He built his trading skill slowly from 2019–2020, risking as little as $15 per trade and growing multiple small accounts.
Build A Daily Pre-Market Routine
- Do a pre-market routine: wake up early, set up a watchlist, and study setups instead of winging trades at open.
- Invest focused daily time into learning from videos and experienced traders to speed improvement.
Why Gap-Up Small Caps Became Core
- Juan's bread-and-butter became small-cap gap-ups and strong first green days after he analyzed what causes gaps.
- He discovered pattern edge comes from studying why stocks gap and which criteria predict follow-through.