Michael Freeman

8.00 AM

Alarm goes off so I quickly get ready, make myself a coffee, and drink it on the 5-minute walk (Which is lucky because really I’m a late-night person) to the office from our Manhattan apartment. 

8.30 AM 

I arrive at the office and find out what’s for breakfast today. I grab a bagel (my favorite) – being New York, you won’t find a better bagel anywhere else!

9.00 AM 

I usually start off checking emails from overnight – catching up on any world news and reading trading stories from the previous day written by other traders. I’ll also order lunch using the corporate Seamless (Uber Eats) account. I think I might get some food from the greatest Chinese restaurant in Manhattan, China Chalet.

9.30 AM 

Stock markets open in the US. I am in one of the US options trading teams. Mornings can be busy in the markets, so I am quite occupied with my desk duties: answering phones and booking trades for the traders. There is not much shouting or yelling like you would see in Wall Street movies because trades are mostly performed electronically rather than on the phone.

11.00 AM 

Markets have quieted down, so I have some time to work on my Excel/coding projects. These kinds of projects can involve directly testing trading strategies, but can also involve creating programs/spreadsheets to assist traders in assembling information and making decisions.

12.00 PM 

Lunch arrives! 

2.00 PM 

One of the other grads will cover while I spend some time with the traders. We will discuss some of the interesting situations they encountered during the day and how they responded. This is a great time for me to ask more questions and understand their decision making and see how the concepts I’m learning trading class apply. 

4.00 PM

Markets close for the day. The trading team meets to discuss the interesting stories of the day, and collaborate about trade ideas.

4.30 PM 

Depending on the day, we either have trading class where we learn about trading concepts, poker classes to help improve our decision making, or mock trading class.

 

Today is mock trading, which is taught by senior traders to simulate trading stock options. This is done on a whiteboard without computers, as if we were in trading pits, so trades are made out loud. This is one of the main ways we can develop our trading skills and learn from experienced traders in a simulated environment. This allows everyone to hear each trade, inciting conversation about the decisions made.

5.30 PM 

Time to head home. On the way, I’ll swing by my local deli to pick up a pastrami and roast beef sandwich for dinner.

8.00 PM 

A few times a week, I’ll head down the road to nearby courts to play a game for SIG New York’s basketball team.

9.00 PM 

We won! We’ll have a couple of beers to celebrate.

10.00 PM 

Spend the rest of the night watching TV or catching up with family and friends back in Australia who are now awake.

12.30 AM

Time for bed