The first few trading days of the new year are always electric.
The charts are explosive. There’s fresh momentum. And fresh chances for traders to rewrite their trading journey.
The same thoughts are collectively spreading through the market as we approach 2026: “This is the year it happens.”
• The year you stop watching from the sidelines.
• The year you stop hesitating.
• The year you finally grow your account.
I’ve watched students go from broke and uncertain to seven-figure traders.
Not once or twice … I have over 40 millionaire students now.
And they all started with a small account.
We’re not geniuses, we’re not Wall Street insiders, we just made a decision. We all reached a point where we said, “Enough. I’m ready.”
That’s all it takes to start. One decision. The day you stop wishing and start building.
The New Year is a perfect time to make this decision once and for all. Turn over a new leaf.
To give you a jump start, I recently sat down with one of the best traders in the world. Over $100 million in trading profits. And I got the scoop on how he did it.
In 2026, follow his top trading lessons.
A $100 Million Trader
When I sat down with Lance Breitstein in Dubai, I knew the interview was going to be special.
He’s a trader who turned years of losses and frustration into over $100 million in profits. And he’s still as humble, hungry, and sharp as ever.
Lance is a former Trillium Trading legend, known for his precision, risk control, and relentless drive to improve.
In our conversation, he broke down the mindset, habits, and turning points that separated him from the thousands who quit before they found success.
This was a masterclass from someone who’s lived every up and down of the trading grind.
Here are the three biggest lessons from our talk. Lessons that every trader needs to hear before they reach 2026.
Focus On Survival, Not Speed
Lance’s blunt warning hits home for every successful trader in the market:
“Traders don’t want to get rich, they want to get rich quickly.”
That leads to mistakes.
Those who skip the basics of risk management and position sizing will destroy their accounts.
Especially traders who initially make money. They found fast profits without structure. And eventually, the corner-cutting will come back to bite them.
Build your foundation before you chase profits.
As Lance puts it, “If you make $10 million without discipline, it’s gone just as fast.”
Your entire trading career will collapse if you don’t have the proper foundation.
Take care in the beginning. Learn as much as you can. And size up incrementally as you gain success.
Survive The Learning Curve
Lance admits he was second to last in his class at Trillium. He lost $37K in his first year.
The only reason he made it? He didn’t quit.
He shared during our conversation that other trainees dropped out while he outlasted them.
That survival bought him enough time to find his “aha moment” trade: A Tesla exhaustion gap that finally helped the process click after years of struggling.
Consistency and endurance outlive talent and beginner’s luck.
Every trader must survive long enough for their breakthrough moment to arrive.
Get 1% Better Every Day
When Lance later ran Trillium’s Chicago office, he drilled one mantra into his traders:
“Forget about P&L. Don’t leave the office until you’ve gotten 1% better today.”
He ties growth to coachability, feedback, and intentional practice, warning that mindless repetition (“swinging the same bad golf club 500 times”) just cements bad habits.
The greatest traders don’t chase big days or big profits, they chase incremental improvement.
Follow A True Trading Process In 2026
Everyone’s thinking of New Year’s resolutions right now.
• Go to the gym.
• Eat better.
• Connect more with friends and family.
For traders, the goal is to find lasting success.
And that starts with a trading process that actually works.
Make the decision right now.
Start your trading journey in 2026. A journey for success in the market.
Can you commit to getting 1% better every day? If so, click “YES” here.
Cheers,
Tim Sykes
Editor, Tim Sykes Daily
P.S. If you have any questions, email me at SykesDaily@BanyanHill.com.
