Believe it or not, there are people who dislike my teachings even though it’s made them into multimillionaires.
Only in trading can you find this level of weirdness.
The good news for you is that I’m not in this to be liked.
I could care less about social media cred or whether someone wants to invite me to their wedding.
I really only want ONE thing for you…
Freedom to pursue YOUR own happiness.
Look, if you become my next millionaire student, that alone won’t make you happy.
That’s why I give to charity and travel. Because having money didn’t make me happy.
True happiness and freedom…
THAT is what I want for you.
You don’t have to like me.
But you do have to understand this…
Table of Contents
Why I Don’t Care If Students Like Me
My goal as a teacher is to teach what you NEED to become a self-sufficient trader.
A lot of the time that means telling people what they don’t want to hear.
For example, NOBODY likes it when I tell them to follow rule #1. Especially when I’m so blunt about it, like this…
Understand that rule #1 is KEY to my success.
In case you missed it…
Rule #1: Cut Losses Quickly
The reality is, there are some BIG traders who learned from me.
Some have made FAR more than me.
They don’t always like me (and I don’t care). I only want them to be successful and happy.
Hate Me or Love Me, I’m PROUD To Teach Life-Changing Rules
Over the weekend I got a kind of backhanded compliment from Kristjan Kullamägi.
If you don’t know, he traded $3k into over $100M. He was also featured in the latest Market Wizards book.
He admitted: “I am a million dollar student of Sykes. I started trading because of Sykes. As much as I hate to say it […] If it hadn’t been for Sykes, I probably wouldn’t be here.”
He also said he doesn’t like me.
I congratulate him on his success and I truly want him to be happy.
But here’s what he said that’s super important:
“The only difference is not quitting.”
Like so many successful traders, he blew up, went back to work and kept coming back.
He’s not overly intelligent or mathematically gifted (he’s not special).
He just studied enough and NEVER GAVE UP.
Get ready, because…
My Way of Teaching Isn’t Always Kind
Sometimes I have to be a little cruel to be kind.
Why?
To get you thinking the right way.
Do Marine recruits love their drill sergeant? No. By the time they leave basic, they probably hate ‘em…
But in the end, they have the utmost respect for their drill sergeant because what they learned can save their life.
They look back on the experience as something that molded them into disciplined, committed, and courageous individuals.
My teaching style is based on one question I ask myself…
“How can I mold you into a profit seeking and profit crushing machine?”
I’m proud of Kristjan Kullamägi. I haven’t ever met the guy, and I knew he was a paying student a while ago.
But it’s kind of funny, where these vids pop up with traders saying they don’t like me but they thank me.
It’s one of the weirdest compliments I’ve ever heard.
But you know what? If you become a successful student and you want to thank me that way…
I’ll still be proud of you. I’ll still celebrate your success. And I’ll wish you more and MORE success.
Millionaire Moves
In case you missed it, this is my retweet of Qullamaggie Wisdom:
I LOOOOOOOOVE THE HILARIOUS FEEDBACK ON THIS VIDEO TESTIMONIAL LOLOLOLOL…hate me, like me, love me, feel however you want as I'm PROUD to teach life-changing rules, not rules and lessons that are fun or what make me popular (nobody likes https://t.co/N2UivKO6n3 for example but… https://t.co/nwbUhbCrOH
— Timothy Sykes (@timothysykes) October 5, 2026
I can’t WAIT to see how far Kristjan takes his trading (even if he hates me, lol).
And I hope YOU get inspired.
Key Takeaway
Don’t try to succeed to make anyone else happy or proud (or even to like you).
Do it for yourself.
No matter what…
Realize that when you fall in love with learning what you enjoy most…
… and when you eventually master your craft…
You will reap great rewards over time.
Cheers,
– Tim Sykes
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