I think that the biggest obstacle in the road for your average Joe Shmoe trader is the fear of losing what little they have. They say it takes money to make money and that is especially applicable to the trading game. I submit the theory that anyone could learn to trade and become a consistantly profitable trader if they have a least a small fortune to play with and plenty more where that came from, and losing money while they are learning to play the game is not an issue. Folks that are filthy stinking rich to begin with will be much more successful in the trading game than your average middle or upper middle class Joe Shmoe that jumps in the game with a small and limited stash of cash, because they can't financially and psychologically survive the learning curve, whereas your filthy stinking rich dude can survive the learning curve and eventually go on to become a consistantly profitable trader over the long haul.