I just skipped straight to using small amounts of funds.
I dumped ~1% of my portfolio at the time and started trading with 1-5% (~$1-5) amounts of that 1% to test how well I could do for profit, but I was also following signals, at the same time on a different account so I could keep track of sentiment and still make some sort of profit. I think I'd just have got bored of a demo account and 30 cents profit on a dollar isn't too bad of a win and the negative of that is a much nicer loss too.
I agree with you, that was the point of my thread to tell. I think it worth to get some experience with your bucks and this way you'll slowly adapt to higher bankroll. People usually directly move from virtual money to real high bankroll.
There's the idea of "scared money" in poker. If you're playing with money that you're scared of losing, then you have already become attached to the bankroll that you're wagering. When you are making bets or trades, you are prepared for the worst-case scenario, otherwise you would not (or, for most people, should not) have performed the action.
That's one reason why some people like to hide their balance, so their behaviors are not influenced by any psychological factors during volatile swings.
A lot of people get the whole "emotionless trading" schtick completely wrong: you aren't emotionless. Instead, you're risk-averse and seeking to maximize your expected gains. This means deducing conclusions through reliable processes, and not falling for any fallacious thinking that can negatively skew one's perspective.
Good example from poker. In most cases people aren't prepared for worst-case scenario and all they hope and expect is bright future. Then, when they trade with their bankroll and in case they lose, they are afraid that this bright future may broke and want to fix it as soon as possible to make their wishes come true but this is the time when emotions rise significantly and in most cases, possibility of making their wishes come true is abandoned.
You may think that you are "emotionless" in trading but at the same time it depends on your subconscious. Maybe today and tomorrow you'll act like "emotionless" but your subconscious will act emotional and may change your behaviors. It's just logical reaction/instinct.