What Type Of Forex Trader Are You?

What are some things that separate a good trader from a great one? Guts, instincts, intelligence and, most importantly, timing. Just as there are many types of traders, there is an equal number of different time frames that assist traders in developing their ideas and executing their strategies. At the same time, timing also helps market warriors take several things that are outside of a trader's control into account. Some of these items include position leveraging, nuances of different currency pairs, and the effects of scheduled and unscheduled news releases in the market. As a result, timing is always a major consideration when participating in the foreign exchange world, and is a crucial factor that is almost always ignored by novice traders.

Want to bring your trading skills to the next level? Read on to learn more about time frames and how to use them to your advantage.

Common Trader Time frames
In the grander scheme of things, there are plenty of names and designations that traders go by. But when taking time into consideration, traders and strategies tend to fall into three broader and more common categories: day trader, swing trader and position trader.

1. The Day Trader
Let's begin with what seems to be the most appealing of the three designations, the day trader. A day trader will, for a lack of a better definition, trade for the day. These are market participants that will usually avoid holding anything after the session close and will trade in a high-volume fashion.

On a typical day, this short-term trader will generally aim for a quick turnover rate on one or more trades, anywhere from 10- to 100-times the normal transaction size. This is in order to capture more profit from a rather small swing. As a result, traders who work in proprietary shops in this fashion will tend to use shorter time-frame charts, using one-, five-, or 15-minute periods. In addition, day traders tend to rely more on technical trading patterns and volatile pairs to make their profits. Although a long-term fundamental bias can be helpful, these professionals are looking for opportunities in the short term.

Figure 1
Source: FX Trek Intellicharts

One such currency pair is the British pound/Japanese yen as shown in Figure 1, above. This pair is considered to be extremely volatile, and is great for short-term traders, as average hourly ranges can be as high as 100 pips. This fact overshadows the 10- to 20-pip ranges in slower moving currency pairs like the euro/U.S. dollar or euro/British pound.

2. Swing Trader
Taking advantage of a longer time frame, the swing trader will sometimes hold positions for a couple of hours - maybe even days or longer - in order to call a turn in the market. Unlike a day trader, the swing trader is looking to profit from an entry into the market, hoping the change in direction will help his or her position. In this respect, timing is more important in a swing trader's strategy compared to a day trader. However, both traders share the same preference for technical over fundamental analysis. A savvy swing trade will likely take place in a more liquid currency pair like the British pound/U.S. dollar. In the example below (Figure 2), notice how a swing trader would be able to capitalize on the double bottom that followed a precipitous drop in the GBP/USD currency pair. The entry would be placed on a test of support, helping the swing trader to capitalize on a shift in directional trend, netting a two-day profit of 1,400 pips.


Figure 2
Source: FX Trek Intellicharts

3. The Position Trader
Usually the longest time frame of the three, the position trader differs mainly in his or her perspective of the market. Instead of monitoring short-term market movements like the day and swing style, these traders tend to look at a longer term plan. Position strategies span days, weeks, months or even years. As a result, traders will look at technical formations but will more than likely adhere strictly to longer term fundamental models and opportunities. These FX portfolio managers will analyze and consider economic models, governmental decisions and interest rates to make trading decisions. The wide array of considerations will place the position trade in any of the major currencies that are considered liquid. This includes many of the G7 currencies as well as the emerging market favorites.

Additional Considerations
With three different categories of traders, there are also several different factors within these categories that contribute to success. Just knowing the time frame isn't enough. Every trader needs to understand some basic considerations that affect traders on an individual level.

Leverage
Widely considered a double-edged sword, leverage is a day trader's best friend. With the relatively small fluctuations that the currency market offers, a trader without leverage is like a fisherman without a fishing pole. In other words, without the proper tools, a professional is left unable to capitalize on a given opportunity. As a result, a day trader will always consider how much leverage or risk he or she is willing to take on before transacting in any trade. Similarly, a swing trader may also think about his or her risk parameters. Although their positions are sometimes meant for longer term fluctuations, in some situations, the swing trader will have to feel some pain before making any gain on a position. In the example below (Figure 3), notice how there are several points in the downtrend where a swing trader could have capitalized on the Australian dollar/U.S. dollar currency pair. Adding the slow stochastic oscillator, a swing strategy would have attempted to enter into the market at points surrounding each golden cross. However, over the span of two to three days, the trader would have had to withstand some losses before the actual market turn could be called correctly. Magnify these losses with leverage and the final profit/loss would be disastrous without proper risk assessment.

Figure 3
Source: FX Trek Intellicharts

Different Currency Pairs
In addition to leverage, currency pair volatility should also be considered. It's one thing to know how much you may potentially lose per trade, but it's just as important to know how fast your trade can lose. As a result, different time frames will call for different currency pairs. Knowing that the British pound/Japanese yen currency cross sometimes fluctuates 100 pips in an hour may be a great challenge for day traders, but it may not make sense for the swing trader who is trying to take advantage of a change in market direction. For this reason alone, swing traders will want to follow more widely recognized G7 major pairs as they tend to be more liquid than emerging market and cross currencies. For example, the euro/U.S. dollar is preferred over the Australian dollar/Japanese yen for this reason.

News Releases
Finally, traders in all three categories must always be aware of both unscheduled and scheduled news releases and how they affect the market. Whether these releases are economic announcements, central bank press conferences or the occasional surprise rate decision, traders in all three categories will have individual adjustments to make.

Short-term traders will tend to be the most affected, as losses can be exacerbated while swing trader directional bias will be corrupted. To this effect, some in the market will prefer the comfort of being a position trader. With a longer term perspective, and hopefully a more comprehensive portfolio, the position trader is somewhat filtered by these occurrences as they have already anticipated the temporary price disruption. As long as price continues to conform to the longer term view, position traders are rather shielded as they look ahead to their benchmark targets. A great example of this can be seen on the first Friday of every month in the U.S. non-farm payrolls report. Although short-term players have to deal with choppy and rather volatile trading following each release, the longer-term position player remains relatively sheltered as long as the longer term bias remains unchanged.

Figure 4
Source: FX Trek Intellicharts

Which Time Frame Is Right?
Which time frame is right really depends on the trader. Do you thrive in volatile currency pairs? Or do you have other commitments and prefer the sheltered, long-term profitability of a position trade? Fortunately, you don't have to be pigeon-holed into one category. Let's take a look at how different time frames can be combined to produce a profitable market position.

Like a Position Trader
As a position trader, the first thing to analyze is the economy - in this case, in the U.K. Let's assume that given global conditions, the U.K.'s economy will continue to show weakness in line with other countries. Manufacturing is on the downtrend with industrial production as consumer sentiment and spending continue to tick lower. Worsening the situation has been the fact that policymakers continue to use benchmark interest rates to boost liquidity and consumption, which causes the currency to sell off because lower interest rates mean cheaper money. Technically, the longer term picture also looks distressing against the U.S. dollar. Figure 5 shows two death crosses in our oscillators, combined with significant resistance that has already been tested and failed to offer a bearish signal.

Figure 5
Source: FX Trek Intellicharts

Like a Day Trader
After we establish the long-term trend, which in this case would be a continued deleveraging, or sell off, of the British pound, we isolate intraday opportunities that give us the ability to sell into this trend through simple technical analysis (support and resistance). A good strategy for this would be to look for great short opportunities at the London open after the price action has ranged from the Asian session.

Although too easy to believe, this process is widely overlooked for more complex strategies. Traders tend to analyze the longer term picture without assessing their risk when entering into the market, thus taking on more losses than they should. Bringing the action to the short-term charts helps us to see not only what is happening, but also to minimize longer and unnecessary drawdowns.

The Bottom Line
Timeframes are extremely important to any trader. Whether you're a day, swing, or even position trader, time frames are always a critical consideration in an individual's strategy and its implementation. Given its considerations and precautions, the knowledge of time in trading and execution can help every novice trader head toward greatness.
source: http://www.investopedia.com/

Forex Minis Shrink Risk Exposure

Trading currencies means buying one country's currency while simultaneously selling another country's currency. Every currency trade therefore involves two currencies. The usual size of a currency pair is 100,000 units, known as a "standard lot."

In most cases, beginner traders do not want to stomach the risk that comes with the exposure of a standard lot. As a result, most online forex brokers offer the ability to trade mini lots, which are 10,000 units of the currency rather than 100,000. For a new trader, these mini lots can be an especially effective tool for learning to trade forex.

What is a Pip?
Before one can fully understand the benefits of a mini lot, it is important to review the concept of a pip. A pip is the smallest increment that a currency pair can move. For most currency pairs, a pip is a change in the fourth decimal place of the currency quote. For example, if EUR/USD is quoted at 1.5567 and it moves to 1.5568, it has increased by 1 pip. The value of 1 pip is calculated by the size of the lot that is traded. So, if you buy a standard lot of 100,000 EUR/USD at 1.5567 and it goes to 1.5568, a 1-pip move, then the value of your trade has increased by $10 (or 100,000 x 0.0001).

If we did the exact same calculation using a mini lot, then we would multiply the 1 pip by the size of a 10,000 mini lot instead of the usual 100,000 lot. So 10,000 x 0.0001 = $1. When you trade a standard lot, the value of the pip is $10, but when trading a mini lot the value of a pip is $1. This is true when the U.S. dollar is the second, or quoted, currency in the pair.

Base Currency Vs. Quote Currency
One other piece of information to remember is that a currency pair is comprised of a base currency, which is the first currency listed in the pair, and the quote currency, which is the second currency listed in the pair. In the case of the EUR/USD, the euro is the base currency and the dollar is the quote currency.

The profit or loss is always expressed in terms of the quote currency. If the currency pair is the GBP/USD, then the base currency is the British pound and the quote currency is the U.S. dollar. For the USD/CAD, the base currency is the U.S. dollar and the quote currency is the Canadian dollar. Why the dollar is listed first in some instances but second in others is just a matter of convention.

The Value of a Pip
The last important point that should be noted before we talk about mini lots specifically is the value of a pip. Suppose you are trading the GBP/JPY; the British pound is the base currency and the Japanese yen is the quote currency. Now in this instance, we have an exception to the fourth decimal place rule for the size of a pip. In the case of the yen, 1 pip is measured in the second decimal place. The yen is the only exception. To calculate the value of the move, if we buy dollars against the yen and the dollar goes up from 103.45 to 103.46, then we have a 1-pip move. Multiplying by the standard lot of 100,000 x 0.01 = 1,000 yen. To bring this back to dollars, you would then divide the 1,000 yen by the dollar rate, let's say it's 103.46, which equals $9.66.

Why Trade Minis?
The real value of trading minis is in the versatility it provides in matching the trade size to an acceptable level of risk. For example, suppose you decide to take a long position in the USD/JPY. Let's assume that your entry point is 103.55 and that you've set your stop-loss order 15 pips away at 103.40. If you have $1,000 in your trading account, the maximum risk you should take in any trade is 3% of your trading capital. Because your capital is $1,000, 3% of your capital is $30. If you are stopped out of this trade and you are trading a mini lot, you will lose $15. But if you are prepared to risk $30, you can actually trade two mini lots and get the power and benefit of some leverage. If you were only trading standard lots, this trade would not be possible because a 15-pip loss, as per this example, would be $150, which is 15% of your $1,000 trading capital. Given a risk tolerance of 3% of the portfolio, this is too much risk for one trade.

Mini lots allow a trader to adjust the amount of effective leverage used in each trade. With mini contracts, you can trade the equivalent of one standard lot by simply trading 10 minis. If you only want to trade a half of a standard lot, you can do so by buying five mini lots.

The Bottom Line
Mini lots provide flexibility that standard lots cannot offer. A mini lot is simply 10% of a standard lot and therefore, by trading in minis you can trade in fractions of a standard lot, anywhere from 1 mini to 10 minis. Mini lots are useful if the natural stop loss for your trade is farther away than the maximum risk you feel comfortable taking. You can simply reduce the risk by decreasing the number of minis until that number would equate to the stop-loss risk. Of course, if your market maker offers you 100:1 leverage, then for an account of $1,000, you can trade up to 10 minis at a time. The number of minis traded should be governed by how much you can lose if your trade goes wrong, which should not exceed 2-3% per trade.
source: http://www.investopedia.com/

Forex Software - Choosing the Best

When it comes to forex trading the forex software you choose is essential. There are so many forex trading companies all competing for your business that choosing the right forex software can be quite a difficult task. Most of the forex software products available offers live online forex trading platforms but what other components are vital when it comes to your forex software.

Key Elements For Your Forex Software

Before purchasing any forex software there are a few essential items that should be included. The most important is security and your online forex trading software should include a 128 bit SSL encryption which will prevent hackers from accessing any of your personal details and information such as your account balance, transaction history, etc.

Providing the best security for your forex trading will include a company that provides 24 hour technical server support for your forex software, 24 hour maintenance should anything go wrong, daily backups of all information, and a security system that has been designed to prevent any unauthorized access. Along with these security protocols there are also some forex trading companies that use smart cards and fingerprint scanners to ensure that only their employees can have access to their servers.

Another important factor when it comes to choosing your forex software is to check what the company’s downtime is like. When it comes to trading forex and particularly your online forex trading you need to ensure that the forex software you choose is reliable and available 24 hours a day. The forex software you choose for your forex trading should also have technical support available at all times should your session be cut short.

Ensuring that all the above features are listed in the forex software you choose will help to ensure your forex trading success.
source: http://www.forex-articles.net/

April 16 Market Commentary and Technical Levels

EURUSD Outlook
The EURUSD attempted to push lower yesterday. The pair bottomed at 1.3146 but further bearish scenario was rejected as the pair closed higher at 1.3225. On 4 chart below we can see that the trendline support still doing a good job preventing the pair from further bearish attack. The bias is neutral in nearest term. Immediate resistance is seen at 1.3270. Break above that level could trigger further bullish momentum testing 1.3340. Initial support at 1.3100 area. CCI in neutral area in all three time frames (hourly, 4h, daily).



EURUSD Daily Supports and Resistances:

S1= 1.3149
S2= 1.3073
S3= 1.3001
R1= 1.3297
R2= 1.3369
R3= 1.3445
GBPUSD Outlook
The GBPUSD continued its’ bullish momentum yesterday. The pair break above important resistance at 1.4980, topped at 1.5034 and closed at 1.4995. Technically the bias is bullish in nearest term but 1.5000 area is a psychological level so I think the pair need to stay above it to confirm the bullish scenario targeting 1.5200 area. CCI about to cross the 100 line down on 4 chart so watch out for a potential downside pressure testing 1.4970/50 support area. Break below that area would take the pair into neutral bias.



GBPUSD Daily Supports and Resistances:

S1= 1.4866
S2= 1.4737
S3= 1.4653
R1= 1.5079
R2= 1.5163
R3= 1.5292
USDJPY Outlook
The USDJPY was corrected higher yesterday. On hourly chart we have a Hammer candlestick formation appeared followed by significant bullish correction. The bias is bullish in nearest term but we need a break above 99.64 area to confirm further bullish correction scenario towards 100.50 area. Immediate support at 98.90. CCI in neutral area in all three time frames (hourly, 4h, daily).



USDJPY Daily Supports and Resistances:

S1= 98.44
S2= 97.55
S3= 96.95
R1= 99.93
R2= 100.53
R3= 101.42
USDCHF Outlook
The USDCHF attempted to push higher yesterday. The pair topped at 1.1485 but closed lower at 1.1426. The bias remains neutral in nearest term. We still have bullish channel on hourly chart and the price is moving lower testing the lower line of the bullish channel. A breakdown to the downside could trigger further bearish momentum towards 1.1350 area. Immediate resistance is seen at 1.1485 – 1.1515 area. CCI in neutral area in all three time frames (hourly, 4h, daily).



USDCHF Daily Supports and Resistances:

S1= 1.1365
S2= 1.1304
S3= 1.1244
R1= 1.1486
R2= 1.1546
R3= 1.1607
source:http://blog.fxinstructor.com/april-16-market-commentary-and-technical-levels-2/

US Dollar Role Uncertain As Risk Appetite Meets Depression Potential

How often has the term ‘depression’ been used to describe the conditions in the US and global economies? What are the symptoms of this infrequently experienced economic storm? These are the questions that will shape the dollar’s future not just a week ahead but for months to come.Considering the broad rebound in market sentiment over the past month, the US dollar has struggled to find its place in the currency market. There is still a hold over for the greenback’s function as a safe haven. However, as demand for yield rises, investors may more closely focus on the fundamental health of the US economy and the potential for returns on the nation’s assets – and neither is promising.

In recent months, the best way to benchmark the strength of the dollar has been through its association to risk trends. Though liquidity has not been a serious issue for the capital markets since October, the terrible pace of growth behind the global economy and the mere presence of toxic derivatives in the market’s system has bolstered the greenback’s presence. This is not likely to change anytime soon. Despite the rise in risk appetite recently, investors are keenly aware to the state of economic activity and the vulnerability of the financial markets. A rebound in consumption, production and capital investment are essential elements for positive returns. However, each of these components are still contracting on a global level. At the same time, the level of risk behind the scenes continues to grow. This past week, the FOMC minutes referred to credit conditions as “very tight” and suggested financial markets were “fragile and unsettled” as pressure was intensifying. Banks are refusing to open credit lines as they attempt to bolster reserves as defaults rise, earnings drop and growth naturally leads demand to dry up. This means the potential for another crisis and panic exodus of capital from the market is a constant threat. One of the most menacing triggers for such a dramatic shift in sentiment is the ‘stress test’ the US federal government has performed on the country’s 19 largest banks. Rumors have circulated that the Treasury has instructed target banks not to disclose any results from their evaluation as officials want to wait until after earnings season (to avoid what could be another ‘perfect storm’ should the assessment be bad). However, as more earnings data crosses the wires, speculation on the results will no doubt grow.

As long as the market’s fear the possibility of another crisis, the dollar will be coveted for its deeply liquid markets and the aggressive actions of the US government. However, should markets maintain their calm and risk appetite slowly recover, investors will once again be put to task in grading which economy will recover first while supporting the most lucrative yields (within reason of some level of safety). As this is a market dynamic that is slowly developing now, we have to put the US on that scale; and the results are not promising. In the Fed’s minutes, the policy authority mentioned its concern of “feedback effects.” This refers to a situation where financial strains feed the economic troubles and vice versa such that the cycle maintains itself. Bailouts, liquidity injections and efforts to remove toxic debt from the system has tried to correct a vital component of this bleak spiral; but it has clearly not corrected the larger issue. So, in the meantime, concentration will fall back on economic activity with a round of notable indicators. From the list, the market will look to benchmark the health of the housing market, production and consumer spending. The University of Michigan confidence survey and retail sales report will gauge consumer health. Industrial production and regional manufacturing reports will measure business activity. While housing starts and building permits offer a better gauge of construction than sales of existing homes or the creation of mortgages. - JK
source: http://www.dailyfx.com/

16 Chart Thread

I saw that this is the first update to the first post of this thread on 1/14/09. This thread was started very long ago when Forex Factory was a much smaller place. It was unusual at that time to see more than 20 people online at any given time. My how times have changed.

This thread has changed my life in many many ways and it has changed many others as well if my email inbox is any indication. This thread is about helping people learn to trade with a simple method BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY its about providing a kind and non-threatening place for beginners. There is literally an army of old timers here that, along with me, make sure of it.

The single biggest reason this thread continues to produce winners is it constantly pounds home that this is a business and must be treated as such. Your going to get to read about that in a minute but first i want to thank someone.

Forex Factory is what it is due to the vision and care of one person, my friend Merlin. Merlin no longer carries the torch here but he is a hero to me and i am truly blessed to know and call him my friend.

ok are you ready to read the truth? are you ready to face what no beginner to this business wants to read or hear? of course its just my opinion but it comes from 26 years of blood,sweat, tears and experience. thats all i really teach here anyway...experience. Follow it and join the multitudes here that are succesful traders or dont and go thru hell like most do in this business early on including myself for 8 grueling years.

To succeed in this business you need a sound method (notice i did not say system), common sense, discipline and a rock solid understanding that if you do not treat this as a business you have a ZERO CHANCE of long term success. 95 percent of new businesses fail even when the owner knows what they are doing. Do you really think this business is going to work for you after 3 months practice or less?

Whats interesting about this business is it affords the person that chooses to use common sense a way to learn it without losing a ton of money or any for that matter. Below is the outline i used 20 years ago to finally find some success and i have become almost mental about it. To this day any new method im testing or any refinement to existing methods goes thru the same process. Also remember this. small accounts could never keep me focused to be ultra picky about my entries and you will almost surely find the same thing. small accounts = over trading and YOU SIMPLY MUST LEARN TO BE PICKY ABOUT YOUR ENTRIES. Solution? Force yourself to be ultra picky (virtually impossible) or follow the plan below while your saving.

Before the plan i want those of you that are new or struggling to read one sentence from someone that has come before you. Just a regular person just like you. This person followed the plan, got involved and stuck with it for half a year. Here are his words and they should tell you something. There are no free lunches in this business. Give it your best here for 6 months and see if you can do the same.

"Words can't describe where my trading was 6 months ago compared to where it is now"


MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

If you are new to trading and/or you have had difficulty finding some consistent success, you must understand something. This is not a game and it's not a way to get rich quick. I suppose there is the odd exception of the person with a ton of money to play with, but if you approach this business without a business plan and the willingness to follow it, you are almost certainly doomed to failure. A doctor spends ten plus years in a grueling learning curve to be successful and earn a six figure income; anyone who thinks that their pot of gold in this business is a couple of months down the road is in for a rude awakening.
Below is a minimum requirement (in my opinion) to find out without losing your @#!@#$%$# if this business is for you. By following these recommendations, you will be treating trading like a business and you will be learning and gaining confidence. I think this is so important, I am going to make the following statement: If you start out in this business using no common sense, you have no one to blame other than yourself when you lose all your money. There is no reason to ever lose a dime of your money while learning to trade. A well thought-out business plan, common sense and hard work is required for anyone who wants a chance at success. Many people meet those requirements and still fail, but it does not mean you have to watch your bank account go to zero.
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS / THIS IS A BUSINESS
WHATEVER / WHICHEVER WAY YOU DECIDE TO TRADE YOU MUST (AT A MINIMUM):
ON DAILY AND WEEKLY TIME-FRAMES, YOU ONLY DEMO-TRADE FOR THREE CONSECUTIVE PROFITABLE MONTHS IN A ROW. YOU DO NOT PROCEED TO STEP TWO UNTIL COMPLETED.
OPEN AN ACCOUNT WITH HALF OF THE INVESTMENT YOU INTENDED TO GO FULL WITH AND CONTINUE TO ONLY TRADE DAILY AND WEEKLY TIME-FRAMES UNTIL YOU ARE PROFITABLE THREE MONTHS IN A ROW MINIMUM. YOU NEVER RISK MORE THAN TWO PERCENT OF YOUR ACCOUNT ON ANY ONE TRADE. YOU DO NOT PROCEED TO STEP THREE UNTIL STEP TWO IS COMPLETED.
FUND A FULL ACCOUNT AND CONTINUE TO ONLY TRADE DAILY AND WEEKLY TIME-FRAMES UNTIL YOU ARE CONSISTENTLY BUILDING YOUR ACCOUNT FOR AT LEAST SIX MONTHS. YOU NEVER RISK MORE THAN 2 OR 3 PERCENT OF YOUR ACCOUNT ON ANY ONE TRADE.
IF AND WHEN YOU DECIDE TO DAYTRADE ON A SMALL TIME-FRAME AND YOU DON'T FOLLOW THIS TEMPLATE, AT A MINIMUM, YOU ARE ALMOST CERTAINLY GOING TO FIND YOURSELFE IN TROUBLE. IF YOU ARE GOING TO FOLLOW A SYSTEM OR ANY TRADING STYLE AND YOU DON'T FOLLOW THIS TEMPLATE AS FAR AS THE DEMO PROCESS, YOU ARE NOT TREATING IT AS A BUSINESS AND YOU HAVE NO ONE TO BLAME OTHER THAN YOURSELF IF YOU LOSE YOUR MONEY.
IF YOU EVER SUFFER THE LOSS OF 30 TO 35 PERCENT OF YOUR ACCOUNT, YOU STOP TRADING. PERIOD-PARAGRAPH. YOU GO BACK TO DEMO AND FIGURE OUT WHAT WENT WRONG. WHILE DOING THIS, YOU REFUND YOUR ACCOUNT BACK TO ITS ORIGINAL AMOUNT. YOU DO NOT GO BACK TO LIVE TRADING AGAIN UNTIL YOUR DEMO HAS SHOWN YOU WHAT WENT WRONG AND YOUR ACCOUNT IS BACK TO FULL STRENGTH BY WHATEVER MEANS. IF IT TAKES ONE MONTH OR SIX MONTHS, IT DOES NOT MATTER. YOU MUST FOLLOW THIS APPROACH IF YOU DON'T WANT BLOWN ACCOUNT AFTER BLOWN ACCOUNT.
Your goal should be this. Learn, learn and learn some more and don't do anything stupid while your getting your feet on the ground. The ultimate goal of any trader is to build an account to a size where just a few good trades a month produces a staggering income. Hardly anyone ever gets there because they don't treat it as a business. They do stupid things that they would never do in any other area of their life and it's because of the money that can be made. If it takes you a couple of years or even five or ten to reach the level of a staggering income, is it worth it? The choice is yours.

Here is a post from early 2009. It says in short form what im always trying to say and cant seem to keep short.


Every question that you could probably think of has been answered several times by now. The PF is good because it has all the material in one place, it's concentrated, without a lot of the "external noise" that you might get on a public forum. You definately just need to listen to certain voices especially in this thread (If you read the thread from the start you will just start skipping some peoples posts after a while lol, and get to the good , that's what I did )

I say if you are cash strapped then just read this thread and follow it and demo, backtest. . Work. . . No need to put yourself under financial pressure my friend. ALL of the material in the PF, ALL the excellent traders in the PF (Instructors, Senior members and traders alike) Still will not on their own make you profitable, that is up to you.

That is up to you my friend, be steadfast, brace yourself and work hard and victory will be yours . . Now, or in the future.

This thread is like a series of signposts in the RIGHT DIRECTION (To profitability ) Signposts constructed by people who have navigated the dangerous and inherently confusing jungle of forex before. I have only come to appreciate this recently, but each single line that is said by certain people in this thread, has literally hours of experience, backtesting and work behind it. To give it a seal of authority that only experience can give. . .

It's a jungle out there . . But we are lucky enough to have signposts erected for us here . . . Set in stone, by the people who have navigated their way through the jungle before us. . .

Just some of my thought's . . .

Godspeed,
T


NOTE: In over 25 years of trading and learning its important for me to give credit where credit is due.

virtually all of my methods are original but some of the ingredients are often things i have learned from others and use in my own way. This is true for all of us that truly put in time and effort to find success in this business.

I want to thank the following people and as i remember others i will add them. I think all of these people are honest and good at what they do and teach.
source:http://www.forexfactory.com/showthread.php?t=2331