Monday, March 30, 2009

Trading Mindsets and Forex Trading


Your mindset, that characteristic mental attitude that determines how you will interpret and respond to situations will determine the type of profits that you make in the Forex market. You can choose to be an independent Trader or a Dependent Trader. The type of trader you are affects the potential of instant profits that you make in the forex market. Rather, it would not be an exaggeration to say that it could affect the way you live the rest of your life: how long you will keep working for someone else, how and when you take vacations or how and where you live.

Let us be frank about it. It is only those who take the initiative can change the way they live. To quote an old saying, it is only those who jump in the water will reach the other shore, those who sit on the shore and keep contemplating will always remain where they are.

Remember that anything that requires little or no effort produces limited or temporary results. The opposite is also true: things that require you to think and act lead to permanent and lasting results. This is truer when it is applied to forex trading or for that matter, to trading in any market.

That brings us back to the original point of trader mindsets. Which type of a trader are you: independent or dependent?

A dependent trader wants quick and instant profits without earning them the hard way. A dependent trader never wants to put in an effort, follows the crowd and initiates trades based on hot tips, that are available dime a dozen in any market. The dependent trader is also on the lookout for automated trading programs that promise the moon and make you a millionaire overnight. These types of traders trade without a plan, with no understanding of what they are doing. They listen to news programs airing expert views and initiates ‘can not lose’ trades. It is another matter that such trades do lose.

The end result of such traders is frustration and they eventually do the only thing that is in their hands: they give up. What they do not realize is that all they had been doing all this time was nothing more that investing in lottery tickets, where the odds are heavily stacked against them, with the hope that they will one day get lucky and hit the jackpot.

Dependent traders neither have control over their lives nor do they have a chance for financial success.

Independent may be the opposite of dependent but an independent trader is not exactly the opposite of a dependent trader. There is a little bit of dependence in everyone but an independent trader uses that little bit of dependence to seek help and learn from others. Independent traders are workers; they work for everything they want. Either they know or they make an effort to know. They will go out of the way to seek people who can educate them.

Independent traders are not afraid to make mistakes because they know one can learn from one’s mistakes. At the same time they try their best not to repeat their mistakes.

Whereas an independent trader will depend on a mentor and/or learn form education to take control of situations, a dependent trader will never do that.

If you want to change your mindset and become an independent trader in the forex market here is what you should try to do.

1. Think of a trading plan and execute it. Select before hand what you want to be. See what fits in your daily work schedule and decide whether you want to be a day trader or end-of-the day trader or do you want to trade once a week. Then select what sources fit your plan the best. Never ever try to apply day trading techniques to end-of-the day trading or the other way round. They are not interchangeable at all and if you do you will discover that it does not work that way.

2. Try to educate yourself. You can look for education sources. Better to search more than one, preferably 2 or three, reputable sources. We can suggest well known and trustworthy names but the idea is that you identify them yourself and make an intelligent choice. Learn the techniques meant for your trading plan but also learn to apply them on your own.

3. Do not depend upon only one method of trading. Learn different trading methods and check them out. Your success is not guaranteed unless you have some basic understanding of trading methodologies, especially when using fundamental or technical indicators.

In the markets you can lose money very easily and quickly. You will gain nothing but frustration from losing money like that. Instead invest in yourself and gain knowledge. This can be your trading education cost which will bring you instant profits in the forex marketing.

Saturday, March 28, 2009

The Reason Why Amateurs Traders Fail to Make Profits


The forex markets are reputed to give instant profits to traders. However, many amateur traders fail to cash in on this potential and usually quit the market after getting frustrated. One of the major reasons why amateur traders fail in forex markets is the complexity of the method that they choose for trading.

Whatever research amateur traders do while choosing a trading method is almost always based on a gut feeling rather than on important aspects that actually make your profits run. It is important to note that methods for trading in forex markets must necessarily include risk management, discipline and psychology.

The gut feeling that induces amateur traders to buy training products is usually due to hyperbole used in promotion materials of training courses. They use phrases like ‘jaw dropping secrets of forex markets revealed’ or ‘unlock the mysteries of Forex trading.’ More often than not, the reality dawns upon them soon after they have purchased the course and they find that they had already heard about the method before.

Some amateurs will look for a complicated formula under the impression that anything that gives you instant profits cannot be simple. To their disappointment they find that the formula is actually so simple that they could have thought of it on their own.

The basic why amateurs fail to succeed in forex markets is thus not devoting time or ignoring to learn the full process of trading.

If you are an amateur looking for a method for trading forex then do not make that mistake. Most trading methods available are not complicated but a simple set of rules woven together in an easy manner that are applied in an uncommon way. Complex systems are for banks and obsessive computer enthusiasts. Remember the basic fact of learning: if you cannot understand it, you cannot possibly apply it.

Never ever skip through the learning process. Make sure that you learn the rules of the game: when to set up a trade, the price at which to enter and when to exit. Any program that does not teach you when to exit is not worth it. Neither is the one that does not show you how to protect and manage risk in the trade.

You need to learn how to apply your method in a timely manner, hourly, daily or weekly. You can become a better trader only if you are able to learn how the various aspects of forex trading work in tandem with each other.

Getting an edge in the markets is not complex methods but simple and powerful methods that use only a few indicators.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

How to Trade


Forex trading is a business where profits and risks run together. If you are interested in forex trading you can make use of the Forex profit accelerator course designed by Bill Poulos for teaching people how to make instant profits from forex business. Bill Poulos has been trading successfully in forex since years and an expert teacher. You can follow the guidelines provided by him and expect to see your profits run.

The question that most beginners ask is how to trade in forex. Here is a characteristic trade situation.

We assume that it is a standard Lot that you will be trading in. A standard Lot comprises of 100,000 units of currency.

Now let us suppose that the current bid/ask quote for EUR/USD is 1.3802/05 and you want to take a long position in it. Going long means you are buying because you think the Euro will gain against the dollar.

When you place this order then you are actually buying 100,000 Euros for $ 138,050 at 1.38050 to the dollar. The margin that you will have to deposit for this trade is $ 1,381, which is 100:1.

If the Euro actually gains against the dollar and is now trading at 1.3865/68 and you decide to book your profit, you will have to sell one standard Lot. The profit you take home is 60 pips.

When you sell this pair you have sold 100,000 Euros for $ 138650 at 1.3865 to the dollar. Considering that you purchased this Lot for $ 138,050 you make a cash profit of $ 600. That is how profits run instantly in forex markets.

There is a possibility of the Euro falling instead of gaining. Suppose the Euro went down to 1.3775/78 and you want to exit from the trade, you will be booking a loss of $ 300 (being the difference between you purchase for 138050 and sale for 137750) as the Euro fell by 30 pips.

You have invested $ 1381 in the trade and you need to protect your equity by employing a healthy risk management rules. This is one of the important aspects of trading to ensure that your account equity does not fall below margin levels. If it does then your trade will be liquidated automatically resulting in a considerable loss.