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What are Fakeouts, Shakeouts and Whipsaws?Let's get straight into the three cronies of trading disaster when taking and holding a position. Fake-out: (When the price makes a false breakout of a chart pattern) A fake-out occurs when the price of a market appears to break out of a certain chart pattern. This could be a trendline, support, or resistance level. But then quickly reverses and retreats back within the pattern. Shake-out: (Where the market is highly volatile and the price moves to levels that hits their stop losses and gets traders out of their trades) A shake-out is a scenario where the market becomes highly volatile and the price moves rapidly to levels that trigger the stop-loss orders of many traders. Stop-loss orders are pre-set risk levels at which traders automatically exit their positions to limit their losses. A shake-out is designed to "shake out" weak or inexperienced traders from the market. When stop-loss orders are triggered, it can create a temporary spike in the opposite direction of the prevailing trend. Once these traders are "shaken out," the market might resume its original trend. You’ll see this most commonly with low liquid, high volatile markets like Penny Stocks or Penny Cryptos. Whipsaw: (This is where the market will change its most prominent direction within the day). Whipsaw refers to a situation where the market quickly changes its direction within a relatively short period, often during a single trading day. This can cause confusion and losses for traders who are caught off-guard. Whipsaws can occur due to various factors, such as sudden news releases, economic data surprises, or changes in sentiment. They are characterized by sharp price movements that can make it difficult to make accurate trading decisions. Whipsaws are especially common during periods of high market uncertainty or when there's a lack of a clear trend. Let’s create a quick summary of the three: Fake-out: (When the price makes a false breakout of a chart pattern) Shake-out: (where the market is highly volatile and the price moves to levels that hits their stop losses and gets traders out of their trades) Whipsaw: (This is where the market will change its most prominent direction within the day).
JSE:J200Education
by Timonrosso
The Power of the 3 Seconds Rule in TradingIn the fast-paced world of financial trading, time is often the difference between success and failure. One effective strategy that I’ve found incredibly beneficial is the 3 Seconds Rule. This rule, adaptable to virtually any life scenario and business. It’s simple… Before you make a crucial decision, you count to three. 1, 2, 3 This will help you streamline the process to execute. It’ll also stop you from hesitating, over analyses or overthinking. Let’s delve into how this can be applied. Trade Lines Up: Preparation is Key The first stage in this strategy involves setting up your trade. This includes preparing your charts, drawing the lines, placing indicators, and identifying potential entry points. This will help you to map out your trade plan in advance/ Also you’ll be able to respond quickly. The 3 Seconds Rule here encourages swift action. Once your analysis is complete and everything lines up, count to three, and finalize your setup. This helps to avoid second-guessing your analysis, which can lead to paralysis by analysis. Place Your Trading Levels: Define Your Parameters Next open your trading platform and count to three. 1, 2, 3. Then put in your trading levels. These levels include the entry point, stop loss, take profit point, volume of trade, and whether it’s a long or short position. This ensures that your predefined strategy is implemented promptly. This is critical in a market environment where prices can change rapidly. Just Take the Trade: Execution is Crucial The final stage involves actually executing the trade. You’ve done your analysis, prepared your charts, identified your levels, and now it’s time to make the trade. Again, you apply the 3 Seconds Rule. 1, 2, 3 And then click the button to execute. Like I said before, this will eliminate the fear or hesitation that can often occur at the moment of execution. By forcing yourself to take action within three seconds, you are not allowing time for doubt or fear to prevent you from following your carefully crafted trading plan. The Benefits of the 3 Seconds Rule In the world of financial trading, the 3 Seconds Rule offers numerous benefits: Eliminates hesitation: When you commit to taking action within three seconds, you will avoid becoming trapped in a cycle of overthinking that can lead to missed opportunities. Encourages decisive action: The 3 Seconds Rule compels you to make a decision quickly. Reduces stress: By making a plan and sticking to it within a set timeframe, you can minimize the anxiety and stress of waiting too long. So you got the power of the 3 Seconds Rule? 1, 2, 3, – GO!
JSE:J200Education
by Timonrosso
6 Quantifiable Trading Goals to KnowThere is one thing that will separate the winners from the losers. Knowing your numerical trading goals. When you have a back-tested and solid strategy, everything else becomes easier. You have the past and the potential future in your vision. And all you need to do is follow the rules and then keep them in check. To do this, you need to have written down your goals, drawn from your trading statistics and back-tested journals. This will give you the spine of your trading strategy and ultimately guide you on the path to sustainable profitability. There are many numbers to take in but I’m going to kickstart you with probably six of the most critical trading goals. This will help you set your own milestones for success. Number of Trades to Take in a Year (e.g., 120) You need to have some type of idea of the number of trades, you’ll execute in a year. This number can be derived from your trading strategy, time frame choice, risk tolerance, and market analysis. For instance, if you’re a swing trader focusing on weekly chart patterns and SMC, you might aim for 120 trades in a year. This equates to 10 trades per month. Maybe you want to take 60 trades with stocks, indices and commodities. Maybe you want to take another 60 trades between Forex and crypto. Make sure you have a rough number according to your stats, so you can keep on track. Number of Winners Winners and losers come with the game. So you need to identify the number of winning trades you intend to achieve in a year. Let’s say you’re aiming for a win rate of 62.5%. With the earlier goal of 120 trades in a year, you’re targeting approximately 75 winning trades (120 * 0.625). Number of Losers Losing trades are an inherent part of trading. You need to have an acceptable number of losing trades in mind. This will help you to manage risk effectively and maintain emotional equilibrium. In our example, if you’re aiming for 120 trades a year, you should look at taking around 45 losing trades. If 62.5% is your win rate then 37.5% is your losing rate (100% – 62.5%). Win Rate Your win rate represents the percentage of trades that yield profits. With a target win rate of 62.5%, this means you aim to close over half of your trades with a profit. Sure, you’re not going to bank 62.5% every week, month and year. You might have a 70% win rate one year. You might have a 55% win rate the next year. Remember, consistency is key here. But with consistency, you’ll find it’ll balance to around 62.5% win rate per year. Percentage Return Trading is relative. Doesn’t matter if you have a $10,000 (R200,000) or a $300,000 (R6,000,000) account. You need to think in percentages and not dollars. For example, if your starting capital is $10,000 and your goal is a 32% annual return, you’re targeting a profit of $3,200 (R64,000) by year-end (0.32 * $10,000). Expected Drawdown % Then we need to prepare for the drops. Drawdown refers to the reduction in your trading capital after a series of losing trades. When your portfolio goes from an all time high and takes a dip, that’s a drawdown. An expected drawdown of 20% means that you should be prepared for a decrease of up to $2,000 (R40,000) in your starting capital of $10,000 (R200,000) during the course of the year. It might come in May. It might last ‘till August. This will enable you to track your performance, manage risk effectively, and maintain focus on what truly matters. Remember consistency leads to long-term profitability.
JSE:J200Education
by Timonrosso
The Power of Trading Tunnel VisionAs humans. It’s tough. In this day and age, it feels impossible to just focus on one task at a time. You’re already shifting your attention. As you read this! You’re thinking about: What to eat, what you’re missing on Facebook, how boring this article is going to be, what’s on TV tonight, bills you have to pay, how else can you make bread for your financial future. Right? You can’t help it. It’s a disease. It’s affecting most people. It affected me for most of my life. And I think it’s one of these reasons why people are: NOT happy, NOT succeeding with their goals and NOT building their lives the way they want to. It needs to stop TODAY! Just do me one favour… Try and focus on one goal at a time. Get through this article first, move onto the next thing. Think of a racehorse. For them to be focused, avoid danger, remain undistracted and see the goal… They need to wear blinkers. So let’s put on our blinkers and let’s see why tunnel vision is the very skill you need to succeed. Not just with trading. But with every endeavour you embark to achieve and succeed. #1: Sharper Focus Tunnel vision allows you to concentrate and direct your attention to one thing at a time. Your analysis. Your setups. Your execution. Your modifications. Your reporting and reviewing. #2: Less distractions When you cut out your distractions, you will make more better decisions as a trader. It’s a skill. Put your phone away. Close your social media windows right now. Clear your desk and cupboards. Take the dog or cat out. Switch off the TV. Focus on your trading each day or when you do trade. #3: Better Risk Management When you are just about to take the trade. Make sure you double check your maths, volume trading size – according to what your portfolio is currently valued at. You don’t understand how many people make mistakes with: Wrong sizes, miscalculated levels and incorrect risk and reward. Protect and safeguard your trades with careful risk management consideration. #4: Speed up results and optimise your tasks: When you focus on one task at a time, this might be surprising but. You will finish sooner than you thought. When you put in your full – time, capital, and mental energy – you’ll be more efficient, productive and more laser focused. #5: Reduced Stress Of course when there are less distractions, less worry and less things to deal with at a time – this drops your stress. And I know you have stress right now. It’s the state of the world with the fast-paced connectivity and exponential developments. But when you narrow your life down to one thing at a time, I promise your stress will drop which will help with your trading decisions. #6: Superior strategy understanding By concentrating on a particular strategy or system, you will find that you’ll build a more profound understanding to where, why and how you’re putting your money. Master the strategy and only that one and you’ll see how far you’ll go. #7: Consistency and perseverance When you adopt tunnel vision in your life, you will begin to be more disciplined with your approach. This will lead to more consistency in your trading results. And you’ll find it will promote a stable growth of your portfolio. #8: Clearer Goals to achieve Like the horse sees the goal ahead. When you focus your attention on your goals and what you need to do to achieve them, one step at a time. You can track your progress more effectively. You can steer your trading in a better direction. You can take control of your trading with lightning focus. #9: Keeps you in the Now Time is fleeting. Before you know it, you’re in bed ready to wake up and repeat the routine. But what if, because you’re living so much in your head, that’s why time is going so quickly. I mean, right now I am only focusing on writing this article. And I’m putting in all my heart, energy and soul. And because there are no distractions, I FEEL the present. I feel time going slowly with each typing. So maybe you should to. Do everything in the present. Do it with full focus. Do it with heart. Do it with optimism and care. And this will have a positive effect on your trading.
TVC:SA40Education
by Timonrosso
SYS Preparing for the Next Big Move, Syscoin Analysis Today 💎 SYS is on the verge of breaking out from a descending channel upwards and is currently positioned just below the Point of Control (POC) of the Volume Profile Visible Range. 💎 At the moment, this POC is posing a minor resistance, but it's likely to transform into support once we clear the channel. 💎 It's worth noting that SYS could potentially revisit the channel's trendline before making its upward move – so both outcomes are in play. 💎 Furthermore, with SYS situated in a zone of high demand, the bullish sentiment seems even more plausible. 💎 In the ever-evolving crypto sphere, being up-to-date and flexible is paramount. Keep an eye out for further insights and savor your trading adventure with #MyCryptoParadise!!
Long
by MyCryptoParadise_Nathan
GBP/USD Bullish Action: Seizing Winning OpportunitiesYesterday, I highlighted the bullish stance of the GBP/USD pair. In today's session, our focus was on identifying long opportunities towards the higher end of our target. Currently, our target remains valid, and we managed to capitalize on the upward movement. By examining the lower timeframes (1-5), a clear positive shift in market structure towards the long side becomes evident. Throughout this shift, two distinct opportunities to engage in long positions presented themselves. Although the price didn't quite reach the demand zone, we were still able to execute successful plays.
Long
by ivancadramac
Why Impulse Trading is DANGEROUS – 19 ReasonsJust to get you up to scratch. An impulse trader in the financial markets is someone who makes trading decisions based on sudden emotional reactions rather than structured and informed strategies. They often buy or sell markets due to fear, greed, or other emotions, disregarding systematic analysis and rational judgment. Being an impulse trader can be dangerous for the following reasons: Neglect of thorough research: Impulsive traders often disregard the need for comprehensive market analysis. Emotional trading Decisions are often driven by emotions like fear or greed. Increased risk Impulsive actions often lead to unnecessary risk-taking. Loss of capital Quick decisions can lead to significant financial losses. Overtrading Impulse trading often leads to overtrading, resulting in higher transaction costs. Lack of discipline Impulsive trading discourages the development of disciplined trading habits. Neglect of risk management Impulsive traders often disregard the importance of risk management. Increased stress The anxiety of impulsive decisions can lead to physical and mental stress. Unstable performance Results can fluctuate wildly due to inconsistent decision-making. No strategic planning Impulse trading contradicts the idea of having a clear, consistent trading strategy. Short-term focus Impulsive trading often focuses on short-term gains, neglecting long-term profitability. Dependency on luck Impulsive trading can become akin to gambling, relying more on luck than skill. Failure to learn Impulse trading does not encourage learning from mistakes or experiences. Neglecting stop loss orders Impulsive traders often neglect to place stop loss orders to limit their losses. Fear of missing out (FOMO) This emotional reaction can lead to poor trading decisions. Revenge trading Trying to recover losses quickly can lead to more losses. Market timing Trying to time the market perfectly is nearly impossible and can lead to losses. Ignoring the broader economic context Impulsive traders often neglect broader market conditions. Potential for addiction The thrill of impulse trading can become addictive, leading to a dangerous cycle.
TVC:SA40Education
by Timonrosso
1
My Trading Routine - Not that you care It’s no holy grain, but routine is crucial. You need to find what works vest for you. This way you’ll be able to streamline your trading activities. Here, I lift the curtain to reveal my daily trading routine — a blend of ritual, strategy, and discipline that helps me navigate the markets with confidence. My routine is not a magical formula for instant success, but a systematized approach that helps me get up and just get to it. Make Coffee First, the trading day starts with a good cup of coffee, lemon water and yoghurt and muesli. It’s not just about the caffeine kick, but also the ritual involved. Brewing coffee and the other bits, gives me time to mentally prepare for the day, clear my mind from distractions, and focus on the tasks ahead. The lemon water, kickstarts the stomach and neutralises the acids. Try it. It’s my simple, personal ritual that sets the tone for the rest of the day. Open My Charting Platform Once I’m caffeinated and alert, I log into my preferred charting platform. I use TradingView for the charts and a few trading platforms with the brokers. It’s essential to have a reliable, intuitive platform that aligns with your trading style and strategy. Over the years, I’ve customized my platform with specific tools and indicators that I regularly use, enabling efficient and focused analysis. As you’ve seen I have my customised indicators and setups ready to go. Analyse the Main Market Trends Trading bias is what sets the mood. Go onto your daily or weekly charts with different main indices. And jot down, on your trading platform whether you are. Long biased (Only looking for longs) Short biased (Only looking for sells) Neutral biased (Waiting for a breakout) This high-level analysis helps me understand the market’s overall mood and possible influencing factors. Also, I make a note of any significant events or releases scheduled for the day that might impact my trades. You can go to the TradingView Economic Calendar and check. Look for Trading Setups Next, I start scanning for potential trading setups. I use my pre-defined criteria and I look for opportunities that align with my trading strategy. Plug in Trading Levels After I’ve found potential setups and high probability trades. I determine my entry, stop-loss, take-profit levels and quantity to buy or sell for each trade. These levels are guided by my risk management rules and are non-negotiable. I use my pattern trading strategy accompanied with Smart Money Concepts. Execute Trades Finally, with all the analysis done and trading levels set. I just take the trade/s. This is where discipline really comes into play. Regardless of the market noise or sudden fluctuations, I stick to my plan. After all, successful trading is not about making impulsive decisions but about consistently following a well-thought-out strategy. So that’s it. There are a couple of other things, like analysing and re-evaluating the portfolio once a week and when to prepare for paying tax and possible withdraws and deposits. But this is more subjective and is determined in sporadic parts of the year, that changes each time. This is just a taste. Remember, a good trading routine is one that suits your personal style, strategy, and goals. So feel free to tweak, adjust, and make it your own.
TVC:SA40Education
by Timonrosso
How to get LASER Vision for Trading TriumphWe live in an extremely fast-paced world. It’s almost impossible to focus on just one task at a time. In fact, you’re probably already thinking of shifting your attention away from what I have to share with you today. You’re thinking of moving to the next email, what you’re going to eat, what’s on Netflix or the bills you have to pay or how else you’ll make your millions. Well just today. I want you to slow down. Relax. Can you please try to finish reading this tutorial, before you move on to the next task. You may find that this one important trait, is the missing puzzle piece for not only your trading success. But also this will help you to enjoy life, be in the now and feel way more relaxed with less stress… This won’t only drastically improve your trading but with every aspect of your life. This important trait I’m talking about is… The Power of Tunnel Vision Tunnel vision or singular focus, is where you concentrate and direct your attention to ONE thing at a time. Think of racehorses. When they have their blinkers on they tend to have singular focus with an undistracted mindset to guide them to their goal (end of the race). With trading you need to put on your own figurative blinkers and have tunnel vision to focus on: • Your trading setups • Your trading chart analysis • Your trading process and execution • Your trading adjustments • Your reviews, reports and findings This means, while you are focusing on ONE task at a time you need to Remove distractions from your life You don’t understand how much better your trading decisions will be and the clarity you’ll have when you remove distractions when you trade. Make it a habit to put away your phone, close all irrelevant tabs, declutter your space, take the dog out and switch off the TV. Make sure you have a quiet environment. Dedicate your full attention and focus entirely to your trading activities – without any distractions. And then when it comes to execution, make sure you Focus on risk management carefully Many traders have lost their accounts, by being reckless with their trading. Before you execute any trade, make it a point to double-check your math, trade volume, and other crucial factors that concern your portfolio. You'd be surprised how many times I’ve heard from traders who: Calculate wrong sizes, miscalculated levels, and incorrect risk and reward levels. This is your hard-earned money you’re working with. So you need to always be responsible, accountable and highly focused with your money management approach. Especially when it comes to risk management. Laser focus will help you accelerate results Believe it or not. When you focus on one task at a time, it can significantly boost your efficiency and productivity. This means you’ll finish sooner than you expected. That’s because you’re devoting your resources, and mental energy on one thing. And when you’re laser focused, you'll accomplish your goals a lot quicker than expected. When it comes to trading, having laser focus will help you to: 1. Finish your trading analyses sooner 2. Have your charts setup and trading analyses ready for the next day 3. See more profit opportunities 4. Make less mistakes and errors And this which will increase your productivity and optimisation levels as a trader. In fact, you might even find a way to see new elements to add onto your strategy. This way, you’ll build and master your profitable strategy. Cut out unnecessary stress when you trade When you adopt tunnel vision in your life, there’ll be less to worry about. Think about it. Doesn’t your blood pressure go through the roof when you: • Have the TV on? • Have your dogs or cats invading your space every couple of minutes? • Have too many tabs opened on your computer? • Think about your bills, life, worries and issues? And with the state of the fast-paced and modern world, I know you have stress right now. But when you cut out all the stress, distractions and problems then you’ll feel more in control. As a trader, you’ll alleviate stress when you analyse, develop a strategy, execute your trades and review your performance. You’ll improve your discipline and achieve your goals with your trading Once you start working on adopting singular focus in your life, you will feel a complete change to the way you do things. You’ll approach your trading and life, with a more disciplined manner. And when you have discipline, it will lead to you being more consistent and will promote more stability with your trading performance. And just like race horses see their end goal. You too will be able to see the steps you need to take to track and achieve your financial goals. Final words Time is flying. And if there is one thing I want you to do, is slow down and focus on each task at hand. This will help slow down the effect of time. I assure you, because it changed my life. So from today: Engage everything in the present moment. Act with full focus and concentration Do it with heart and care. Focus on each task you pursue. This mindful approach will greatly improve your trading performance. Did you make it to the end of this tutorial? Comment YES or NO.
TVC:SA40Education
by Timonrosso
3
Improve Your Trading | The Ultimate CHECKLIST For Your Trades If you are looking for a way to increase the accuracy of your trades, I prepared for you a simple yet powerful checklist that you can apply to validate your trades. ✔️ - The trades fit my trading plan When you are planning to open a trade, make sure that it is strictly based on your rules and your entry reasons match your trading plan. For example, imagine you found some good reasons to buy USDJPY pair, and you decide to open a long trade. However, checking your trading plan, you have an important rule there - the market should strictly lie on a key level. The current market conditions do not fit your trading plan, so you skip that trade. ✔️ - The trade is in the direction with the trend That condition is mainly addressed to the newbie traders. Trading against the trend is much more complicated and riskier than trend-following trading, for that reason, I always recommend my students sticking with the trend. Even though USDCHF formed a cute double bottom pattern after a strong bearish trend, and it is appealing to buy the oversold market, it is better to skip that trade because it is the position against the current trend. ✔️ - The trade has stop loss and target level Know in advance where will be your goal for the trade and where you will close the position in a loss. If you think that it is a good idea to buy gold now, but you have no clue how far it will go and where can be the target, do not take such a trade. You should know your tp/sl before you open the trade. ✔️ - The trade has a good risk to reward ratio Planning the trade, your potential reward should outweigh the potential risks. And of course, there are always the speculations about the optimal risk to reward ration, however, try to have at least 1.3 R/R ratio. Planning a long trade on EURNZD with a safe stop loss being below the current support and target - the local high, you can see that you get a negative r/r ratio, meaning that the potential risk is bigger than the potential reward. Such a trade is better to skip. ✔️ - I am ok with losing this trade if the market goes against me Remember that even the best trading setups may occasionally fail. You should always be prepared for losses, and always keep in mind that 100% winning setups do not exist. If you are not ready to lose, do not even open the position then. ✔️ - There are no important news events ahead That rule is again primarily addressed to newbies because ahead and during the important news releases we have sudden volatility spikes. Planning the trade, check the economic calendar, filtering top important news. If important fundamentals are expected in the coming hours, it's better to wait until the news release first. Taking a long trade on Gold, you should check the fundamentals first. Only after you confirm, that there are no fundamentals coming soon, you can open the position. What I like about that checklist is that it is very simple, but you can use it whether you are a complete newbie or an experienced trader. Try it and let me know if it helps you to improve your trading performance. ❤️Please, support my work with like, thank you!❤️
OANDA:XAUUSDEducation
by VasilyTrader
6
TradingView - Economic Calendar Widget - How it Works I've applied the amazing TradingView Economic Calendar Widget tool to my website. It's extremely useful to use and apply. What I love about it is that I can customise the high impact news to watch out for on the daily. I thought I'd share a quick How it works guide! Intro to the Economic Calendar Widget by TradingView Whether you’re a fundamental (news and market related) trader or a technical (charts and historical info related) trader, this is a must-have tool to add to your trading arsenal. What is the Economic Calendar? The Economic Calendar is a powerful tool used by most traders to help you track good & bad news announcements, economic indicators, government reports and upcoming market-moving events. Each day you’ll see a list of financial world and economical news events in a chronological order. These events are to help you research and evaluate the impact they could have on different currencies, stocks, indices and commodities. Make sure the bar chart is highlighted in blue to see only HIGH IMPACT NEWS. How to read the Economic Calendar First you can get the Economic Calendar in the TradingView Widget website by going here www.tradingview.com Once you've applied the code to your website you'll easily understand how to read the Economic Calendar. Here are the main elements to consider: 1. Date: All economic events are shown in chronological order with the date and the time the announcement was released or will be released. 2. Time and country Below the date you’ll see the country’s flag and the time the event will be released or has been announced. NOTE: If you see the bar chart highlighted in blue – it means the event is a High Impact announcement. 3. Event On the top left next to the time will indicate the news or the events. 4. Actual/Forecast/Actual With each economic indicator event released, you’ll find the Actual, Forecast (Predicted) and Previous (Prior) numbers next to the date. Actual The economic event’s data released which shows you whether the data is BETTER or WORSE than the forecast number (expected). Forecast (Predicted) The expected number or forecast is the general agreement of the experts, analysts and economists. Prior (Previous) The previous data results e.g. Last month, last quarter or previous results. How to customize your Economic Calendar First, click on countries flags at the top of the calendar. A new window will open, where you can remove or select the countries events you’d like to see. Then click ‘Apply’ to update the information. Extra notes with the Economic Calendar There are a couple of important events you’ll need to watch out for on a monthly basis. Some of the most influential events, in no specific order, are the following: • Interest rate decisions • Changed in monetary policy • Inflation rates • QE Quantitative Easing • Credit tightening • Consumer sentiment • Non-farm Payroll • Changes in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) • Consumer Price Index (CPI) • Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) • Unemployment rate • Initial Jobless Claims • FOMC, Central banks meetings and economic talks • Geopolitical events You’ll see these will have a ripple effect on wider market movements. Economic indicators are the not only important events to watch out for. Also take note about the following news events: Event #1: ECB (European Central Bank) Event #2: US Fed Event #3: Bank of England Event #4: Bank of Japan Event #5: Swiss National Bank Event #6: Bank of Australia Let me know if this was useful and if you'll apply it to your website?
JSE:J200Education
by Timonrosso
8 Signs of Trading SuccessOnce you’re a trader, you’ll always be one. Once you have the pure desire and urge to succeed, there is no turning back. And you need to go with your own time line and slowly but surely, you will make it. But there are a few signs you’ll need to consider. It’s all up to you. Let’s start with these inevitable signs. Sign #1: You Have a Passion to Trade Successful traders are driven by an innate passion for the markets. You need to have a desire to understand the intricacies of global economies, price action and the thrill of identifying high probability trades. The wins, the losses. The winning streaks and even the losing streaks. You need to have equal passion and enthusiasm to fuel the time and effort you’ll need to put into learning, practicing, and refining your strategies. Sign #2: You Have a Trading Routine A routine is crucial. Whether it’s in the morning, afternoon or at night. This routine includes regular market analysis, pre-market preparations, and post-market reviews. Pre, during and post. Pre involves doing all the preparations and looking for sexy setups. During, is identifying high probability trades and putting in your trading levels. Post is seeing how your portfolio and trades performed. And you’ll need to foster a systematic approach to trading. Successful traders know the importance of sticking to a routine to avoid hasty, emotional decisions and to stay attuned to market changes. Sign #3. You Are Disciplined In the world of trading, discipline is king. It’s the ability to maintain control, stick to your trading plan. It’s also the state where you avoid impulsive decisions based on fleeting market sentiments. Successful traders know when to enter and exit trades, when to cut losses. They also have the discipline to monitor and make any necessary adjustments. But most important, you need to follow your strategies diligently. Sign #4: You Have a System to Follow A system has a clear set of rules and parameters for entering and exiting trades, managing risks, and securing profits. You then have the ability and vision to fine-tune the system, look for the best markets to follow and navigate the markets confidently and consistently. Your goal is to reduce the role of guesswork and emotion in your decision-making process. Sign #5: You Have a Strong Mind Trading is a mental game. It’s one of my 4 M’s with trading (Markets, Methods, Money and MIND!). A successful trader possesses a resilient mindset that can handle the emotional rollercoaster that trading often brings. They remain calm under pressure, keep their emotions in check. And most important, they are able to stay rational even when faced with losses. Sign #6: You Have Tunnel Vision Think of horses with their blinkers. They can’t see beyond their central vision. They can’t see the sexy horses around them nor the food that surrounds them. So with trading you need to be central focused. You need to learn how to block out ‘noise’ and stay focused on your trading endeavours. Don’t be swayed by others. Don’t be swayed by the news. Don’t be swayed by the hear-say! Remain focused on your plan and what you know works with you. Sign #7: You Have Goals Successful traders set clear, achievable goals. They know what they want to achieve through trading and have a timeline for these goals. They are realistic about their expectations and continually monitor their progress. Based on your track record. You have goals on what your win rate is. You have goals on what no. of winning and losing trades you can expect per year. You have goals as to what your portfolio should potentially grow to each year. Having specific goals keeps them motivated, directs their efforts, and helps gauge whether their strategies are working. Sign #8: You Have Endurance You have to learn to be persistent, and endure the ability to withstand market volatility and periods of losses. You have to understand that downturns are part of the journey. You need to lose to win and how it’s the only way to help your portfolio achieve an overall upward trajectory. Also have the endurance to wait for the right trading opportunities that will present themselves. So if you got these trading signs you have a great chance at WINNING. Here they are again. Sign #1: You Have a Passion to Trade Sign #2: You Have a Trading Routine Sign #3. You Are Disciplined Sign #4: You Have a System to Follow Sign #5: You Have a Strong Mind Sign #6: You Have Tunnel Vision Sign #7: You Have Goals Sign #8: You Have Endurance
JSE:J200Education
by Timonrosso
THIS IS THE REASON YOUR STRATEGY DOESN'T WORKThe title is brash, I know. But before you click away, answer these two questions: 1) How many strategies have you tried? 2) How many strategies have you backtested through several years and thousands of trades? If you have tried more strategies than you've backtested rigorously, then stick around because that's probably the reason why you're losing money. Imagine this. Florence is a novice trader. He's seen the thousands of dollars in profit a kid 10 years younger than him can generate. He's seen the kid flexing his Lambo on Instagram. The kid mentions RSI a few times, so Florence assumes the RSI indicator is the secret to insane profits. Florence is chomping at the bits and loads up a fresh Webull account with $3,000. Every time the RSI is above 70 on a stock, he shorts that stock. Lo and behold, after 5 trades, Florence's account now sits at $2,300. He concludes the indicator does not work. Florence perseveres and is determined to find the secret strategy to quick profits. He scraps the RSI and studies "support and resistance" trading from a few youtube mentors. He reloads his Webull account back up to $3,000. With a refreshed vision, he shorts anytime a stock is at resistance and longs anytime a stock hits support. Sadly, after 10 trades, his account is down again, this time to $2,600. Florence is flabbergasted. The story goes on. He attempts implementing strategy after strategy and continues to lose money. Unfortunately, many of us are Florence. We did what he did. We got into the game without a blueprint or game plan. And this is why my title is brashly stated, "If you don't read this you are going to lose money," because it's true. If you resemble Florence even in the slightest, basing the success of your trading strategy on a handful of trades, then how do you expect to know what strategy is actually successful? I don't blame you for approaching trading like Florence. In today's age, we are seeing the market oversaturated with traders and trading coaches, or even worse, "trading influencers". As with any influx of the masses, we are going to get the scumbags trying to get you to buy their image and product by falsifying the simplicity and ease of trading. If you are jumping between strategies without quantifying its success and failure rates over thousands of scenarios, then stop trading right now because you are going to continue losing money. Find a backtesting service or at the least log every single trade you take. Whatever it is, slow down and find proof of failure before declaring failure. I don't want you to fall into a never-ending hole of searching for the "right" indicator/strategy. The truth is, most of the strategies you've thrown away probably work and you don't even know it.
CME_MINI:ES1!Education
by thetradedoc
A Trader’s Checklist: 12 Essential Trading Questions to answerWhatever you trade… A successful trader minimises these risks by asking and answering a series of vital questions. This will help you ensure a clear strategy, an understanding of the market, and a control of emotions. Let’s dive into these questions. Q 1. Has a Trade Lined Up? Identifying a potential trade is the first step. Look for trends, chart patterns, or any other signals that indicate a potential opportunity. Yuu can also use Smart Money Concepts or price action techniques to pinpoint a trading setup. Q 2. Do I Have a Strategy in Place? Every successful trader operates with a strategy. This could be based on technical analysis, fundamental analysis, or a combination of both. This will give you the roadmap to tell you when to enter and exit trades. Q 3. Do I Know Where to Place My Trading Levels? Determine your entry, exit, and stop-loss points. These are crucial levels for you to know with your trading strategy. This will remove the emotions or gut feelings or like I like to say ‘gat’ feelings. Q 4. Do I Know How Much I Need to Put into My Trade? Money management is key. Decide beforehand how much of your capital you’re willing per trade. This is obviously based on what your CURRENT portfolio is rather than what it was. A common rule of thumb is not to risk more than 1-2% of your trading capital. Q 5. Am I Ready to Buy or Sell Now? Before you pull the trigger. You need to be sure you’re ready. Have all the signals from your strategy aligned? Do you see the sign to get in? Then JUST TAKE THE TRADE. Q6. Do I Understand the Underlying Asset? Whether it’s a company’s stock, a commodity, or a cryptocurrency. You need to understand what you’re trading. You need to understand the factors that influence price movements, which can also give you that extra edge. Q 7. Have I Conducted Thorough Technical Analysis? Charts, indicators, patterns, volume or Smart Money Concepts. Technical analysis is a trader’s bread and butter. Make sure you’ve analysed the market technically and your analysis supports the trade. Q 8. Am I Letting Emotions Influence My Decisions? Fear, greed and ego are a trader’s worst enemies. Are you trading based on your mechanical and analytical strategy? Or are emotions driving your decisions? Q 9. Have I Set Realistic Profit Targets? It’s important to have profit targets in place. And they need to be realistic, based on the market conditions and your trading strategy. Remember, each market has their own trading personality so work with it. Q 10. Is This Trade Consistent With My Trading Plan? You need to make sure, your trading setup aligns perfectly with your track record and system data. Each trade should align with your overall trading plan. If it doesn’t, it may be best to pass. Q 11. Am I Overexposed in One Sector or Asset? If the quantity you choose to trade matches your risk management, you’re good to go. If you have a smallish portfolio, you might not be able to trade EVERY market. Some commodities and indices are extremely expensive and too risk when it comes to volume. If you’re overexposed in one area, you could face higher losses. Q 12. Am I Prepared for the Trade to Go Against Me? Even with all the analysis in the world, trades can go wrong. Are you prepared for this, both financially and emotionally? By asking these questions, you will at least be prepared for what is to come. Do you have any more questions you ask before taking a trade?
JSE:J200Education
by Timonrosso
3 Best Market Trading Opportunities to Maximize Profit Potential Hey traders, In the today's article, we will discuss 3 types of incredibly accurate setups that you can apply for trading financial markets. 1. Trend Line Breakout and Retest The first setup is a classic trend line breakout. Please, note that such a setup will be accurate if the trend line is based on at least 3 consequent bullish or bearish moves. If the market bounces from a trend line, it is a vertical support. If the market drops from a trend line, it is a vertical resistance. The breakout of the trend line - vertical support is a candle close below that. After a breakout, it turns into a safe point to sell the market from. The breakout of the trend line - vertical resistance is a candle close above that. After a breakout, it turns into a safe point to buy the market from. Take a look at the example. On GBPJPY, the market was growing steadily, respecting a rising trend line that was a vertical support. A candle close below that confirmed its bearish violation. It turned into a vertical resistance. Its retest was a perfect point to sell the market from. 2. Horizontal Structure Breakout and Retest The second setup is a breakout of a horizontal key level. The breakout of a horizontal support and a candle close below that is a strong bearish signal. After a breakout, a support turns into a resistance. Its retest is a safe point to sell the market from. The breakout of a horizontal resistance and a candle close above that is a strong bullish signal. After a breakout, a resistance turns into a support. Its retest if a safe point to buy the market from. Here is the example. WTI Crude Oil broke a key daily structure resistance. A candle close above confirmed the violation. After a breakout, the broken resistance turned into a support. Its test was a perfect point to buy the market from. 3. Buying / Selling the Market After Pullbacks The third option is to trade the market after pullbacks. However, remember that the market should be strictly in a trend. In a bullish trend, the market corrects itself after it sets new higher highs. The higher lows usually respect the rising trend lines. Buying the market from such a trend line, you open a safe trend-following trade. In a bearish trend, after the price sets lower lows, the correctional movements initiate. The lower highs quite often respect the falling trend lines. Selling the market from such a trend line, you open a safe trend-following trade. On the chart above, we can see EURAUD pair trading in a bullish trend. After the price sets new highs, it retraces to a rising trend line. Once the trend line is reached, trend-following movements initiate. What I like about these 3 setups is the fact that they work on every market and on every time frame. So no matter what you trade and what is your trading style, you can apply them for making nice profits. Good luck!
OANDA:XAUUSDEducation
by VasilyTrader
34
Shape your future with 7 Trading ChoicesAs you traverse the journey of trading. There are a couple of choices you’ll need to make. Not your spouse, not your kids, not your dog, not your neighbour. You… Every day you hold that bit of power that will shape your unique trading path. Remember, every action we take is a conscious choice. Where we say YES to one endeavour automatically entails saying NO to another. If you did economics, you would know it’s called an opportunity cost. Therefore, it is crucial that you need to say YES and make choice with whatever action is necessary to pave your successful future. Let’s go through some of the choices you need to make. Choice #1: Do you just take the trade? To Trade or Not to Trade, I call this the Hamlet Dilemma When the market lines up a juicy trade, you put your levels in and quantify your position. All that’s left is for you to press the button. If you’re hesitant, I want you to ask ONE thing. Is it a high probability trade or low? If it’s high. Count down 1, 2, 3. Just take the trade. Choice #2: The pick of the trading pops Go to a candy store, there are so many options of amazing candies. But you can’t take them all. You can’t taste them all either. You have to choose. Same with the markets. Thousands to choose from – which one do you pick? Here’s an idea. Choose a day in the week to trade a certain market. Monday stocks, Tuesday indices, Wednesday Forex, Thursday stocks. I don’t know. But condense the work and the watchlists and the markets so they’re BITE size to take and trade each week. Choice #3: Taming the Clock Time waits for no trader. Are you a day trader, where you want to open and close a trade within a day? Are you a swing trader swing trader where you catch and hold waves of market momentum over several days or weeks? Are you BOTH? Your lifestyle, trading experience, and market analysis skills can guide this decision. Tick-tock choose who you are on the clock! Choice #4: Techie or Traditionalist: Trading Platforms When you choose a trading and charting platform, it’s basically choosing a portion of your personality. It needs to suit your lifestyle and personality. You need to choose what colour backgrounds, indicators and chart layout you wish. You must want to enjoy what you see in the charts. You must find that they’re easy to work with and exactly what you need to trade with. Improve your trading skills, chart setups and become a savvy platform trader. Choice #5: Risk It All or Play It Safe: Money Management It’s the eternal trader’s tug-of-war. You get into a trade with the idea that you can lose money, or make money. And the sweet spot is what you need to decide what is best for your portfolio. Easy… Never risk more than 2% per trade. Never risk any money you can’t afford to lose. Play your trading safe in a way that you can preserve and protect your portfolio over the long haul. Choice #6: Trust gut or trust charts The big one is, what choice do you make when you decide to trade. Do you trust your gut or dive deep into data? While intuition can sometimes lead to lucky profitable outcomes. It’s not going to happen every time. It’s going to resemble gambling more than trading. And when you hit that losing streak and don’t have a solid trading system to trust and work on, it’s game over before you know it. The market doesn’t work on emotions. The market works on analytics, numbers, volume, demand and supply. So be like the market and you’ll stand a chance. Choice #7: Buy and Hold or Buy and Fold This one is the hardest choice of all. When you get into your trade. And it goes in your favour. Do you lock in profits by closing your trade, as you think it’s going to turn from here? Or do you adjust your stop loss, to protect your portfolio from taking any loss. Or do you just let your trade run according to your trading back-tested stats? Choice is yours. This also requires HIGH experience in trading. Because I still have to decide on these three choices every day when I’m in trades. Obviously, there are many other choices you need to make. But just remember. Everything you do is solely what you choose to drive you to the path of what you desire.
JSE:J200Education
by Timonrosso
How to Adapt to the Ever-Evolving Financial Markets – 4 WaysThe only constant with the financial markets is… Change The market is constantly changing in a way that it’s brining: New demand New supply New volume and fresh changes in the complex algorithms. If you want to thrive you need to learn to learn to adapt, evolve and grow with the markets. I want to cover four elements to today’s topic. The Inevitability of Market Change Change is not only constant but inevitable in financial markets. There will always be new elements streaming into the markets from: ~ Global and political events ~ Micro and macro aspects ~ Economic indicators ~ Regulatory shifts, and ~ Investor sentiment These elements are perpetually at work, shaping and reshaping the market. These catalysts can shift the trajectory of entire sectors, leading to volatile market movements. Influx of New Volume on Market Dynamics Every day, the market sees a deluge of new volume. There are new traders and investors constantly joining the financial markets world. And we are seeing an inflow of capital from retail traders, institutional investors, and high-frequency trading firms. The big institutions like Smart Money (banks, hedge funds, brokers etc…) are causing the big volatile moves in the market. The smaller guys – dumb money and retail traders – are also helping with liquidity in the markets. Every transaction is causing a shift in the market. No matter how small it’s the “Butterfly Effect of the financial market”. The Role of Algorithms in Market Evolution In the era of digital transformation, algorithms have become a pivotal part of the financial markets. Algorithmic trading or ‘algo-trading’ employs complex mathematical models to execute trades at lightning speed and frequency. I’m talking about Copy Trader, Robinhood, AI trading bots, EA Expert Advisors and pre-determined automatic mechanical trading methods. This practice is now an integral part of the trading landscape. And they will continue to have an influence in price action, and market patterns. Haven’t you noticed? In the 50s through to the early 2000’s. The markets trended on a more consistent basis. Any monkey could choose a list of good stocks and hold them until they were up 200% – 1000%. But nowadays with derivatives, algorithms, shorts and automatic execution – markets have never been more volatile and more difficult to ride the trends. Always Adapt to Thrive in Changing Markets It’s our job to learn to be more flexible and to adapt to these market conditions. As markets evolve, so must we evolve with them. We need to always: ~ Apply new markets to our watchlists ~ Look for better trading instruments ~ Change the trading strategy to make it more conducive with the environments ~ Always look for the next best broker, trading and charting platform ~ Look for ways to reduce costs and maximise profits. I’ll end off with this. The market is constantly changing, adapting and evolving. We need to embrace the change and not see it as a threat. Have this mentality and you’ll always have the opportunities to improve, anticipate and grow as a trader.
JSE:J200Education
by Timonrosso
5 Stupid Trading Advice PointsA staggering 98% of traders inevitably stumble and tumble into the abyss of financial loss. Why such a high failure rate, you ask? It’s because failed traders try to preach their failures (as they think that’s how it is). They develop these narcissistic methods, where they misguide others and are too blinded by their own failures. Few years later, they’re back in their parents basements playing games or working at Mc Donald’s. I want to share and explore five such stupid advice points that can send even the most promising trading careers down a spiral of regret and loss. Go big or go home – a fool’s motto for financial Russian roulette. In the world of high stakes and adrenaline rush, the mantra ‘Go big or go home’ might sound like a call to glory. It might sound like a quick way to riches. However, when you say this. You’re destined for a financial land mine eventually. Going ‘big’ in trading terms typically means putting a large chunk of your capital into one or a few trades. And yes, it might very well pay off in the short term. It may pay handsomely. But for how long until you blow your entire account? Smart trading advocates a balanced approach, including diversified portfolios and proper risk management techniques. It’s more about ‘Go steady and stay in the game’ than ‘Go big or go home’. The next trade will be better – as reliable as a fortune cookie’s prophecy. This is another common trap. They just took a loss and now they feel, the next trade will be a winner. Nope! This is a dangerous mindset which will lead you to ‘revenge trading.’ Trading is not a series of independent events. Your next trade is not guaranteed to be better simply because you lost the previous one. And we can NEVER predict with certainty which trade will win. You need to approach each trade objectively. Don’t let past performances cloud your judgment. Don’t let a false and fabricated future bring on trading destruction. Learn from past mistakes, certainly, but don’t bank on the next trade as a panacea for all previous losses. Follow your heart – Your heart pumps. Your brain thinks. Stop relying on emotions and gut feelings in a robotic, cold and ruthless market. Emotions can amplify the impact of market volatility. Emotions can make you overreact to market swings. Emotions can make you stick with losing trades for too long. Emotions can cut your profits far too soon. And you can blame evolution. Instinct often plays a role in decision-making. And you need to remember that… Successful trading absolutely needs a systematic, disciplined approach based on logic and solid analysis. Everything happens for a reason – the financial equivalent of seeing faces in clouds. OK this might comfort you in some esoteric aspects of your life. But you need to get rid of this notion with the markets. The financial market is complex and influenced by numerous variables (that have nothing to do with you). Get off your high horse and believe everything revolves around you! Not every price movement has a logical or predictable reason behind it. Instead, you should focus on understanding broader market trends, develop solid trading strategies, and manage your risk effectively. With logic, with discipline, with mathematics, with statistics – NOT WITH ESOTERIC REASONS! Work harder and you’ll win more – because nothing says ‘smart trading’ like turning a strategic marathon into a frenzied sprint. While hard work is essential with business and with most areas of your life. Trading is a game where quality trumps quantity. The ‘work harder and you’ll win more’ advice often leads traders to overtrade, mistakenly believing that a higher frequency of trades equates to higher returns. In trading, it’s more important to work smarter, not harder. In trading it’s more important to think quality, not quantity. In trading it’s more important to think high probability than any probability. It’s about making well-informed trades, not just more trades. So let’s sum up the stupid trading advice points you need to watch out for. Go big or go home – a fool’s motto for financial Russian roulette. The next trade will be better – as reliable as a fortune cookie’s prophecy. Follow your heart – Everything happens for a reason – the financial equivalent of seeing faces in clouds. Work harder and you’ll win more – because nothing says ‘smart trading’ like turning a strategic marathon into a frenzied sprint. If you can think of any more, let me know in the comments.
JSE:J200Education
by Timonrosso
Become a Trading Machine - 11 ways!If you want to trade well and consistently. You have to be more mechanically orientated. The weekend is about to begin so I'll be literally quick and brief. Saying "literally" was unnecessary and made it longer. Sorry. Here are the pointers: 1. Stay committed 2. Cultivate patience 3. Avoid herd mentality 4. Be long-term oriented 5. Stop crying over losers 6. Review your performance 7. Stop celebrating winners 8. Adapt to market conditions 9. Keep your emotions in check 10. Don't think of quick success 11. Adapt and advance with technology
JSE:J200Education
by Timonrosso