Trading Educators Blog

For the most part, trader’s stops are based on money, ticks, pips or some percentage of their trading account. All of these are money management stops. In this respect, the level selected for the stop should take into consideration your risk tolerance. However, very few traders use time stops in addition to money management stops. Time stops are trade management stops. Using a time stop is quite s...

It seems as though everyone believes in trading education except those who really need it. For years, knowledgeable brokers have advocated it.  Trading coaches recommend it. And great traders are also believers. Why then do wannabe and aspiring traders not believe in trading education? Why are beginners so reluctant to shell out a few bucks to get the education they need in order to be succes...

Many times in the past I’ve written about the need to adapt, the need to be able to change your behavior relative to the market because the markets are ever-changing.  I’ve stated that mechanical systems may be workable, but for only a short time relative to the life of markets.  You must learn to trade what you see, and to understand what you see on a chart. When I first began trading t...

  Trading discipline exists in two distinct parts: ·         Before your order is filled. ·         After your order is filled. Let’s look at each of these categories, because both are tremendously important. Trading Discipline Before Your Order Is Filled: Here we are talking about all the things you do as a trade...

Traders and investors have difficulty "letting their profits run." When you see your investment increase in value, it's hard to avoid selling early to lock in profits. But not every trade goes your way, so when you come upon a trade that does produce a profit, it's vital for your long-term success to optimize the profits for that particular trade. You must make more profits on your winning trades ...

Trading for a living involves more than getting in and out of the market at the right time, and more than thinking about moving averages and indicators. Trading is a business, not just a job, and every business in the world has to be managed. Every business involves the managerial functions of organizing, planning, delegating, directing, and controlling. If you, the trader, are to perform these fu...

Some time ago I spent 4 days in a Forex trading office, teaching and working with the traders there. It was interesting to see how these traders speak with one another, and to listen to what they say. I couldn’t help making some observations which I will now share with you. If you are a part- or full-time trader, you may have enjoyed the attention this wild and wooly occupation brings at social ga...

“I’ll worry about it later?” When trying to deal with the fact that we must eventually cope with an unpleasant event, such statements help us get through life. We often put off things we don’t want to do, hoping that we will gather enough energy and enthusiasm to deal with them in the future. Take your taxes for instance. Do you wait until the last day to pay them? Why not start working on your ta...

  If your financial losses have injured or hurt your personal relationships, you must apologize and ask those persons for their forgiveness. Most people will forgive you immediately but whether or not they forgive you is unimportant. It is most important that you forgive yourself and resolve not to repeat the same mistakes. It’s also important to realize that if the offended person does...

When you put your money on the line, it's hard to avoid getting a little emotional. Beginning traders may be especially prone to experience a roller-coaster ride of emotions, feeling euphoric after a winning streak, yet disappointed after a string of losses. How well do you handle emotions? Winning traders control their emotions. They don't let their emotions control them. But emotions don't happe...

People don't want to be changed. They don't want to be told that they need to change. Do you ever find yourself struggling in those areas? Thank you for your honesty. If there is a struggle, that means there is a battle for truth. If you're not battling, you've already lost. Truth has been lost and deceit has won. We must come to a place where we are willing to unclothe our soul, ultimately, compl...

Winning traders must identify profitable trading strategies. It's a creative process. Much like scientists find evidence to support a theory, traders must formulate hypotheses and determine whether their proposed strategy can produce a profit. You must sift through a wealth of information, mentally testing and retesting your hypothesis and trying to decide if it will work when the ideal market con...

Recently, someone sent me the following question: “Just how committed does a trader need to be?” I don’t know that I can put a number to that. For instance, on a scale of 1-10 how committed should a trader be. But if I had to evaluate it on that basis, I would say he must be a “10.” What is the value of commitment? How do you measure such a thing? Most people have an “interest” in becoming consist...

I received a couple of emails asking whether or not I believe in support and resistance. In fact, one subscriber said if I didn't believe in support and resistance, then I couldn't possibly believe in trend! Why? Because in all cases the situation ends. Here's what I believe: The trend is your friend until the end. The swing is the thing until it goes "ding." What is support and what is resistance...

Have you ever find $50 in your coat pocket or receive an unexpected gift from a relative? Perhaps you inadvertently overpaid your credit card, and now have an extra $100 that you didn't think you had? When most people receive a windfall, they feel they can spend it freely, as if it isn't "real" money. The same thing happens when recreational gamblers unexpectedly win a jackpot. They didn't expect ...

“You can get ahead of yourself in this game, and it’s dangerous to get cocky. But I’ve had times where for an hour I could do no wrong. I’m trading and 99 percent of the trades are good, they’re all for 30 or 50 contracts, and I’ll make 10 grand. Then I’ll overextend myself and maybe buy 10 or 15 contracts, fighting the trend just because I know prices have hit a support level. Then prices blow th...

There are two important components of federal market activity which affect long- term economic activity and stock and commodity values; these are interest rates and money supply. A contracting money supply was one of the factors that caused the Great Depression of the 1930's. In the early 1980's most traders focused almost totally on the money supply figures, which would cause cash bonds and T-Bil...

Question from a subscriber: "Once I’ve achieved success as a trader, then what? I’ve heard that after a while trading can become boring." I know you would all like to have that problem, but I can vouch for its being true. I always have to find new ways to trade or I do become bored. However, I have never run out of ways to trade that remain exciting, at least for a fairly long time. After the obje...

Dear Friends, Whenever this time of year rolls around, I find myself with an attitude of gratitude. This week we celebrated Thanksgiving Day. Although "Thanksgiving" is not celebrated here in Uruguay, many living here celebrated at various places around the country. There were at least fifty people at the gathering my wife and I went to. Trading and markets have been a major part of my life for al...

As a trader, it's essential that you set specific goals. Trading is chaotic enough without trying to achieve unstructured goals that are difficult to manage and reach. Making profitable investments requires you to prepare carefully. You have to develop hypotheses regarding current market conditions. You have to devise ways of identifying setups and determine how and when to enter and exit the trad...