Trading Educators Blog

​There are a number of reasons that many traders favor technical analysis over fundamental. For starters, fundamental traders tend to be commercial firms; that is, they are involved in the actual production or consumption of a commodity. The commercial firms have the information that most of us cannot afford to acquire. For example, are you able to go out and check global soil conditions in an agr...

​Trading is a challenge. Tens of thousands are drawn to trading, but few last more than a few months. Trading is presented in such a way that it appears to be easy, so it's difficult to face the truth that trading is difficult—at least until you can get the hang of it. Many beginning traders need to win. They are hoping that the huge profits they make trading will solve many problems in their live...

​Jim has been holding a position for six months. A media analyst predicted the stock would hit $100 by the end of the year. He bought it at $75. It went down to $50, and it's on the way back up. During the recent interest in the markets, Jim is hoping that it will hit $75 so he can sell it and break even. The break-even point is critical. When you are on the losing side of a trade, all you can do ...

Careful risk management is a key component you being able to trade at your best. Comfort level is really important when it comes to risk. You need to be comfortable in three areas: Emotional, Mental, and Financial. We could even add Physical to that list without having to make too great a stretch. If there is a real danger that you will lose large amounts of capital, or money that you just can't a...

A few years ago I had an interesting conversation with Joe about "what makes a trader a successful trader". We discussed this over several days because we wanted to find out how we can help struggling traders to enhance their trading. We finally came to the conclusion that "confidence" is what makes a huge difference. A trader can have a good system, good money and risk management in place, good u...

You will never be a perfect trader. However, as traders we have a strong need to want complete control over the outcome of a trade. We want to believe that if we analyze the markets long enough, we'll have perfect knowledge and we can trade to perfection. But such desire leads to wrong assumptions that can do us more harm than good. Assuming we must have control restricts our actions and reactions...

​It is Tuesday, and you've been watching the markets closely for the past two weeks. It appears to be the fulfillment of your dreams: prices are making new market highs. You wonder, "What is the smart thing to do?" On the one hand, you can go long, but will this optimism last? Oil prices are still high, but they are lower and a little more stable compared to last summer. Everyone is hoping that co...

​Keeping Losses Small I cannot say this enough times, so I'm saying it again, you must learn to keep your losses small. It is the single greatest concept that I can show you that will help you make profits in the market. This principle is of such magnitude that it dwarfs all other principles for trade, money, and risk management. Did you know that if you keep your losses small, you can flip a coin...

There are any number of reasons why a trader hesitates before a trade. The main one is lack of planning. Without a plan, there is no degree of confidence a trade will be successful, it's all wishful thinking. Unless they are outright gamblers, traders usually have a strong need to protect their assets and avoid risk. This is especially true for beginning traders. It can take a long time to build u...

From time to time we get this very important question: Is trading a sin? Often this question comes from people in ministry who want to become traders in order to fund various church activities. The answer is: No, trading is not a sin, but trading without knowing what you are doing can lead to a lot of problems. Trading in and of itself is not considered to be gambling. The futures markets exist as...

Many traders are smart enough to know that they will win in the long run by taking only the best trades, but become impatient due to the lack of anything happening. They forget that the long run can be "long". Taking only the best trades can be frustrating. They come along rarely, and even when they do there is no guarantee of winning with them. Long gaps occur in between. We can become angry and ...

​Although I haven't the faintest idea of how to play chess, it certainly seems like a great idea. I imagine you can improve stock and futures trading by learning how to play chess. It might also help to develop an interest in physics. Every trader should learn to develop his problem-solving and pattern recognition abilities. I've been told that nothing does this better than learning how to play ch...

By being flexible I mean that over time, your trading philosophy will undergo changes. These changes are brought about because of external events (economic considerations, natural disasters, political events, etc.), and because of internal events, usually my own mistakes. My views change as economic, political, and technological changes occur both on and now off our planet. My views change as I se...

Throughout the day you make everyday decisions that mean little to you. You drive your kids to school and along the way, you make a host of decisions about which route to take, where to turn, or when to stop off for gas. Each decision is made with little thought. Later in the day, you may decide to stop off at the supermarket. You decide what to buy for dinner and how much you will spend. Do you o...

​After reading the financial page on Wednesday night, Jim thought, "How could anyone invest in the markets and get a sound night's sleep?" After you saw the major indexes drop on Wednesday, you might have thought the same thing. But as a seasoned investor or trader, you realize that such corrections are commonplace and you've learned to take them in stride. You don't worry about it and know that i...

I believe that to be a truly successful trader you have to have a true passion for trading. This is probably true for any field of endeavor. I believe that the people who do best are not primarily motivated by fame, glory, respect, or status. They are driven by the pure love of the what they do. Winning traders, similarly, have strong interests in the markets, and this passion is the driving force...

When trading the markets, it's vital to stay grounded in reality. You can't get caught up in dreams. For instance, it may sound "easy" to people outside the profession to make money by trading Google, but there are a couple of real obstacles to taking home huge profits. First, risk should always be considered when making a trade, and while trying to manage risk, some traders would not want to take...

​Which would you be willing to part with first, your money or your self-esteem? If you are like most traders, you are likely to let your money go before your self-esteem. Trading stories are full of traders who gladly fed losing trades to avoid admitting the fact that they made a mistake. They hoped against hope that a losing trade would turn around if they could merely wait long enough. In the en...

​Short-term winning traders have guts. They have to. No one has a crystal ball. You can guess what the markets will do, but you can never know what will happen with complete certainty. Only the traders who risk enough money, and make enough winning trades can hope to achieve glory. And living under these conditions takes guts. Trading can be about 90% market psychology. Do fundamentals play a role...