“Impossibility’ is found in the dictionary of fools.” – Napoleon Bonaparte
"Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” - Winston Churchill
Hello:
Trading profitably need not be reserved for financial gurus and degree-wielding mathematicians in investment banks. The process of buying and selling looks simple when considered at first. For instance, long and short possibilities are also categorized by signals. When you buy an instrument you’re long. That’s simple enough to understand. But trading in reality is more difficult since the markets can’t be predicted with absolute certainty. This is why you need to learn the principles that can ensure permanent safety of your capital in the face of the market uncertainty. Traders might not get rich quickly, but they shouldn’t get poor fast either. In view of this, trading risk managers work hard to educate people on the best ways to keep their portfolios safe. Those who refuse to listen risk losing out on the opportunity of getting on the road to everlasting triumph in the markets. What about you? Would you be guided by misconceptions and preconceived ideas, or would you be willing to test facts with an open mind?
Many a trader is haunted by a memory of devastating mistakes they made in the past. What influence does past life or trading experiences have on your conduct as a trader? Have you invested the time to uncover the impact they may well have upon your performance? Memories can be a blessing. Reflecting on past pleasant trading results can warm our heart. But in other case, memories may seem more like a curse. Are you plagued by painful memories of hurtful past trading results? If so, you may wonder, ‘Will these sad memories ever fade from my mind?’ Good thoughts illuminate one’s trading career, bad thoughts darken it. Now, what choice can you make to revolutionize the way you trade? How can the choice help you in your trading? The greater the choice, the more the effort, and as time passes you’ll build your own toolkits of profitable trading ideas and these will likely serve you well because experience is the trader’s most valuable asset and it soon develops into your own valuable investment guidelines. No victory without battles
The essence of this article is this: You need to learn what it takes to be a permanently successful trader, and you need to discipline yourself to carry out what you learn automatically. Some golden rules should be rigorously followed, plus traders shouldn’t be afraid to make up their safety rules based on time-tested experience.
How Long Does It Take to Be Successful in Trading?
Humankind tends to take the most difficult route which is often perceived as the easy way out. It’s this very perception that makes it easy for many to believe anyone saying that a trading idea or system is magical. Innumerable amount of trading ideas and methodologies have been hyped, yet over 90% of traders can’t still make money in the long run. I can’t forget the famous song by Kermit the Frog: ‘It’s Hard Being Green’ (voiced by Jim Henson). If you can get the necessary knowledge and practice long enough, your trade results should end up being green. For you to survive so long in the markets, you need more than a strategy that shows or let you know when to buy or sell. Now the question is:
Then how long does it take to be a permanently successful trader?
Have you watched the Korean Epic season movie called Jumong? You probably have. The main character of the story, Jumong, is destined to accomplish what his father, General Hae Mo Su, fails to achieve and even surpass him exceedingly. He starts with a comfortably easy life in a palace – a typical comfort zone. It’s not surprising that his comfort zone renders him useless to himself, nation and destiny. He’s lazy, myopic and hare-brained. He’s completely hopeless; until he’s forced out to of his comfort zone to face the realities and challenges in the world. He starts having a series of experiences and life-threatening encounters that begin to toughen him. He gets trained by a dreaded veteran (he doesn’t know that the veteran is his after), and a few loyal experts. His life’s characterized by grave vicissitudes. Although he’s unique qualities that endear him to most people, circumstances are against him. Many foes, including those who’re supposed to support him, stand on his way to the realization of his destiny. He faces battles and near-death circumstances. Fate provides him with loyal comrades who’re ready to die for him. Sometimes he’s guided by the
“Trading is a performance skill like sports, the arts, medicine, etc. There are many world-class trading educators out there who’d be glad to show you effective and timeless trading principles. But do you have the discipline to learn and develop a method that works for you? Do you have what it takes to step up to the challenge, take risks, and do the work necessary to review and improve your trading? Also, can you control your emotions when, not if, you lose money? Once you have a game plan that works for you, will you still be able to stick to it day in and day out? How long it takes you to reach a level of competence in trading depends on the circumstances surrounding you and your level of discipline. It absolutely depends. The time it takes is really up to the time and effort you put in to learning and practice, and your situation in life. If you’re trained by someone who hasn’t found the secret to permanent success or doesn’t seem to know how to keep his account safe in the face of excruciatingly protracted losing streaks, then you’re going nowhere. It doesn’t pay much to learn from people that can’t trade. If you are constantly exposed to those who believe some entry system to be the magic solution rather than the real secret (the real secret has nothing to with a system that lets you know when to buy or sell), it may take you more than 10 years to be successful. This is because many people don’t know what they’re doing. Mike Bellafiore (co-founder of prop trading firm SMB Capital) says, "It is common for experienced traders to acknowledge that they did not know what they were doing until after three to five years." This is also true of any other performance skills. However, if you’re trained by those who know this secret, your learning curve would be sped up. It would take you shorter to master the art of trading. What you need to do, as quickly as possible is to hook up with people that actually trade successfully.
Success comes from inside. That means you must have the persona that successful traders have. While you’re journeying towards trading mastering and learning, your mindset must be prepared. If you like, you may recite the following in quiet surroundings. This may be done in every morning for the next 30 days. The recital is below:
1. I believe I’ll be exposed to the secret of permanent success in trading. I’m on my way to becoming a wealthy and financially independent trader.
2. I’m stepping into a state of peace of mind in the markets I’ll start doing what successful traders do As I learn the secret of successful trading, I’ll have the self control to carry it out.
3. Many market wizards were once failing in the markets, yet they adjusted their trading methods and moved on to the level of competence and trading mastery. I believe I’ll soon reach that level of competence and expertise. I’ll recover my lost glory in the financial markets. I’ll recover everything I’ve lost in a matter of a few years.
4. From now on, I imagine myself to be a market expert. I behave like an expert, make trading decisions like an expert, and control my risk and emotions like an expert.
5. All the emotional distractions that lead to suicide trading will no longer have power over me.
6. The reward for success is very attractive. I believe this will be my portion.
7. Nice and commendable annual returns will come to me regardless of the directions of the markets. So shall it be.
I wish you well in your trading and want to commend you for wanting to continue to learn and educate yourself to new ideas. If you are experienced in trading risk control and self-discipline then I hope this brings new meaning or refreshes your outlook. Successful trading principles are a treasure. They can show you: how to be the best trader you can be, the ways to survive anything that the markets will throw at you, and help you to learn about yourself and become a disciplined trader. Take responsibility for your survival. That’ll put you in control and will empower you to do something about your trading returns. The future of our trading career is loaded with great opportunities. We can’t afford to trade them away and we’ll not.
Conclusion: Trading is hard work normally, but in these volatile times of global economic uncertainties, individual traders need something really different to compete successfully. The articles in this series provide the edge that you can use in today’s unforgiving worldwide markets. They include tools to increase a trader’s insight into real-time market environments help them identify trading opportunities and further simplify the overall trading experience. As from the next month, this secret would be unfolded systematically. It’ll be one of the highlights of a global effort to reach out to avid traders who love trading and want to learn more about it. You’re invited to learn from us at FXInstructor.com.
This article is concluded with a quote from Jeff Cooper. It’s a beautiful description of trading:
“Trading is not about control. It is about going with the flow. Trading is not about knowing the future. It is about allowing the future to take place. Trading is observation, pure and experiential. Thinking is not necessary and just gets in the way. Trading is the glass half empty and the glass half full, alternating without rhyme or reason by the minute. Trading is total ruin and absolute reward; dual demons that lurk around every corner. Trading is an alluring distraction from life or a life raft on the stormy search for self. Trading is strangers offering up their most precious ideas. Trading is the clueless trying to offer ideas to their friends. Trading is your best friend who steals your spouse and your house. Trading can send us to hell or to paradise, but it always takes us somewhere we have never been. Trading is a blessing whose rules, if ignored, become a curse. Trading is taking a knife to a gunfight. Knives and guns leave traces of blood, but the logic of the market is the weapon that manages to destroy without leaving clues. The mountain of trading is in the mind as the lake is level. Trading is more about knowing when not to trade than it is about trading. Trading seeks equilibrium. Trading is learning a never ending balancing act on a tight wire above a moveable abyss. Trading is timing. Waiting is painful. Pain brings wisdom. Wisdom brings balance. Trading can be excruciatingly exciting when done wrong and tauntingly tedious when done right.”
NB: Please watch out for my coming articles with these titles: ‘Carry Trade Explained in a Layman’s Language’ ‘Questions Traders Ask – Part 1 (Should I Abandon My Strategy?)’ ‘The Joke about a Cough Medicine Applied to Trading,’ ‘Angry Traders,’ ‘Traits of Successful Traders,’ ‘How the MACD Generates Good Trading Signals,’ ‘A News Trading Strategy,’ ‘Analyze the Markets with the Aroon Indicator,’ ‘A Brief Introduction to Point and Figure Charts,’ ‘Does High Hit Rate Work Always?’ ‘My Typical Trading Day,’ ‘A Trader’s Trick Entry Technique – Sighting Golden Trading Opportunities,’ ‘Making Money out of Losses – A Blessing in Disguise,’ ‘Achieve a Better Hit Rate with Gap Trading (Using the Logic Yourself),’ ‘Play the Markets Victoriously with Nano-cent Accounts,’ ‘Why It’s Difficult to Do the Right Things in the Markets,’ ‘How to Identify a Sideways Market – Be Safe!’ ‘A Negative Expectancy System – Pushing Against the Wind?’ ‘Trading Signals,’ ‘An Intraday Moves Catcher – A Wealth Generating System,’ ‘Unlock the Power of Everlasting Triumph in the Markets (Parts 3 - 12),’ ‘How to Handle Uncertainties in the Markets,’ ‘The Issue of Stops (Come Back! Oh Come Back!),’ ‘A Hedge Funds Strategy,’ ‘My Hedge Funds Strategy Update,’ ‘Experiment with Different Exit Tactics,’ ‘Mastering the Market Equilibrium Zones – A Time-sensitive Method,’ ‘How I Apply Risk Management – Part 3,’ ‘A Simple Positive Expectancy System – Trading Effortlessly,’ ‘Testimonies from My Subscribers (2),’ ‘Best-case Scenarios – The Beauty of Trading,’ ‘Gap Trading Revisited,’ ‘3 Recent Gap Trades,’ ‘Developing the Right Attitude towards Losses – Part 4 (Losses Aren’t Abnormal) ,’ ‘The True Holy Grail – The Long Sought for,’ ‘Forex Trading Vocabulary,’ ‘Navigating Turbulent Markets – A Double Timeframe Analysis,’ ‘Before You Open that Trade,’ ‘Cogent Trading Biases,’ ‘Overview of My Signals Strategies – Can You Become a Super Trader?’ ‘Winning Trades, Losing Trades,’ ‘The Cost of Discipline,’ ‘Monthly Market Review,’ ‘Uncertainty Has Become My Ally – An Interview with a Dogged Market Speculator,’ ‘I Can’t Express How Grateful I’m to You!’ ‘Yearly Trading Update (2012) – The Big Picture,’ ‘What We’ve Decided to Do in the Markets - Trend Following It Is!’ ‘Yearly Trading Results (2012)’ ‘Monthly Trading Report (December 2011),’ etc.
Your questions and opinions are highly welcome.
Thank you.
With best regards,
Azeez Mustapha
Forex Signals Strategist, Funds Manager &Coach
Senior Analyst
FX Instructor, LLC
Email: amustapha@fxinstructor.com
Yahoo! Messenger ID: saazalmu
Are you facing any challenges in trading? You might want to explore the secrets of markets wizards and duplicate their success. Get the secrets from my past articles at:
www.fxinstructor.com/blog/author/amustapha
Get my Forex trading signals at: http://www.fxinstructor.com/en/analytics/ituglobal
And my past articles are also available at: www.ituglobalforex.blogspot.com
If you want my coming trading articles delivered directly into your inbox (I don’t support spamming in any way), you can send me an email titled “Request for Trading Articles.”
NB: There is risk of loss in trading, but it is possible to be a successful trader.
No comments:
Post a Comment