eToro – Forex Trading Forum

[Tropezienne]

If you are a newcomer to forex you will be reading about, studying and trading the forex market. Without a doubt you will repeatedly come across a sad fact - that 90% of forex traders will be losers.

To join the winning 10% it is necessary to discover just what it is that distinguishes successful traders from the losers. What personality traits do you think the successful traders have ?

Aggression? A go-getting, A-Type personality ? Quick, impulsive thinking ? Swift decision making ?

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No, no, no, no, no – not the energetic, flapping and yelling "sell, sell, sell "" or "buy, buy, buy" Wall Street characters.

Remember, this is just you and your computer. There's no competition.

I have learned to think methodically – even when (especially when) the prices that I'm watching are moving very quickly.

I've learned that I need to be patient when the market is moving slowly – I'm not so good at this, I often find myself looking for a trade. You need to wait for the trade to present itself.

[Tropezienne]

Humility is maybe a surprising quality for somebody involved in a financial market. But it is a necessary quality – until you can rationalise all that forex offers you (and it does offer a lot) your reasons for trading are wrong.

Don't think 'riches' think 'good steady income'. Not many of us are going to find a 100,000 dollar trade each week – but we can all earn a great monthly income if we have the right qualities.

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On top of all of that – don't be so blinking emotional !

Don't get excited when your pips are mounting.
Don't be proud after closing a great trade.
Don't revenge trade when you lose.
Don't get angry if you miss an opportunity.
Don't anxiously try to earn some money with each trade.
Don't hope for too much and ...
... don't regret too deeply.

So, you see? It's easy. All you need to do is to become a very patient think with no emotions but with bags full of humility. Nah - it's not really so easy.

[Tropezienne]

Some say that only 5% of foex traders will 'make it' – that means that 95% will be losers. Probably losing all their capital. These figues are over-quoted on sales-pitch sites – but they can also be found on serious and genuine forex pages.

So, if we take these figues as true we need to know what it is that makes the small per centage successful. What is different about them? Why do they 'get' forex and 'make it' as traders when the majority lose a lot of money?

Some people seem so at ease in the forex as soon as they enter.

What personal attributes do they have in common? I suggest that they have four qualities that we all need to develop. They are methodical thinkers, they are patient and can wait for conditions to be right, they are humble because they do not expect great riches and they can control their emotions.

[Tropezienne]

The combination of these four attributes is not easy to find in one person.

What is not good for a new trader is the adrenaline producing phenomenon known as 'beginners' luck'. Yes, it's a nice feeling to do well on your first few trades – but unless you shrug them off as sheer flukes your high spirits will make you feel as though you are 'in the groove'. You will continue with you uninformed trades – and you will lose all your starting capital eventually.
You need to develop as a trader.

Be patient with yourself.

On your practice account open positions which you think might earn you a few pips. If you gain – analyse the trade, especially your feelings when you decided on the trade. If you lose – do exactly the same.

At the same time apply this 'observe and analyse' learning to just two currency pairs.
Observe and analyse two currency pairs – Practice Account – for a period of weeks, maybe months.

This is the humble approach to 'getting a handle' on forex. There is no 'get rich quick'. There are no gurus. 'Magic Automated Forex signals' will only earn money for the people who sell them to you.

Approach forex with the correct mindset and you give yourself the chance to be one of the successful 5%.

[alleycat]

not true?

[AmaroErik]

Yes sure, also true (smile)!

[trahav]

I'm new at trading and it seems like that I'm watching the trend and go back 24 hours and then 7 days and look at that trend. Then I'll place a trade in what I think is the right direction. Then the trend makes an abrupt change in the other direction.. How would I properly read the trend to make the correct trade?