Online Forex Trading Secrets

I am here to share some knowledge, tips, strategies and insights of how to successfully buy, sell, trade and invest in online Forex trading. FOREX or Foreign Exchange is the largest as well as the most liquid trading market in the world and there are many people involved in FOREX trading all over the world. A lot of people claim that the FOREX is the best home business that could be pursued by any person. With each day, more and more are turning to FOREX traders, via electronic means of computer and internet connectivity.

This means that foreign exchange is not delivered to a person who actually buys like stock trading, FOREX trading also has day traders that purchase and sell foreign exchange same day. Thus, FOREX is not a get-rich-quick scheme as many people thought which complicates the real concept of online Forex trading.

Unlike stocks and futures that trade through exchanges, Forex trading is done through market makers that include major banks as well as small to large brokerage firms located around the world who collectively make a market on 24 hours - 5 days basis. The Forex market is always "open" and is the largest financial network in the world (daily average turnover of trillions of dollars).

Forex trading involves trading currency pairs such as the EUR/USD pair (Eurodollar/US dollar pair) where a buyer of this pair would actually be buying the Eurodollar and simultaneously selling short the US dollar.

Here's the deal: Just like any other market, most "traders" are losing when trading Forex. And the reasons for their failure are mainly because some lack good trading methods, sound money and risk management principles and indiscipline trading attitude. In most cases, it could be wrong mindset and motive towards the market. Some don't even understand the trend of the market, of which the trend plays a vital role in the life of any trader, as it is simply says that "the trend is your friend".

Moreover, many have been mislead by dishonest individuals or questionable brokers promising outwardly overnight riches and hidden policies.

Forex is still a little like the "wild west", so there's naturally a lot of confusion and misinformation out there but I'm here to cover many tactics and strategies used by successful Forex traders all over the world. Unfortunately, only few Forex traders are actually aware of this information.

Forex trading is all about regulation, willpower and determination. Leveraging your strength could be extravagant by organizing the appropriate Forex trading strategy. You may find hundreds and thousands of Forex trading strategies out there. All Forex trading strategies use a variety of indicators and combinations. These indicators and studies are just calculating support and resistance and trend in the Forex trading market.

What you are about to read is more valuable to you than what you will find in many trading courses or seminars that you'd have to pay for. Anyway, I don't believe in sugarcoating anything or giving you false hopes of success. There are enough swindlers doing that already. I want to give you the facts, like 'em or not, so you're empowered to take action and make positive decisions on how to succeed in the Forex markets.

There's nothing magical about the Forex markets, because all markets are ultimately driven by human psychology - fear and greed - and supply and demand. Sure, every market has its own peculiarities, but if you understand how the basic drivers of human emotions work, you can potentially succeed big in Forex market, because the market controls 95% of live trader's emotions. Some traders think it's a "get rich quick" trading the popular Forex markets.

There are many advantages of Forex trading over other types of financial instrument trading like bonds, stocks, commodities etc. But it does not mean that there are no risks involved in the Forex trading. Of course there are risks associated with Forex trading. Therefore, someone needs to understand all the terms related to Foreign Exchange carefully. There are many online sources as well as offline sources that provide hints on trading of Forex. These hints are basically the SECRETS.

As I said above, the foreign exchange trading is considered as one of the most profitable and attractive opportunities for investment as any person can easily do at home or office and from any part of the world. For succeeding the Forex trading, a person is not required to do any online promotion, marketing etc. The only requirement in the Forex trading is the account that a person is required to open with reliable and registered brokers, a computer system and fast internet connection.

Now, you have to be careful when opening a Forex account with any broker because some could be SCAM. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in US has jurisdiction over all Futures and Forex activity. When trading in the foreign exchange markets, individuals should only trade with a CFTC registered entity that is also a member of the National Futures Association (NFA) and is regulated by the CFTC. For non-US broker/ bank entities, be sure that the broker or bank is registered with that country's appropriate regulatory bodies.

The Forex account could be opened with any amount between $300 (mini) and $2000 (standard). After opening the account, a person is required to learn how the Forex market works, demo trade and after a while go live trading. Moreover, there are some secrets that have to be followed.

A person can also apply all the secrets when demo trading and can see if the secrets really work. It could be said without any doubt that if someone can apply all the secrets in right way, he/she can easily gain good money by way of Forex trading.

All successful traders have Forex trading strategies that they follow to make profitable trades. These Forex trading strategies are generally based on a strategy that allows them to find good trades. And the strategy is based on some form of market analysis. Successful traders need some ways to interpret and even predict the movements of the market.

There are two basic approaches to analyzing the movements of the Forex market. These are Technical Analysis and Fundamental Analysis. However, technical analysis is much more likely to be used by traders. Still, it's good to have an understanding of both types of analysis, so that you can decide which type would work best for your Forex trading strategies.

There has been misconception about the Forex market because there are different types of traders and advert out there full of exaggerations that makes the business unreal to so many people and that is why I am here to show you the SECRETS in Forex Trading.

What is traded on the Forex market? The answer is money. Forex trading is where the currency of one nation is traded for that of another. Therefore, Forex trading is always traded in pairs and the most commonly traded currency pairs are traded against the US Dollar (USD). They are called 'the Majors'. The major currency pairs are the Euro Dollar (EUR/USD); the British Pound (GBP/USD); the Japanese Yen (USD/JPY); and the Swiss Franc (USD/CHF). The notable 'commodity' currency pairs that traded are the Canadian Dollar (USD/CAD) and the Australian Dollar AUD/USD. Because there is no central exchange for the Forex market, these pairs and their crosses are traded over the telephone and online through a global network of banks, multinational corporations, importers and exporters, brokers and currency traders. But if you really want to make it big in the Forex market, I will strongly advise that as a "beginner" in the business. Kindly get acquainted with one or two major currency pairs. Study them very well and make sure you understand their volatility period.

And to further simplify Forex trading, you could easily limit your trading to the two most liquid and widely traded pairs, the EUR/USD and the GBP/USD. This really starts to reduce demands on your time for trading activities without giving up good profit potential.

Traditionally, currency trading has been a 'professionals only' market available exclusively to banks and large institutions, however, because of the invention of the new E-economy, online Forex trading firms are now able to offer trading accounts to 'retail' traders like you and I. Now almost anyone with a computer and an Internet connection can trade currencies just like the world's largest banks do.

Do you want to know how to trade the forex market without losing a dime?Then go over to [http://quickforexpips.blogspot.com] you will get free tons of information there.

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Stock Market - Why Every Trader Needs to Develop a Trade Plan Now!

Each time you fire up the trading software, you transport yourself into the world of global markets. You are traveling! Your purpose for traveling into this world...is profit; returning home with profit is your short-term goal. Long-term, you are likely in search of capital growth, stability, income and longevity. Experienced travelers use travel plans to venture from one location to another, and we strongly recommend trade plans for the stock market traveler.

The alternative is risk attraction. Travel risk directly threatens your short-term goal of profit; but more importantly, it assaults your long-term goals of capital growth and longevity. Whether traveling to an unfamiliar city or into the global stock market via trading, the risks are the same. Risk in the form of: Getting lost, Wasting time, Capital mismanagement and strained decision making, Confusion, Late to the party, Unnecessary surprise, Fear, and even running short of funds before the trip ends. The risks are many and the list continues, but the point is: Effective trade plans inherently acknowledge the risks of trading and prepare you for them.

When we trade, we aren't simply traveling down the street to our local food market (a short jaunt we can make with eyes closed). No. More accurately, as traders, we are traveling to foreign countries...trips that require maps, research, preparation and planning. This is why keen stock traders develop trade plans. Trade plans provide us with every advantage of the travel plan. Think of yourself as a global market traveler.

Viewed in their most encompassing light, trade plans are the means by which we become self-sufficient traders...they define our personal ownership of intent to succeed. Your macro or master trade plan...creates foundation and future objective by answering questions large in scope: Where do I begin (departure), Where am I going (destination), and How will I get there (your chosen route).

Viewed in their most focused light, micro or daily trade plans...are the means by which we ensure the least risk and safest return on each trip or individual trade. At this level we answer questions smaller in scope, but no less vital than the ones above: What indicators do I use, How much do I purchase, What loss do I accept, What profit is enough etc.

Between the master trade plan and the daily trade plan, you will develop your own unique trade plan philosophy; you will build a foundation, access and make the best use of your experience and resources...develop organization, repeatability and documentation. More than just a valuable trading tool, trade plans become a valuable training tool. In essence, trade plans allow you to learn, grow, adapt, develop pattern and routine, and ultimately prepare you for the day you get lost (it may happen within a specific trade and only last a few hours, or 3 years along into your global market travels and last for months...but at some point we all experience the emotion of 'lost'). Trade plans provide us with the ability to respond to this emotional reality, in a way that furthers our growth and trading goals.

Does this sound complex, time consuming or daunting? It's not. Trade plans present themselves more naturally than one would think. Remember, all we are talking about here, is developing a travel plan! For example:

How do I get from my house to my business conference: How much will it cost, will I drive or fly, what will I pack, who will I know? What city will I be in, how does the weather look, what comforts do I require? Translate these questions into trading terminology and you have: How do I get from my computer to a stock I want to buy, how much will it cost, will I buy 200 shares or 2000, what tools will I need and what indicators will I use; will I trade alone or with a group...who do I know? What Stock Exchange will I trade, is current market sentiment sunny or cloudy, what aspects of trading am I most comfortable with, and what comforts do I require?

You see? We desire more than simple strategies when venturing into the global market; Strategies alone will not produce self-sufficiency. Yes...we can charter a bus (find ourselves a stock picker), and allow this person to shuttle us along on a pre-packaged sightseeing tour...these can be fun once in a while; there are even benefits to this strategy. But it certainly isn't free of charge. And what happens on the day we sleep in and miss the bus? We've already paid in full and now we're left standing outside the motel holding the bag: lost. Well, if you've been reading along with interest, you've already begun the researching process, developing your trade plan and building the foundation of self-sufficiency; you aren't planning these trips for fun--but for profit first, and capital growth to follow.

So lets begin the first leg of this trip together, with a discussion of what will become a cornerstone of your trade plan development...maps!

Maps have been a staple of human development since the beginning of time, and the concept of maps in tandem with the development of a trade plan will serve you well as a trader. As a people, we have mapped the stars, the continents and the weather--cities, roads and rivers. We have in fact mapped history! The world of markets is so tremendously large; traveling into the realm of them would be foolhardy without a reliable set of maps. As a trader new to the profession, we use maps for direction. As a trader in the midst of our adventure, we use maps for efficient and effective navigation. As a trader nearing the end of our journey (daily or yearly), we use maps to plot the way back home.

Maps provide 3 key elements: Scale, Compass and Substance.

1. Maps provide scale: Sites such as Google Maps operate so seamlessly, it's easy to dismiss the concept of scale; yet, each time we click 'zoom' we view a brand new map with its own unique boundaries. The same rules apply to charting software and to all facets of our trading research. Choosing the proper scale--and zooming between multiple scales--is everything when it comes to trading.

2. Maps provide compass: studying a good map will lead us to ask the most expedient questions and point us in a direction that furthers our travels, our research and our trade plan development. It's often tempting to view our maps and trade plans "as-the-crow-flies." However, identifying our starting point and our end goal--or our entry and our exit--is only the beginning. Twists and turns of every magnitude await us in between departure and destination; we require a sound sense of compass to stay on course.

3. Maps provide substance: Each map informs us of something different and valuable concerning where we are in a trade. Weather maps for example, relate well to market sentiment--economic calendars, earnings, upgrades and downgrades--information that affects the climate surrounding our area of interest. But even a great map will get us lost if we use it for the wrong purpose. Learning to evaluate each map's legend is the key to understanding substance.

In order to demonstrate how the elements of scale, compass and substance work within the framework of trade plans--and how this concept of maps relates directly to traders--we need to begin with an example and common frame of reference. So, lets look at how we may link traders and maps, by developing one vision of a physical backdrop to the world of global markets; the world we intend to travel and trade within:

Countries: Think of our countries as the Stock Exchanges (NASDAQ, NYSE, AMEX, CBOE, etc). All countries have their own unique set of laws, customs and traditions--and exhibit unique behaviors.

States/Provinces: Think of our States/Provinces as market Sectors (Energy, Financial, Health Care, Utilities, Consumer Staples etc).

Cities: Think of our cities as the market Indices. We have large cities like DJI, NDX, SPX...and Smaller cities like QQQQ, DJTA, DJU, and SML.

Towns: Think of our towns as individual Stocks (From YHOO and MSFT to SIRI and AMD).

Roads, Weather, Statistics, and News: Think of these particulars and others like them as our Indicators--everything from longitude and latitude, to population, climate and topography (Bollinger bands, Volume, Oscillators, Moving Averages, Stochastic etc). Indicators fill in the detail. They sell us on a destination and with proper scale, allow us to navigate confidently--covering overall appeal, and right down to the decision of do we turn right or left at the next signal.

The particular combinations of maps we use are unique, personal and change as our trading careers change. And while the above outline provides a starting point, the style of trader we become influences the style and development of the maps we use (and ultimately influences the style and development of our trade plans). An options trader and a day-trader have different plans for an identical stock, just as a mountain climber and a wine connoisseur have quite different plans when traveling to Paris. Yet, the foundations for safe and efficient travel remain the same and before each traveler diverges towards their own specific interest, each reviews many of the same maps, information and travel routes.

For example, how would you research a trip to Embakasi? (Never heard of it? Good. This is a familiar experience for travelers within the world of global trading, isn't it?) The process is the same when deciding to venture into an equally unfamiliar stock like XYYZ. First we pull up maps, and then we develop trade plans. A map of Embakasi doesn't tell us much at first--we need to zoom out. Zooming out, we notice the Mombasa Road leading to Nairobi--our first bit of recognition. Pull back further and "aha!" We know exactly where we are, in the East African country of Kenya. Each scale of map has provided useful information, substance, questions, research direction and compass. And we will need each of these elements to develop our trade plan, as we zoom back in and plot our trip to Embakasi.

We use the same starting process to develop a daily trade plan for XYYZ: How do we 'locate' this stock within the market and what information do we need? A map of XYYZ doesn't tell us much about the stock's location and so we zoom out. What picture does the macro scale reveal? Does it sell us on the trip? Do we have an "aha" moment when identifying the exchange, index or sector? Now we begin zooming back in and organizing the specifics of our trade plan. We pull up detailed maps and pour over our indicators (New high, low volume, great news, upper Bollinger band and an overbought oscillator). Now we can make an informed decision about this trip. Is it a daily trip we're comfortable making? Is it a trip that makes sense in view of our long-term travel plans? Are we experienced enough and do we have the money and the time etc?

The alternative to acknowledging the risks of trading and preparing for them: is risk attraction. If we wouldn't dream of waking up tomorrow and boarding a flight to Embakasi--without so much as pulling up a map or packing a suitcase--then we can consider this scenario when the impulse strikes to purchase XYYZ in the middle of our work day. Expand this to encompass an excursion that will last a year, and the case for a master trade plan becomes more concrete! How many twists and turns will present themselves between departure and destination? How will we keep our compass? Who will wire us money on this journey, if we run ourselves broke thousands of miles from home? Lost.

Think! Where am I--at this moment--within the market and within my long-term objectives? This understanding takes you out of the realm of simple strategy...and puts you into the realm of trade plans. Thought of in these terms, it hopefully becomes more clear where you need to start when researching your next move--whether that moves relates to the foundation of your master trade plan, your trade plan for the upcoming week, or your trade plan for a particular buy, sell, or hold. Whether you consider bounce trading, option trading, penny stock, index, or futures trading, you will find and develop maps that help you determine what research is needed in order to execute these trade plans successfully. Don't rely on instinct...research and plan your travels.

In this way, it is helpful to view your master trade plan as a large map in and of itself--because trade plans embrace all the positive advantages and reliabilities that maps provide. The trade plan and the map improve the odds of reaching a destination safely, they save time, money and resources: they allow us to retrace steps efficiently, to develop travel logs that document and organize various methods and paths of reaching the same destination: trade plans and maps provide flexibility and reference, allow us to compare results, to quickly create alternate routes in case of changes beyond our control: they prevent wrong turns, casual errors, and when we do get lost...they allow us to quickly and safely get back on track.

Trade plans make sense. And when thought of as travel plans, they become attainable and less mysterious. View yourself as a market traveler, develop a trade plan that reflects your experience and means. Travel safely out there...drop us a postcard sometime and let us know how you are doing.

To learn more about Trade Plans, check out my blog @ [http://blog.accendotraders.com] OR you can view examples of our trade plans on YouTube @ [http://www.youtube.com/accendotraders]

Tell Me and I'll Forget

Show Me and I'll Remember

Involve Me and I'll Understand

Effective Video Technical Analysis Trade Plans Delivered Daily from Accendo Traders

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12 Reasons Why Virtual Trade Shows Fail to Realize Their True Potential

We do several virtual trade shows in closely monitored corporate environments, very successful, and very loved by participants, held entirely online - with no in-person counterpart. The definition of success of these virtual fairs however, is different from what the convention industry would consider to be the definition of a successful trade show. What I foresee happening is for every marketing department to be weaving in virtual trade shows as part of its marketing mix. This post may seem like introspection or a set of lessons learned. As is usually the case with any exercise in introspection, some good will come out of it. By understanding and confronting the reasons for the failure of virtual trade shows to realize their true potential - of being able to connect millions of businesses worldwide - I hope to facilitate some thinking about the right climate for virtual fairs to flourish.

It is just a matter of time before virtual fairs become as popular as social networks. Social networks are limited to people who know each other through a certain degree of separation. Virtual trade shows, on the other hand, make chance encounters possible. Therein lies their power and potential.

Virtual tradeshows might connect businesses, but they fail to connect emotionally with business professionals. It is more interesting to hear of a real-life romance that grew out of an online dating site than to hear of a successful business deal through a lead found at a virtual trade show. Ever heard of two businesses falling in love with one another at an online matchmaker, and wanting to do business together? Even if we hear of them, there are perhaps very few scenarios in which they could become human-interest stories.
Virtual tradeshow participants do not like to share their success stories. When we piloted a trade show for the promotional products industry way back in October 1999, I did some follow-up calls to find out if any real inquiries and orders were generated. An exhibitor actually had someone place an order directly after visiting his virtual booth. Here's the problem. For competitive reasons, he did not want me to publicize it. About a month ago I heard that a virtual exhibitor was talking about 2 contracts she won after online visits at her virtual booth from buyers of a large Fortune 100 corporation. Again, due to competitive reasons, she has avoided media attention. I heard that it took 15 years for sliced bread to become wildly popular. I believe virtual trade shows will have greater success once it is not such a well-kept secret.
Virtual trade shows are too transparent. Every click of the mouse can be tracked in a virtual trade show. Trade show organizers are more easily held accountable for the return on tradeshow that they deliver to exhibitors. The return on investment in a virtual trade show is easy to identify and analyze in absolute terms. In a real-world trade show, there are several subjective aspects that factor into a participants' perception of whether they consider a trade show a success or not.
Virtual trade show is an underdog with no cheerleaders. Without exception, whenever I have mentioned virtual trade shows to marketers and exhibitors they have always expressed tremendous enthusiasm for its value. However, when perceived as a replacement to in-person trade shows it has evoked strong mixed reactions. Often a trade show gig is an escape from the cubicle. It is the time when one can combine a trip to exotic locales along with the family and have a mini-vacation. Virtual trade shows are not merely fighting misconceptions about what they can do for a business, but they actually compete with a marketing executive's leisure time. Virtual trade shows shoot themselves in the foot when they try to position themselves as helping a business executive spend time with her or his family. Asking someone to give up in-person trade shows and do only virtual trade shows is like asking a connoisseur of chocolates to give up chocolate. Highly unlikely.
"There is no such thing as a virtual trade show": This, quite literally was the welcoming remark of a veteran trade show industry executive whom I had gone to meet during our early years in business, as I was being ushered into his office. As he described the magic of bringing to life an in-person tradeshow, the magic of 'getting it right', the magic of bringing the right attendees in front of the right exhibitors year after year, the magic of seeing an empty convention center come alive over a 3-day period, the thrill of creating value and entertainment, I could see in his eyes the pride and joy of creation. He said it feels like a Hollywood movie maker. Virtual trade shows may very likely have to wait until they have learned to scale up in alternate untapped markets before they can earn the respect and the attention of veterans in the trade show and media industry. For now, it is like telling Formula One drivers that their races will be held in the video game arcade. In their present state, virtual trade shows can provide neither a comparable adrenalin-rush, nor the incremental financial incentive to get established trade show organizers excited about them.
The tradeshow metaphor is being carried too far. When we began in the late 90's it made sense to borrow the trade show metaphor for these online events. Making a virtual booth look and feel like a real-world trade show booth helped users scale the learning curve rather well. However, the demographics of the workforce has changed significantly in the past decade. The new entrants to the workforce view the web as an extension of their universe. There is no need for a real-world metaphor to explain what one is trying to do with a virtual trade show. Why then should a virtual booth look like a real-world trade show booth. Why should one have virtual trade shows that have a panoramic 2-dimensional view of an exhibition hall with meaningless human-like figures gliding by aimlessly? Why are virtual trade shows not defining themselves to really provide an extra dimension to the entire marketing experience of a business. Why provide a metaphor when the virtual trade show can never replace the in-person trade show and is not designed to replace it?
Absence of standards on what an ideal virtual trade show should do is a major obstacle. We get inquiries for different kinds of online environments. It is not possible to describe them accurately with the term virtual trade shows. They serve various purposes. They always have a business objective. They aim to solve one or more problems. They often have nothing to do with in-person trade shows. However, the absence of standards for virtual trade shows means that it is open to anybody's interpretation. When one looks at publicly accessible virtual trade shows, whether they be of HGTV or of the EPA, one never knows what to expect. The concept of same-time, different-place interaction as my co-founder aptly puts it, is missing most of the time. Making users go through meaningless convoluted pages of navigation only go to reveal that the virtual trade show suffered from lack of a clear direction, purpose or sense of ownership.
Use of traditional media to pull audiences into a virtual trade show is known to fail. We have learned this from experience. If you send me a post card in the mail reminding me of a virtual trade show, or if you put an expensive ad in the nation's leading journal about a virtual career fair, I still can't click through to enter.
Exhibitors and sponsors fail to take ownership of the virtual trade show experience being offered. Unfortunately, some of the virtual trade shows that I have experienced include cases where a media company goes through hoops to advertise the virtual trade show, pummels me with emails to stay on my radar screen, only to have no real human being available online during the live event, or have someone clueless and/or indifferent, who simply takes down an email address and phone number to pass on to the right person. Virtual trade shows fail when sponsors and exhibitors do not have sufficient skin in the game.
The feeling that anything online ought to be free. There are two problems with giving access to a virtual trade show for free even when a sponsor is supporting it fully. One is that without sufficient skin in the game, the groups that are supposed to show up online to make the virtual trade show a success, will more than likely not show up. Secondly, when a virtual trade show is delivered for free, it can not be adequately supported. An improperly supported virtual trade show in turn is a disservice to the users and to the concept itself. Just like in-person trade shows, a virtual trade show distinguishes itself by the quality of the traffic and interaction it can produce.
I danced even though I had sore feet. Trade shows usually are a lot of fun. Often they include a band and a dance floor. Virtual trade show producers then have a very poorly woven argument under which to take cover if they try to tell trade show participants that you can spare yourselves some sore feet at our virtual trade show. Sometimes, the 'no sore feet' argument sells, but it is not a sufficiently strong one to result in a sweeping acceptance of virtual trade shows.
Neither the green movement nor soaring gas prices can help virtual fairs become mainstream. While getting on the green movement is great, I hesitate to anchor the value proposition for our virtual trade shows on that argument. It is the same about spiralling gas prices. The virtual fairs have been compelling in their value even when gas was selling at $0.95 a gallon. It should be no different even if gas hits $8 a gallon. Virtual fairs have been compelling in their value well before see-through screeners at airports force us to spend an extra 10 minutes at the gym. No free-gas coupons here. Riding the latest news headlines have never helped virtual trade shows.

Ramesh Sambasivan is the co-founder of iTradeFair.com, Inc. [ http://www.iTradeFair.com ] He can be reached at ramesh [at] itradefair [dot] com. He blogs at http://blog.sambasivan.com

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Trading Psychology to Make Millions

Introduction

What makes an F1 racing champion? Is it the car? Is it the technology that went into building the engines? No, it is the driver. The driver's confidence around corners and patience in the face of daunting challenge by other drivers makes a champion. Similarly, it is the trader that makes the difference in stock and option trading. It is the stock or options traders' confidence in their chosen methodology and their patience in the face of daunting price changes that makes a champion stock or options trader.

Trading Confidence and Trading Discipline are the most important aspects of trading psychology that makes millionaire stock or options traders. They are also the main reason why so many stock and options traders fail and break their bank.

Trading Confidence

Trading confidence is a mental confidence banking account in every trader and trading discipline determines if you deposit or withdraw from it. Trading confidence is what enables every stock and options traders to execute trades according to their chosen methodology confidently and to stick to the game despite losses knowing that they will eventually make more wins than losses. Trading confidence is a banking account which you can either deposit to or withdraw from. Each time you lose money, you withdraw from your trading confidence and each time you make money, you deposit to your trading confidence. When your trading confidence is zero or bankrupt, you will find yourself hesitating before every trade while imagining the pain if the trade turns out a loser again. You will have sleepless nights and will rush out of trades at the very first sign of danger, making unnecessary losses. When that happens, it is the time to go back to paper and re-examine the way you have been trading. In fact, you do not have to break your trading account balance to have your trading confidence bankrupt and a bankrupt trading confidence always lead to a bankrupt trading account. Conversely, every time you win money with your chosen methodology, you deposit to your trading confidence bank, feel confident and happy when placing trades and do not panic when trades go bad.

Factors Affecting Trading Confidence

A major determinant of your level of trading confidence is the amount and nature of money that you have to trade with. The more money you can afford to lose, the higher your initial level of trading confidence. Stock and options traders whom can afford to lose only very little money would usually have very low level of trading confidence as every loss takes a significant bite out of their trading confidence bank. Again, you need not lose all your money to lose all your trading confidence. Some stock and options traders no longer feel confident enough to trade when their account go down by 30%, while some reach that level of confidence bankrupt only when their account go down by 70%. The nature of money you have to trade with also determines your starting trading confidence. If you are trading with excess money which you do not need, then your level of trading confidence would be very high. In fact, your trading confidence could still be high even if you lose all that money. Conversely, if you are trading with borrowed money which you need to pay back in installment and with interest, your trading confidence would be extremely low as every loss makes it harder for you to pay the money back.

Alas, there is no objective and empirical method of calculating your level of trading confidence and most stock and options traders only understand it when it goes bankrupt.

At this point, it is clear that you need to win money in order to build up a strong trading confidence banking account and in order to win money, you need to follow a proven and successful trading methodology. A losing method will bankrupt your trading confidence in no time no matter how much you start out with.

Trading Discipline

Once you are sure that you have a proven and successful method , you will need Trading Discipline to make sure you stick to the rules and trade only when entry requirements are fully met. Without trading discipline, you will end up spoiling any successful methodology, leading to a withdrawal of your trading confidence.

Trading Discipline consists of Patience and a Calm, Objective mind.

Every trading methodology trades only when specific setups or rules are met. Without trading discipline, you will not have the patience to wait for such setups or rules to be fully met before trading and every time you break the rules, you increase your odds of losing and every loss withdraws from your trading confidence. Therefore, do not make "fun" or "experimental" trades by compromising rules as losing under such conditions do withdraw from your trading confidence as well.

Trading Confidence & Complacence

A distinction must be made here regarding trading confidence and complacence. Complacence comes not from a high trading confidence but from a complete lack of trading discipline. Complacence always leads to a quick and complete bankrupt of trading confidence, so, be certain to understand the difference.

Trading Psychology - Conclusion

Finally, the relationship between trading confidence and trading discipline actually goes both ways. A strong trading discipline following a proven methodology builds strong trading confidence and a strong trading confidence also encourages the development of strong trading discipline as you experience the success coming from following rules. The Star Trading System is one such system. Only when you have both strong trading confidence and trading discipline will you have the trading psychology needed to make millions.

Jason Ng is the Founder and Chief Option Strategist of Masters 'O' Equity Asset Management (MastersoEquity.com) and author of OptionTradingPedia.com. He is a fund manager specialising in options trading and his revolutionary Star Trading System has helped thousands.

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Stock Market - Why Every Trader Needs to Develop a Trade Plan Now!

Each time you fire up the trading software, you transport yourself into the world of global markets. You are traveling! Your purpose for traveling into this world...is profit; returning home with profit is your short-term goal. Long-term, you are likely in search of capital growth, stability, income and longevity. Experienced travelers use travel plans to venture from one location to another, and we strongly recommend trade plans for the stock market traveler.

The alternative is risk attraction. Travel risk directly threatens your short-term goal of profit; but more importantly, it assaults your long-term goals of capital growth and longevity. Whether traveling to an unfamiliar city or into the global stock market via trading, the risks are the same. Risk in the form of: Getting lost, Wasting time, Capital mismanagement and strained decision making, Confusion, Late to the party, Unnecessary surprise, Fear, and even running short of funds before the trip ends. The risks are many and the list continues, but the point is: Effective trade plans inherently acknowledge the risks of trading and prepare you for them.

When we trade, we aren't simply traveling down the street to our local food market (a short jaunt we can make with eyes closed). No. More accurately, as traders, we are traveling to foreign countries...trips that require maps, research, preparation and planning. This is why keen stock traders develop trade plans. Trade plans provide us with every advantage of the travel plan. Think of yourself as a global market traveler.

Viewed in their most encompassing light, trade plans are the means by which we become self-sufficient traders...they define our personal ownership of intent to succeed. Your macro or master trade plan...creates foundation and future objective by answering questions large in scope: Where do I begin (departure), Where am I going (destination), and How will I get there (your chosen route).

Viewed in their most focused light, micro or daily trade plans...are the means by which we ensure the least risk and safest return on each trip or individual trade. At this level we answer questions smaller in scope, but no less vital than the ones above: What indicators do I use, How much do I purchase, What loss do I accept, What profit is enough etc.

Between the master trade plan and the daily trade plan, you will develop your own unique trade plan philosophy; you will build a foundation, access and make the best use of your experience and resources...develop organization, repeatability and documentation. More than just a valuable trading tool, trade plans become a valuable training tool. In essence, trade plans allow you to learn, grow, adapt, develop pattern and routine, and ultimately prepare you for the day you get lost (it may happen within a specific trade and only last a few hours, or 3 years along into your global market travels and last for months...but at some point we all experience the emotion of 'lost'). Trade plans provide us with the ability to respond to this emotional reality, in a way that furthers our growth and trading goals.

Does this sound complex, time consuming or daunting? It's not. Trade plans present themselves more naturally than one would think. Remember, all we are talking about here, is developing a travel plan! For example:

How do I get from my house to my business conference: How much will it cost, will I drive or fly, what will I pack, who will I know? What city will I be in, how does the weather look, what comforts do I require? Translate these questions into trading terminology and you have: How do I get from my computer to a stock I want to buy, how much will it cost, will I buy 200 shares or 2000, what tools will I need and what indicators will I use; will I trade alone or with a group...who do I know? What Stock Exchange will I trade, is current market sentiment sunny or cloudy, what aspects of trading am I most comfortable with, and what comforts do I require?

You see? We desire more than simple strategies when venturing into the global market; Strategies alone will not produce self-sufficiency. Yes...we can charter a bus (find ourselves a stock picker), and allow this person to shuttle us along on a pre-packaged sightseeing tour...these can be fun once in a while; there are even benefits to this strategy. But it certainly isn't free of charge. And what happens on the day we sleep in and miss the bus? We've already paid in full and now we're left standing outside the motel holding the bag: lost. Well, if you've been reading along with interest, you've already begun the researching process, developing your trade plan and building the foundation of self-sufficiency; you aren't planning these trips for fun--but for profit first, and capital growth to follow.

So lets begin the first leg of this trip together, with a discussion of what will become a cornerstone of your trade plan development...maps!

Maps have been a staple of human development since the beginning of time, and the concept of maps in tandem with the development of a trade plan will serve you well as a trader. As a people, we have mapped the stars, the continents and the weather--cities, roads and rivers. We have in fact mapped history! The world of markets is so tremendously large; traveling into the realm of them would be foolhardy without a reliable set of maps. As a trader new to the profession, we use maps for direction. As a trader in the midst of our adventure, we use maps for efficient and effective navigation. As a trader nearing the end of our journey (daily or yearly), we use maps to plot the way back home.

Maps provide 3 key elements: Scale, Compass and Substance.

1. Maps provide scale: Sites such as Google Maps operate so seamlessly, it's easy to dismiss the concept of scale; yet, each time we click 'zoom' we view a brand new map with its own unique boundaries. The same rules apply to charting software and to all facets of our trading research. Choosing the proper scale--and zooming between multiple scales--is everything when it comes to trading.

2. Maps provide compass: studying a good map will lead us to ask the most expedient questions and point us in a direction that furthers our travels, our research and our trade plan development. It's often tempting to view our maps and trade plans "as-the-crow-flies." However, identifying our starting point and our end goal--or our entry and our exit--is only the beginning. Twists and turns of every magnitude await us in between departure and destination; we require a sound sense of compass to stay on course.

3. Maps provide substance: Each map informs us of something different and valuable concerning where we are in a trade. Weather maps for example, relate well to market sentiment--economic calendars, earnings, upgrades and downgrades--information that affects the climate surrounding our area of interest. But even a great map will get us lost if we use it for the wrong purpose. Learning to evaluate each map's legend is the key to understanding substance.

In order to demonstrate how the elements of scale, compass and substance work within the framework of trade plans--and how this concept of maps relates directly to traders--we need to begin with an example and common frame of reference. So, lets look at how we may link traders and maps, by developing one vision of a physical backdrop to the world of global markets; the world we intend to travel and trade within:

Countries: Think of our countries as the Stock Exchanges (NASDAQ, NYSE, AMEX, CBOE, etc). All countries have their own unique set of laws, customs and traditions--and exhibit unique behaviors.

States/Provinces: Think of our States/Provinces as market Sectors (Energy, Financial, Health Care, Utilities, Consumer Staples etc).

Cities: Think of our cities as the market Indices. We have large cities like DJI, NDX, SPX...and Smaller cities like QQQQ, DJTA, DJU, and SML.

Towns: Think of our towns as individual Stocks (From YHOO and MSFT to SIRI and AMD).

Roads, Weather, Statistics, and News: Think of these particulars and others like them as our Indicators--everything from longitude and latitude, to population, climate and topography (Bollinger bands, Volume, Oscillators, Moving Averages, Stochastic etc). Indicators fill in the detail. They sell us on a destination and with proper scale, allow us to navigate confidently--covering overall appeal, and right down to the decision of do we turn right or left at the next signal.

The particular combinations of maps we use are unique, personal and change as our trading careers change. And while the above outline provides a starting point, the style of trader we become influences the style and development of the maps we use (and ultimately influences the style and development of our trade plans). An options trader and a day-trader have different plans for an identical stock, just as a mountain climber and a wine connoisseur have quite different plans when traveling to Paris. Yet, the foundations for safe and efficient travel remain the same and before each traveler diverges towards their own specific interest, each reviews many of the same maps, information and travel routes.

For example, how would you research a trip to Embakasi? (Never heard of it? Good. This is a familiar experience for travelers within the world of global trading, isn't it?) The process is the same when deciding to venture into an equally unfamiliar stock like XYYZ. First we pull up maps, and then we develop trade plans. A map of Embakasi doesn't tell us much at first--we need to zoom out. Zooming out, we notice the Mombasa Road leading to Nairobi--our first bit of recognition. Pull back further and "aha!" We know exactly where we are, in the East African country of Kenya. Each scale of map has provided useful information, substance, questions, research direction and compass. And we will need each of these elements to develop our trade plan, as we zoom back in and plot our trip to Embakasi.

We use the same starting process to develop a daily trade plan for XYYZ: How do we 'locate' this stock within the market and what information do we need? A map of XYYZ doesn't tell us much about the stock's location and so we zoom out. What picture does the macro scale reveal? Does it sell us on the trip? Do we have an "aha" moment when identifying the exchange, index or sector? Now we begin zooming back in and organizing the specifics of our trade plan. We pull up detailed maps and pour over our indicators (New high, low volume, great news, upper Bollinger band and an overbought oscillator). Now we can make an informed decision about this trip. Is it a daily trip we're comfortable making? Is it a trip that makes sense in view of our long-term travel plans? Are we experienced enough and do we have the money and the time etc?

The alternative to acknowledging the risks of trading and preparing for them: is risk attraction. If we wouldn't dream of waking up tomorrow and boarding a flight to Embakasi--without so much as pulling up a map or packing a suitcase--then we can consider this scenario when the impulse strikes to purchase XYYZ in the middle of our work day. Expand this to encompass an excursion that will last a year, and the case for a master trade plan becomes more concrete! How many twists and turns will present themselves between departure and destination? How will we keep our compass? Who will wire us money on this journey, if we run ourselves broke thousands of miles from home? Lost.

Think! Where am I--at this moment--within the market and within my long-term objectives? This understanding takes you out of the realm of simple strategy...and puts you into the realm of trade plans. Thought of in these terms, it hopefully becomes more clear where you need to start when researching your next move--whether that moves relates to the foundation of your master trade plan, your trade plan for the upcoming week, or your trade plan for a particular buy, sell, or hold. Whether you consider bounce trading, option trading, penny stock, index, or futures trading, you will find and develop maps that help you determine what research is needed in order to execute these trade plans successfully. Don't rely on instinct...research and plan your travels.

In this way, it is helpful to view your master trade plan as a large map in and of itself--because trade plans embrace all the positive advantages and reliabilities that maps provide. The trade plan and the map improve the odds of reaching a destination safely, they save time, money and resources: they allow us to retrace steps efficiently, to develop travel logs that document and organize various methods and paths of reaching the same destination: trade plans and maps provide flexibility and reference, allow us to compare results, to quickly create alternate routes in case of changes beyond our control: they prevent wrong turns, casual errors, and when we do get lost...they allow us to quickly and safely get back on track.

Trade plans make sense. And when thought of as travel plans, they become attainable and less mysterious. View yourself as a market traveler, develop a trade plan that reflects your experience and means. Travel safely out there...drop us a postcard sometime and let us know how you are doing.

To learn more about Trade Plans, check out my blog @ [http://blog.accendotraders.com] OR you can view examples of our trade plans on YouTube @ [http://www.youtube.com/accendotraders]

Tell Me and I'll Forget

Show Me and I'll Remember

Involve Me and I'll Understand

Effective Video Technical Analysis Trade Plans Delivered Daily from Accendo Traders

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The MRS Trader - The Essentials of Successful Forex Trading

I've often wondered long and hard what it took to succeed when I first started out and had only a few clues as to how. I didn't quite understand then what the professionals meant when they said a successful trader has to have a certain psychology, rules on risk management and also knows their how-what-when-why-where concepts on entering and exiting a trade.

And it so happened that after trading for about 2 years, I begin to realize and know these concepts on many more levels and not just on the intellectual one. It's my desire to share these with both seasoned and new traders alike.

In what I term the M.R.S Trader, we will have an in-depth look at the mindset, risk management and also strategies that the trader has (in that sequence as well). They are the 3 pillars of success in trading.

(M)indset

Without a doubt, this is absolutely the most important element out of the 3 that we will cover (not belittling the other 2 in the process). Many processes in life require that we get our mindset/psychology on the right track and trading is not an exception.

As a start, we have to tackle the truth and you have to ask yourself this honest question .... "Why do I trade?"

It's amazing really but many people who trade are not really in for the profits (although they think they are). There's usually a myriad of reasons but one of the more common ones is that they're trading for the excitement of it.

I remember some time ago I was chatting with a friend and the conversation went like this:

me: I'll stay out for now. don't rush into a trade

friend: i know it

friend: i prefer trading when the situation is rushed, it blows up my adrenaline

me: not good.

me: are you trading for profit or for excitement?

me: Casinos provide more entertainment

someone: hehehe ...

My point is that if you are not trading primarily for monetary gains, then you shouldn't be trading at all.

Having said that, it's my opinion that we humans can be pretty irrational creatures (note: traders are humans too) and as such, we have to watch out for irrational behavior especially during trading as it can work against us pretty badly.

When you start out trading, you should never expect yourself to succeed in a short time (e.g. such as under 6 months). This is not only unrealistic but places totally unnecessary pressure and stress on you.

I like to quote what Gary Player (a golf legend) once said. He said "The harder you work, the luckier you get".

I interpreted that to mean that the odds of success increases in tandem with the amount of effort one puts in. But do not be mistaken here ... I do not think that hard work guarantees you being successful in trading as this is a totally different ball game altogether from most of the mainstream careers.

Still, one should persevere and keep the faith and commit to having success in whatever field he or she chooses (and in this case, trading).

At this juncture, I would also like to address an issue that concerns new traders and that is the idea of demo trading. Many would presumably start off (told or otherwise) demo or paper trading by using virtual / demo money and that is perfectly fine until you realize that most of us will never benefit fully from it because real money isn't involved and as such, there is no emotion at all. When that happens, it isn't real live TRAINING. In my view, it's simply a waste of time for the majority.

I can sense many people disagreeing at this point. However, I'm obliged to share with you what works and it is in my experience that I found what worked for me and what did not.

The question then to answer (if you choose to agree with me) is "How can one learn to trade without risking a great deal?" and what follows is simply my suggestion.

I would suggest using XXX amount of dollars where it wouldn't cost you to sacrifice the way you live (should you lose it all) yet large enough so that you can actually experience the emotions while trading and take it more seriously. What say you? You might as well consider that as paying for live training/tuition to the market.

With that said, once you start trading proper, you should never focus on how much you would make or what you could buy with the money you make. Instead, you should FOCUS solely on your profitable trade setups and trading them well. The profits are simply an afterthought, a given. It WILL come eventually so long as you trade well.

(R)isk Management

Now that we got mindset out of our way, let's talk about risk management. Some call it money management, others call it trade management. I choose to call it risk management because I see managing risk in trading as something very core and very essential.

First things first, traders have to decide how much risk or drawdown as a percentage of the entire equity they are willing to take in a given period (be it a day, a week or a month). As a guideline, it can range from 2% right up to 10% and more. I personally use 5% as my line in the sand.

Breaking it down further, you have to decide how much risk you are willing to take per trade (this relates back to max drawdown in a month and the typical number of trades taken in that time). Also, risk tolerance is dependant on the style of your trading. You have to discern if you are a positional trader or an intraday one. Positional traders will allow for a bigger move against his entry by trading a smaller size. Conversely, intraday traders can only afford a relatively smaller move against his position if the trade taken is a bigger one as compared to the one taken by the positional trader.

Another factor to take into account is the trader's typical setup. If his setup requires only a small stop, he can choose to put on a bigger trade as compared to another setup that requires twice the stop of the former setup.

So what can a proper and well thought out risk management plan achieve for the trader and his account?

For starters, the trader has a plan that he knows that if he breaks it, he will have a much harder time growing equity. Suppose a trader loses 50% of his account in a given month. Mathematically, he needs to make 100% on his remaining equity just to get back to where he started off in the month where he wiped 50% from his account. Does this make sense?

With proper risk management, an account can grow very quickly if the trader trades profitably. On the other hand, the balance on the account will dwindle more slowly if the trader experiences bad spells or streaks. This is true only and only if the trader trades in the size proportionate to the total equity or balance.

As a final point in risk management (and most would miss out on this I reckon), you should also think about the possibility that your internet connection might go down at any point in time while trading. And as such, I use 2 precautionary measures.

The first one would be to put in my profit target and stop loss per individual trade. And last but not least, to write down your broker's telephone number somewhere next to your trading desk so that you can call in to change your orders.

(S)trategy

Finally, we come to the last letter of M.R.S which incidentally stands for strategy. Strategy is all about finding your edge and applying it to the markets. It is about finding setups that create your buy/long/call bias and your sell/short/put bias.

It's a paradox really because most beginners focus way too much on strategies rather than having the right trading mindset and having a proper risk management plan. It's no wonder that in a recent trip to a major bookstore (if you need to know ... it's Borders), I couldn't help but notice that most books on trading are focused on technical analysis, strategies and trading setups rather than giving a balanced view and write-up on the 3 components that are very essential for successful trading. So much for giving these books with titles such as "How to be a profitable trader"!

Moving on ... let's discuss trade entries. Amateurs armed even with a profitable edge usually end up negative because more often than not, they tend to be wishy-washy with their entries (because of greed/fear).

Professionals on the other hand tend to be strict with their entries. They do not compromise with price. They essentially plan and wait for price levels to fall into their trap before entering into a trade. They aren't afraid of missing out on a trade as such because they know that another opportunity is just around the corner. May I remind you that patience is key!

As a natural sequence, we will now look at setting profit targets for trades. Primarily, there are 2 methods as I see it. You can either use a technical target (based off indicators, etc) or use an arbitrary number away from your entry as your target objective. Some would argue it doesn't make sense to use an arbitrary target because we would be limiting our gains but hey ... why do you care if you are consistently hitting your arbitrary targets every other day. In any case, it is horses for courses and as such, choose whatever works for you.

I remember the time when my trading improved dramatically and it basically boiled down to a routine I started practicing. And it's none other than trade journaling.

In trade journaling, one records details of a trade. In my case, I record the price at which I entered and exited, the date of the trade, size of trade, the net result, the session at which I enter and exit my trade and most importantly, the rationale behind the trade.

If you like and can afford more time (especially when you are just starting out), you can also grab a screenshot of your trade, record your stop loss point, etc. It's basically a case where you record details that are important to you when you refer back to your trades and learn from them

Hey, if you haven't been journaling your trades, I challenge and invite you now to start doing so. I promise it will improve your trading as a whole. Trade journaling will change you internally. It will propel you to new levels in your evolution as a trader. If you like to, you are welcome to email me and let me know how journaling has changed the way you traded before.

Summary

I'll like you to just bear in mind that successful trading is like the wheel with 3 spokes (think of Mercedes Benz). You simply cannot do with deficiency of development in any one of them.

Put it this way ... someone with the best strategies and setups in the world wouldn't make money if his emotions run him riot and if he over-leverages on his position. Prove me wrong if you can.

As I bring this article to a close, any wonder why female traders tend to trade better than their male counterparts. (Think M.R.S ...)

Till we meet again, stay healthy and pip-wealthy!

LondonWhisper forex trading strategies banked me 1628 pips (or $16,280) last year! Be sure to check it out!

For great forex trading education, check out my Forex Killer Edge site which has loads of forex related content.

And ... for great forex tips, strategies, updates and forex ebooks, tap into my secret insider resource!

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Finding Or Creating Your Own Options Trading System That Works

Stock Options are wonderful! This clever derivative of the equities market has to be one of the most ingenious inventions of modern times. For the trader who can learn how to win at trading options there are many luxuries in life that can be experienced.

Success in options trading requires a consistent approach for long-term success. This statement is not meant to be grandiose, idealistic comment made by some 'trading theorist', rather, it is a statement born out of the hard knocks and success experiences of the author and many other long-term, successful trader contemporaries.

This "consistent approach" to options trading can also be called a "trading system", or an "options trading system" in this case. The term "trading system" is not necessarily confined to a series of computerized "black box" trading signals. A trading system could be something as simple as "buy an option on a stock in an uptrend that breaks the high of the previous bar after at least two days of pull back down movement that make lower lows." A trading system is simply an organized approach that takes advantage of a repeated pattern or event that brings net profits.

Since an Option is a "Derivative" of the stock you must derive your options trading system from a stock trading system. This means your trading system must be based around actual stock price movement. That said, your trading system doesn't need to work for all stocks it just has to work for certain types of stocks, certain volatility of stocks and certain price levels of stocks etc... So focus your trading system on certain stocks that have price behavior that is predictable to the net results you wish to abstract from a stock.

You can develop a trading system, a trading approach, and a trading methodology by identifying a price movement pattern (or lack of price movement pattern) or some event that occurs on some sort of regular basis. This means you can trade price behavior patterns on price charts such as: traditional chart patterns, trends, swings, pivot points, boxes etc... or you can trade events that motivate stock price such as earnings runs, post earnings runs, stock splits, seasonal factors etc.... Bottom line to make the maximum profit in options trading you want your stock to move in your favor fast and you want it to move far. Just a relatively small movement in the price of a stock can double your money in options!

There are so many different strategies and combinations that you can trade with options. You can buy calls and puts for directional trades. You can employ call spreads and put spreads to trade directional movements with a buffered risk, and profit. You can sell or purchase spreads to receive the credit of the premium decay by options expiration. You can trade straddles and strangles if you expect a big move but are not sure in which direction. You can also get into ratio back spreads, condors, and butterflies... And if you're really feeling crazy you can sell 'naked' options (just better use a stop loss or you'll end up like one of my old trading buddies who ran an account to $20 million then gave it all back selling naked options.) You can go to cboe.com for more information on options trading.

Directional options trading systems are the best. Keep it simple, buy calls for and upside trade or buy puts for a downside trade. But this means you need a directional stock trading system in order to trade directional options.

Here are a couple of different approaches for directional systems:

Develop an options trading systems that trades the swings in stock price movement. There are many good swing trading systems available today. We suggest you obtain one. Bottom line with swing trading is that you want to swing trade with the trend. Options brokers these days have advanced order technology that will allow you to enter swing trades based on the price movement of the stock so you don't have to watch this stock all day. That huge advancement to swing trading options.

Swing trade the day bars. Most swing trading systems are based on daily bars on the stock price chart.

Swing trade the Intra Day Bars! Their other fantastic systems based on intraday charts that pin point swing trading entries.

Develop an options trading system that trades three to six month trends. This is where the big money is. Trading the large trends is where many are able to place larger sums of money to develop their net worth.

Develop an options trading system that trades pivot points. Pivot point trading is arguably the best way to trade options, because price action usually is explosive, and happens quickly in our direction when a trade works. This is good because you can use shorter-term options and leverage yourself a little better. And it's also nice you can make great gains in five days to four weeks on average so time decay issues become less of a worry.

There are many different directional trading methods you could use to trade options. You need to pick one, work it, and never use more than 10% options position size per trade on small accounts 1% to 5 % max position size on larger accounts. This methodical way of money management trading options is the fastest way to potentially rapid account growth, helping you avoid needless set backs.

Chris Viscaya is a head trader at http://www.opivotrading.com Opivo Trading specializes in trading a unique pivot point strategy on stocks with options offering a subscription service as well as a home study course.

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Day Trading Training - Secrets, Precautions, Necessities, Tips, And Points To Remember

What is day trading and its advantages?

Day trading-Buying and selling of shares on daily basis is called day trading this is also called as Intra day trading. Whatever you buy today you have to sell it today OR whatever you sell today you have to buy it today and very importantly during market hours that is 9.55 am to 3.30 pm (Indian time).

Advantages of Day Trading -

a) Margin trading - In Day trading you get margin on your balance amount means you get more leverages (amount) on your available balance amount to do day trading this concept is called margin trading. Margin trading is only possible in day trading and not in delivery trading. How much extra amount (margin) you are going to get that totally depends on your broker, or your online system brokers. Some broker provides 3, 4, 5, and 6 times extra margin. If you do margin then you have to square off your open trades on the same day (means if you bought shares then you have to sell and if you sold shares then you have to buy)before market time (that is 3:30 PM) finishes.b) Second important advantage is that you have to pay is less brokerage (commissions) on day trading (Intraday) as compared to delivery trading. This brokerage again depends from broker to broker (or on your online trading system). c) In day trading you can sell and then buy this is called short sell which you cant do in delivery trading. You can sell shares when prices are falling and then buy when price falls further.

Disadvantage of Day Trading

a) As you are benefited to get more extra amount to trade (that is margin trading) and get more extra profit it is also equally true that you are also taking more risk of loss.b) At any cost you have to square off the open transaction before 3:30 PM (especially if you are doing margin trading) at that time the price may not be in your favor.

Basic Requirements for Day trading

A successful day trader or share market trading requires couple of disciplines and following requirements -

1) PC with internet - If you need to do it yourself then you need to have a PC or else you can do it in internet café also. A PC with good internet connection speed. The internet connection should not be slow or should not face any other problem especially in Day Trading.

2) Online Account (Demat Account) - You need to open online share trading account with any of the available banks or online brokers.Points to remember while opening online accounta) Make multiple enquiries and try get low brokerage trading and demat account.b) Also discuss about the margin they provide for day trading. c) Discuss about fund transfer. The fund transfer should be reliable and easy. Fund transfer from your bank account to account and visa versa. Some online share accounts have integrated savings account which makes easy for you to transfer funds from your saving account to trading account.d) Very important is about service they provide, the research calls, intraday or daily tips. e) Also enquire about their services charges and any other hidden charges if any. f) And also see how reliable and easy is to contact them in case if any emergency. Emergency closing or squaring off trades in case of any technical or other problems

How to choose shares (stocks) for day trading

In day trading, traders mostly wish to do buying and selling on small profits or else they look for overbought or oversold shares. Taking into consideration these important points following basic things you should look in for shares while choosing them for day trading.- Price Volatility- Volume (quantity)What exactly these terms mean and how to use them while Day Trading.

Price Volatility - The Price volatility means the movement (up and down) of share price should be more (or high) through out the day. In other words the fluctuation in share prices should be on high rate so that it will be easy for you to buy and sell on different prices. Suppose if share is moving up and down in very narrow range then on what price you will buy and sell? So it is always better if you choose shares which have high volatility in price movement.Do you want to know how to find out the high volatility shares then please click here?

Volume (quantity) - Volume means trading quantities. The shares which you choose for day trading should have high volumes (or high traded quantity).Why this is required?The high volume indicates that there is more liquidity. Liquidity means lots of transactions had took place on this share and more people are interested to trade in this share. This will ease your trading job because you will get more exposure to the price to buy and sell at anytime. Due to high volumes there will be also high price fluctuations.

Points to remember for day tradingFollowing are very important points to be always remember by day traders.Entry & exit points, stop loss limits, profit targets, your desired risk/reward profile,amount of capital to be committed to trades, how long you need to hold the share if incase it is against your favor.

Why it is required to practice day trading before starting actual day trading?

It's important to do practice or paper trading before you starts actual trading. Following are the few reasons, 1) Very importantly you will come to know how to place buy/sell orders, and will become familiar and perfect about using your trading system. 2) You will gain confidence in yourself. 3) The fear of trading will vanish. It is very important to keep fear away while doing day trading. 4) You will become active to enter and exit the trade. It's vital important that you must be pretty fast to enter and exit the trade (i.e. open positions).

What are the common day trading mistakes and how to avoid them to make generous profit

1) Don't jump in trend early - Wait and get paper confirmation of trend change, and then plan and do your trades (buy/sell). Don't jump in or do early trades before any trade change confirmation this may damage your capital (bank balance).

2) Don't wait in trade for long time - Suppose that you had done one trade (either buy or sell) but the scrip is not moving either up or down, it is just stable or moving with very low price difference, then you should get out of that trade and look for other scrip's. You may encounter these type of situations when indices (NSE or BSE) and not moving (or moving with narrow range). At such time either you wait or come out of trade, don't loose patience and fall under loss.

3) Don't change your trend on volume volatility - Some time you enter in trade by seeing the buy and sell quantities. For example, suppose you brought shares by seeing more buy quantity then sell quantity, expecting more buy quantity may push the share/stock up but after few minutes you see exactly reverse that you see more sell quantity and less buy quantity or both buy and sell high quantity or the difference of buying and selling quantity is decreased as compared to what you had seen before. So this point is very important, don't panic here and sell off your stock, wait and realize the situation properly and then take action. This situation comes many times but if you are sure that your share is going to move up then stick to it.

4) Beware of companies' acquisition or any announcement by Government - Suppose in the morning, before market begins, you should read or viewed the news of any Indian Company has acquired any foreign company (or part of foreign company) if you see this is actually best news/things that Indian company. But if acquisition amount is far more than expectation then this good news will turn into worst news. The shares of that company will start falling. So you should not get in trade and buy shares you have to wait and watch how market or other people are responding to these shares and once you understand then you can trade. So always watch where the market heading towards and then react. Announcement of Government - You should also be very careful to decide your tarde based on any government announcement.For example, if government has declared any hike in interest rate then its good news for bank stocks and hence the shares will rise but if government has declared 2nd rate hike in very less span of time as company to first one ( stay within duration of one, two month or three month) then this news will be worse for bank stocks, the share may keeping fall during the trading period. So realize and analyze the news and finally watch market behavior and this fall or do trade you will get success.

Things to study in the morning before starting your day trading or share market trading or Intraday trading?

1) Read financial newspaper like Business Standard, Economics Times, etc. If possible note done the high lights/breaking news with respective company names and keep close watch on them for that day.

2) If possible watch share (stock) market related TV channels like Zee Business, CNBC, etc. In these TV channels you get over all idea/movements of all share prices and markets (BSE, NSE). And also it becomes easy to catch and keep close watch on related companies if any breaking news comes out during that day.

3) Especially some share market related websites like capitalmarket.com, businessstandard.com always displays current news, market affairs, share market trends, breaking news and various announcement done by company or government which may effect the share market and related companies. So try to access and have all ok on such types of websites before starting trading and also through out the day, if possible.

4) So in short before starting you stock market trading you should be well aware of all the current news of financial market and if possible note down the breaking news or effective news and its related company and keep watch on that share and trade accordingly on that day.

Important principles to be follow by day tradersNever invest all your money in same sector this method is called as diversification of shares. This will protect your money from downtrends of any particular sector as you can make money from other sector.There are various sectors like IT, Pharmacy, Banking, Steel, Petrol and Oil, construction and infrastructure, auto etc.

Avoid common day trading mistakes Lack of a Trading Plan, Failure to Control Emotions, Failure to Accept and Limit Losses, Lack of Commitment, Over-Trading

Thanks and warm regards
Technical team
http://www.stockmarketindian.com

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Trading Plan

Trading is a business. As in any other business, a well thought-out plan can make the difference between success and failure. A trading plan is a pact you make with yourself. It is your personal blueprint for success. It must include not only your goals but must also detail how you plan to achieve them. Traders work alone, and so do not need to deal with many of the organizational issues confronting other business plans. But traders need a business plan (trading plan) just as much as any other business.

The three important factors that need to be strongly engrained into our minds and ultimately into our trading plans are Trading Psychology, Discipline, and a Trading System.

Trading Psychology:

Your mind is your main trading asset and must be guarded. How do you plan to protect yourself throughout your trading career? How will you guard against burnout? When and for how long will you take a vacation or a break from trading? (Remember, it's ok and it's healthy to take a break from trading). What is your plan in the event of an unusually large loss? Are there things outside your trading which heavily influence you emotionally? How do you plan to deal with them? Emotional decisions are the most destructive factor to the bottom line. Your trading plan is your protection to guard against these!

Perhaps the single most important aspect of trading and yet the one that is paid little attention to by the average trader is the psychology of trading. Traders must remain emotionally detached from the market; this is easy to say but often difficult to do. A new trader will experience a gauntlet of emotions as they enter the markets for the first time - fear, anxiety, panic, joy, even greed - these are all emotions that the greenhorn trader should not only expect but be prepared to face. You need to remain emotionally detached and act according to your trading plan. Emotional imbalance impairs your ability to make intelligent decisions.

Of course, there are other things to consider besides your emotions. Do you know why you are trading? Are you trading for the thrill, for the challenge, or to make a steady income? Whatever the reason, you will enjoy the experience more and trade better if you know your purpose. Many new traders approach the market with unrealistic expectations. Instead of seeing trading as a business which requires both time and some hard work, they see the market as nothing more than a place to make "quick and easy money." At first they may do well but without any kind of plan in place invariably their inexperience and overconfidence catches up with them.

You must accept the fact that the market is always right and that at times you're going to be wrong. There is no shame in being wrong, even the best traders can be in error. If you don't admit your wrong and do something about it, fear, greed and hope can cloud your vision of the market and can cause emotional responses harmful to your trading. Do not become in love with a losing position. If you're wrong - admit it, get out, salvage your trading capital and wait for the next trading opportunity. Conversely, congratulate yourself and feel good about a trade when you have labored according to your trading plan, regardless of the profit or loss.

Acknowledge that you are the person responsible for your winning and losing - do not blame the market, do not blame a hot tip that did not plan out, and do not blame a newsletter or financial advisor. Losses give us the chance to focus on where our plan fell short and to instantly correct it.

Discipline:

Like most things in life, you will not succeed without discipline. Discipline is adhering to your established trading plan, including entry points and stops. To become consistently profitable, we must have a high level of self-discipline with a well-defined trading strategy that effectively maximizes profitable trades and minimizes losing trades. Creating a trading plan is relatively easy but it is the discipline to follow that plan that will differentiate capable traders from all others. During periods of profit, adhering to a trading plan is comparatively easy. However, during periods of loss the same trading plan will appear rigid and constricting and it is at such times that a trader will be tempted to stray from the plan. At times you might want to deviate from your trading plan, but doing so invalidates the reason for preparing it in the first place. Remember the purpose of the plan was to provide guidelines to follow. Breaking from it will often lead to risk exposure that you were originally unprepared to take.

Besides abandoning your trading plan, a lack of discipline can lead to other troubles for the trader. If you abandon your trading plan you may be tempted to impatiently rush into or out of trades without considering the consequences. You might also start to ignore price charts or start falling victim to your emotions. And most assuredly you will not utilize your stop-losses. Once you ignore your stop-losses it is only a matter of time before you make your last trade. How can you make money, if you don't have any money to trade with? The most important trading rule is to cut your losses. Even though your primary motivation is to make money and you consider this important, protecting your trading capital is even more important.

One of the best ways to manage your risk when trading is to limit how much money you put into a single position. This is to guard against the possibility of something unpleasant occurring. What is the maximum percentage of your trading capital you are prepared to commit to a single trade? If you have had three losses in a row, the likelihood that you are going to have a profitable trade doesn't automatically swing in your favor. Don't increase your trade size thinking your next winner is just around the corner. Instead, after a few losses, your trade size should be decreased slightly to reflect your reduce trading capital. You also have to ask yourself, "What happens if you keep losing money?" Are you prepared to lose all of your trading capital before you are forced to stop, or do you think you would like to hold on to some of the money and place it somewhere else, with the plan of either not trading again for an extended period of time or giving up altogether?

There is a lot to learn about managing your money in trading. Telling you to cut losses is one thing but executing it ruthlessly and without delay can be another.

Trading System:

Having a routine makes it so much easier to follow your plan. Why is this critical? Well, why do most traders fail? Simple, they don't have a plan. A trading plan will often follow a trading routine that the trader consistently exercises over and over again. The routine should bring together most of the parts of your trading plan into a methodical and deliberate process for each and every trade.

When you do not have a written trading plan, even though you have developed a plan in your head, it is too easy to drift away and go back to old habits. Having the written plan will guide you to making the right decisions. Consider the difference between knowing what has to be done and what you want to do. In trading, what has to be done is always the right choice, yet if you do not have a trading plan, you can easily decide with what you want to do, instead.

In your routine you'll likely be sorting through large amounts of information in the form of websites. A routine will help you manage the information flow, it is important to identify what information you need and where you will find it. What information do you really need to trade and what information is for interest only but does not effect on your decisions?

Decide how you will categorize the industry/economic sectors in the market. Will you use any form of sector analysis in your method? If so, how will you use it? Will it be the starting point for your trade selection process or will it be a final filter to ensure you don't enter stocks that belong to poorly performing sectors? If you are going to use fundamental analysis, what items are of most interest to you? For example, are you interested in earnings, dividends, growth, acquisitions? If so, how will you use that information?

Write down your trading methodology. Start by talking in very general terms about how you are going to approach your trades. As examples, are you going to trade only heavily traded stocks that are trading at new 52-week highs? Or are you going to trade more speculative stocks and trade breakouts and/or chart patterns? Are you going to use technical analysis? If so, will you be looking at trends? Over what time frame and how are you going to identify them? Are you interested in reversals of short-term or medium-term trends? If so, how will you identify them and then what will you do once you identify them? How about technical indicators? Will you use any of them? What are your conditions that you look for in all of your trades? What setups will you use and do you have printed examples in your trading plan to go back and review. Finally, what triggers will you use? Usually following specific trading rules and keeping it simple works best!

Write down your trading methodology. Start by talking in very general terms about how you are going to approach your trades. As examples, are you going to trade only heavily traded stocks that are trading at new 52-week highs? Or are you going to trade more speculative stocks and trade breakouts and/or chart patterns? Are you going to use technical analysis? If so, will you be looking at trends? Over what time frame and how are you going to identify them? Are you interested in reversals of short-term or medium-term trends? If so, how will you identify them and then what will you do once you identify them? How about technical indicators? Will you use any of them? What are your conditions that you look for in all of your trades? What setups will you use and do you have printed examples in your trading plan to go back and review. Finally, what triggers will you use? Usually following specific trading rules and keeping it simple works best!

It is essential that you monitor your performance for a variety of reasons. The most basic of these is to ensure you protect your trading capital. Further, monitoring your performance allows you to review your past trades and learn from your mistakes. This is an approach used by some of the best traders in the world. They will periodically review all of the trades they have conducted, both winners and losers, and learn from them. How will you go about conducting a review of your trading activities and how often will you do this? A trading diary should detail all of your trading decisions, including reasons for starting a trade, your emotions when opening the trade, trend direction, as well as daily adjustments of exits. A trading diary provides you with a methodical way of maintaining a clear focus. It can also assist you with learning from your mistake.

A written trading plan is the only way to go. It is critical that you create your plan when you are thinking clearly and then trade your plan. By planning each trade from beginning to end you are forced to follow a disciplined and methodical approach to the markets.

Please also visit http://options-diary.blogspot.com

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Fundamental Guide To Safe And Profitable Trading

The Attraction of Trading

Many seek to succeed in stock and option trading. But the majority loses in their endeavor to reach the success. The game doesn't seem as easy as it might look like. If you ever started trading and got confused of when to place order, when to take profit, how to protect your equity and you toiled with anxiety and hesitation in making decision, then you have come to the right site. Even if you are considering to start joining the trading world as a newbie and learn how to trade well and safe, this book will definitely serve as your fundamental guide in your attempt to develop your trading skills.

Stock and option trading has become a great attraction for decades, but why most traders lose and washed out of market? Emotional and careless trading is one of the most likely answer. Do you feel confident or anxious while place an order? Do you feel delightful or doubtful while close out a trade? Are you strongly elated while gaining profit from a trade and tensely sorrowed while losing from one?

Psychology is the Fundamental Key

Most traders expect to enter a good trade. Once they enter, they lose control by riding an emotional roller coaster and miss the essential factor of winning - emotion management. Their inability to manage their emotion leads them to fatal failures.

Most of the time, traders are strongly influenced by their expectation of gaining high profit while at the same time lost their awareness of the market reality. Market is harsh and shows no pity. If you ignore movements in the market crowds, then you will miss out the chance of making money. To stand as a successful trader you need to keep your focus on reality, recognize the changes and trade based on them, not waste time and energy on regrets and wishful thinking.

Successful traders are hardworking and witty men/women. Ironically, their main goal is not to make money but to trade well. Trying to reach their best performance is far more important than making money. They are so focused on trading well and improving their skill that money no longer influences their emotion.

Traders who are not confidence at themselves always try to fulfill their wishes regardless of market reality. Once you enter a trade, you cannot control the price. Worrying about the price would only paralyse your focus and ability to trade. Stop worrying about where the price goes, but start worrying about what to do when it gets there and plan it ahead. By doing this, your trading is free from emotional response and becomes systematic and stress free.

If you do not plan ahead where are you going, you will end up somewhere you never wanted to be.

Emotional Trading

Your feelings and emotions have a significant impact to your trading success. You may have a fullproff profitable trading system, but if you feel upset, fear, arrogant or doubt while you trade, your account is sure to suffer. While you recognize a gambler's high or fear clouding your mind, stop trading. Your success or failure as a trader highly depends on managing your emotions.

The market does not know you exist. You can do nothing to influence it. You can only control your behavior. This is the same thing as a surfer cannot control the waves but he can control hismself not to be wash out by them.

A trader has to study trends and reversals the way a surfer studies waves. He must start with a small scale while learning to handle the market or precisely - himself. You can never control the market but you can learn to control yourself.

A new trader who has a string of winning trades often feels he can walk on the water. He starts taking wild risk and blow up his account. On the other hand, an amateur who suffers a streak of losses feels so demoralized that he cannot place an order even the obvious signal passes in front of him.

Fear and Greed

An amateur trader that feels elated or frightened cannot effectively use his intellect. When greed overwhelms him off his feet, he will make irrational and reckless trades only to suffer loss. When fear grips him, he will miss the profitable trades.

A professional trader uses his logic and stays calm. He acts accordingly to market reality not based on his own wishes claiming on unrealistic expectation.

The Myth

Most amateurs have a fantasy that in order to succeed they need to be highly educated and supplied with equipped with firsthand information. But the fact is that trading is intellectually quite simple. Good traders are often shrewd, but few of them are intellectual. Many do not have college background, and some even dropped out of high school. What separate winners from losers are neither intelligence nor secrets, and definitely not formal academic education?

Take the Full Responsibility

Successful traders are always aware of their decisions and take full responsible of their actions, while losers tend to blame someone or something for the consequences of their results.

You need to be aware of your tendency to sabotage yourself. Stop blaming your losses on others, situations or bad lucks and take full responsibility for the results. Records all the history of your trading, and learn from the failure. Look for repetitive patterns and make use of it for future benefits.

Plan Your Trade and Trade Your Plan

Planning a trade is the next step after you convince yourself to trade in emotionless manner. Your trades must be based on clearly defined rules. Take a look at the following scheme.

You are looking at a good stock X trading at $30 and you place a buy order at $32. The next thing you must do is making a plan of bad and good scenario.

Your plan could be like the followings. After I enter the trade:

If the price goes down, where should I place my stop loss? How much can I bear to lose?

If the price goes up, how much profit I expect to gain? How do I exit the trade?

If the price goes my favor, should I buy more?

You already have those kinds of questions answered before entering the trade you place at $32. Your trade plan is filled in and you place your stop in $30.

The price goes up beyond your second buy order $37 and your stop is moved up to $35. The price keeps rising and you keep moving up your stop at a safe distance to protect your profit.

Your exit stop is hit at $45, and you sell almost mechanically and gain your profit without hesitation and regrets.

By learning to plan your trade and trade your plan, you know beforehand how to act on every situation that might occur. You will then be trading professionally and not emotionally. You won't be afraid of a loss too big to bear, or a profit too small to gain. Your trading will become systematic and stress-free.

Trading versus Gambling

What if you buy and the market immediately goes down? What if you sell and the market immediately goes up? Even the best traders lose money sometimes in some trades.

The answer is to draw a line between a business risk and a loss. A business risk is a maximum a mount of money you can bear to lose. There is no standard dollar amount as there is no standard business. A smart businessman will only take risks that will not put him out of business even he makes several mistakes in a row.

If a trader risks more than his business risk, he crosses the line that separates trading from gambling. Instead of intellectually and calmly cutting his loss, he emotionally expects for reversal without judging the market realistically. You can surely see this model in casinos and race tracks. To a gambler the whole market is like a big casino. He gets greedy and risk too much on a trade, and short streak of losses wipes him out of market

If you bail out of trade within you business risk, it is normal. There is no bargaining, no waiting, no emotionally hoping for another tick. If you take this concept of business risk, it will change your entire paradigm of trading and your way of money management. This concept give you a distinctive picture between trading and gambling.

Money Management

Money management is a very important tool to ensure survival, to avoid your from being put out of business. Money management helps you gain a steady rate of return as well.

As a guide, 2 percent rule keeps you out of risky trades that can do harm to your account. For example, you have $10,000 in your account, you may only risk up to $200 per trade. If your plan triggers an attractive trade with a $150 risk, then you may only trade one contract. If the risk is only $50, then you can afford to trade two contracts. Even if you want to add up your positions while the market moves in your favor, this rule must be followed as well providing you are at a break-even position and you move up your previous stop. You make sure the additional positions do not exceed 2 percent of your trading equity.

Conclusion

If you keep trading less emotionally and stick to you money management rule, your trading will definitely be stress-free and you can focus on analyzing the market. This report serves as an essential and fundamental guide needed by every trader. In addition to this report, you may want to continue to studying market analysis to improve your trading knowledge. Please refer to http://www.SafeStocktradingSecrets.com/recommend.htm for more information.

Hopefully this simple and basic guide will be useful to you. Wish you a safe and profitable trading. Good luck.

Guide to safe, profitable and stress-free trading
Sincerely,
Joshua Stephanus
http://www.SafeStocktradingSecrets.com
info@SafeStocktradingSecrets.com

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