How To Day Trade Forex & Futures Successfully

Sometimes we fall into the trap of thinking that trading profitably, whether in equities, indexes, futures, Forex, options or any other instrument cannot be difficult. Prices can only go up or down and, so long as you can predict the direction correctly more times than you get it wrong, you will be OK.

Have you learned yet that, sadly, it doesn’t work like that? Firstly, there are costs involved in trading, whether you win or lose. For this reason a simple majority of winning trades is not enough. Secondly, there is a deep psychological aspect to trading, which really must be experienced to be appreciated. Thirdly, you have to deal with the reality that successful trading means being profitable all the time, month in and month out. This requires constant care and attention, and a deep self-awareness.

To consider how to trade Forex or futures successfully, you must understand your motivation. Do you see your buying and selling activity as a business, which will pay your mortgage and all other expenses reliably into the future? Or do you see it as a game, where the thrill of the chase and the adrenaline rush of a big win are more important even than the amounts of money involved.

One thing is for sure, there are no quick fixes or magic bullets. There is no robot that can come even close to fulfilling the requirements of consistent, repeatable, profitable trading. You must strive from the start to gain a deep understanding of all aspects of trading, and then you must carefully apply what you have learned, on a continuous basis.  It means being familiar with the Technical Analysis of charts if for no other reason than that nearly all of the traders with whom you will be competing pay close attention to this subject.

And it means being in a position to use software routines to assist you in placing and managing trades so that they are placed efficiently and managed effectively to lock in profits and preserve your equity. In short, there is no honor in attempting to trade without giving yourself every conceivable advantage. Remember that once you lose your equity, or even a substantial proportion of it, you are out of trading. The psychological mountain that must be climbed to come back from a position where you have lost half your stake makes climbing in the Himalayas look like a garden path.

Your trading awareness is about knowing for yourself what must be done at any given time. This could, for example, mean being out of the market altogether for extended periods. Valutrader makes every effort to lead you along the way and to suggest actions (or inaction) from time to time with our software and with our words, but your goal has to be to gain the ability to leave the comfort of this particular nest and learn to make these decisions for yourself, without hesitation.