Hello all.....

I thought before i started dissecting the forum for information,

it d be rude not to introduce myself, i m james, 28, living in central london,

going through somewhat of a career change (about as drastic as it gets) and hoping for some helpful advice on the best route forward.

I left the army 6 years ago, and went into the private security field (similarly hard field to crack), and have spent those last years country hopping on various Psd contracts, africa, US, sandpit etc etc,

Now its time to settle down in one place, and i ve always had an interest in the markets (although i ve alot to learn) i have alot of life experience for my age, but obviously no professional field based experience.

I m not in this for the supposed glamour and fortunes everyone thinks Brokers earn, i ve come from an industry where success isnt rewarded other than being able to breathe at the end of the day, wannabes dont last v long.

I ve been offered a London school of business and finance MBA in Business/finance Admin, to get a foot on the ladder as it were, i m a smart cookie, good with numbers, and obviously working hard and under pressure is something i m more than used to,

I dont have a degree so to break into trading (if thats route i choose) is something that needs to be addressed, but for broking i understand its not a requirement, i d like to think i ve got abit of the gift of the gab, and could turn my hand as it were.

So i guess its the where now question i m asking!?

appreciate anyone taking the time to drop me a line .....happily stand anyone a beer if they feel they can help!

james.

Welcome man. At this point you need to just go into research mode and do ALOT of homework. Learn how the markets really work. There are very few books out of the thousands that I would actually recommend. A couple that I really like are Trading In The Zone by Mark Douglas and Trading For A Living by Alexander Elder. Don't get sucked into the thousands of systems out there that promise to make you rich. And if you can help it, don't even touch an indicator.

You can get an idea of my approach to the markets by visiting my journal. There are some good videos. The link is in my signature along with another link to the place where I learned pretty much everything I know today. If there's anything else I can help with let me know. I'm always wanting to help new traders get started in the right direction. Especially genuine guys like you seem to be. I consider myself to be a kidnapper who is trying to get to you before the BAD kidnappers do. Take care man.

Hi Pmc,

many thanks for taking the time to pen me a reply, i d like to think i m genuine and bring something to the table that interms of life experience that fresh grads dont have.....

I m reading and educating myself like their is no tomorrow, i wasnt sure if i d get much of a reply, as its a competitive game and still somewhat a who you know industry....

i ll keep plodding on!

j.

james,

Some people are worried about "giving away secrets" when it comes to teaching. For one, there are no "secrets" in trading, and two, undoubtedly 1 out of every 100 people (at most) who actually read my words of advice and listen to what I have to say will actually take it to heart and put it to good use. The rest will continue to get slaughtered by the informed... I like those odds.