Day Trading & Forex Forum

Why did these people, the newcomers invest so heavily? Simply put they were sold the dream of easy money for little or no work, they were and probably still are “Gullible” many of them have gone on to look for solutions when they found that these people and systems did not, and could not, deliver the profits that they hyped up and said were so easily available. Incidentally there is no such word as ‘Gullible’ in the English Dictionary – honestly.  Go and check it!

So for those newcomers to trading, this article is about what qualities you need to become successful as a trader, it’s not about promises or hype or even solutions. It is a series of questions you will need to ask yourself, not flippantly but seriously. You need to question your motives, your ambitions, your reasons and you need to be aware of the heavy price that trading demands on your mentality. Discipline fear and greed are subjects extensively discussed in trading circles – Trading is one of the hardest, most difficult and complex challenges you could have chosen – BE AWARE. For those that tell you it’s easy, the truth is very different.

For the purposes of presentation and to stop this inadvertently turning this into a book, I have chosen to use an imaginary beginner asking me some simple questions and me using questioning responses. I apologise in advance for the Somerset accent! The newcomers name is Giles and he is currently an experienced airline pilot due for retirement in some 5 years.

Giles: Hi John thanks for meeting me, I’m interested in learning all about trading, I was told you might be the chap to put me on the right track, I want to get started right away.

John B: Nice to meet you too Giles I may be able to help, however before committing myself I need you to respond to some questions I have for you and you need to be honest in your answers, not to me but to be honest with yourself. It’s not a test there are no right or wrong answers OK?

Giles: That’s fine John fire away.

John B: OK here goes……….

• Who told you about trading? Was it someone who is a trader? Were they or are they successful? Did you read about it? If so where? Who wrote it? Do you know any successful financial traders? Do they do it as a hobby or full time? If they do trade do they trade from there own resources or are they paid a salary? Were they positive or negative about trading?
• What are your reasons for wanting to trade? Is it for income, for fun as a hobby? (If it is not a serious reason forget it) Is it to build capital? How soon do you want to have this money? What is your timeframe? Do you want to be trading profitably  in a few days weeks or months?  What target have you set yourself? Are you serious? How much time can you commit Are you a dreamer or are you realistic?
• Do you actually know what trading is? About 95% of the UK population haven’t got a clue. The chances of you meeting anyone who trades is pretty small. If you mention trading shares to the average person in the street they will think you buy shares and sell them, have you seen my introduction video on the front of my website its free, there is also one on forex if you are interested. After you understand what basic trading is, when you tell the wife what you are doing she will think you’re a gambler! And nothing will convince her otherwise. Do you know what spread betting is? Are you interested in day or swing trading,