Rhody Trader
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Trade as small as you possibly can to start while building your confidence and competence.
graemenash
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when entering a trade and once in the trade - how do you deal with nerves?
obv. the calmer you are the less likely you're going to do something rash.
any tips will be much appreciated
Demo trade until you're sure you have an "edge". Once you are confident in your edge you can focus on the outcome of X number of trades, rather than focusing on the outcome of every individual trade.
Determine the maximum capital you are prepared to risk on each trade (preferably <3% of account balance) and stick to it. Determine a level for your stop that makes sense in terms of the market (i.e where the trade could reasonably considered to be "wrong"). Adjust your position size in relation to size of stop if necessary.
The above might be somewhat easier said than done but those steps should go some way to eliminating the fear from your trading...
I'm gonna trade with 10p per pip for the next few months. I think it's important to have some money on the line. At first it has to be an amount that you can afford to lose. So you feel some nerves/pressure but it's not so much that it will paralyze your trading.
I have in the past done trades with £30, £40 and even £50 a pip. I was completly out of my dept when making these trades. I lost alot of sleep and alot of money.
With advice from these boards I am putting together a trading plan that covers all angles. Money management and psychology are probably two of the most important things I am researching (even more important than a good system).
Take things slowly and keep trading pressure to a minimum until you can handle it.
I have in the past done trades with £30, £40 and even £50 a pip. I was completly out of my dept when making these trades. I lost alot of sleep and alot of money.
With advice from these boards I am putting together a trading plan that covers all angles. Money management and psychology are probably two of the most important things I am researching (even more important than a good system).
Take things slowly and keep trading pressure to a minimum until you can handle it.
nine
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I'm going to take a different approach to the other posters.
Although I agree that you should start of trading small to keep nerves at a modest level you will probably still have to deal with emotions and their potential effect on your trading at some point.
As a starter for working on your emotions (not the problem) and managing your actions (the real problem) you might want to have a look at this post: Article on Fear ... but there is a lot of good stuff in this thread (start at the beginning )
Although I agree that you should start of trading small to keep nerves at a modest level you will probably still have to deal with emotions and their potential effect on your trading at some point.
As a starter for working on your emotions (not the problem) and managing your actions (the real problem) you might want to have a look at this post: Article on Fear ... but there is a lot of good stuff in this thread (start at the beginning )
Hoggums
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I disagree.
If you are nervous it means you are trading too large a size and too much is riding on this one particular trade.
You should be looking to make money by winning lots of small trades. You will have lots of small losers too which you won't care about. Sh*t happens - you get trades wrong.
It doesn't matter if you are trading £500 or £50,000 - losing 0.5-1% should never bother you. If the loss bothers you - then size down. You don't have to get rich quick, - what's wrong with taking a few years?
If you are nervous it means you are trading too large a size and too much is riding on this one particular trade.
You should be looking to make money by winning lots of small trades. You will have lots of small losers too which you won't care about. Sh*t happens - you get trades wrong.
It doesn't matter if you are trading £500 or £50,000 - losing 0.5-1% should never bother you. If the loss bothers you - then size down. You don't have to get rich quick, - what's wrong with taking a few years?
new_trader
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Very Important
This means not entering a trade or not taking profits or taking losses when required by his trading approach. The trader who chooses to take the results of a trade personally has put energy into the belief that the outcome of a business decision reflects who he is as a person. This is a mistake and deadly for a trader.
A very important paragraph. Fear and hesitation are deadly enemies of the trader. I agree with Hoggums. IMO: It is not about making as much money as you can in the shortest time possible. It is about becoming proficient through keeping losses to a minimum while you learn. Do not allow ego to warp your judgement.
This means not entering a trade or not taking profits or taking losses when required by his trading approach. The trader who chooses to take the results of a trade personally has put energy into the belief that the outcome of a business decision reflects who he is as a person. This is a mistake and deadly for a trader.
A very important paragraph. Fear and hesitation are deadly enemies of the trader. I agree with Hoggums. IMO: It is not about making as much money as you can in the shortest time possible. It is about becoming proficient through keeping losses to a minimum while you learn. Do not allow ego to warp your judgement.
I'm going to take a different approach and say throw caution to the wind, even if this means in a demo account at first.
My most destructive period was early on, trading with tight stops and being scared to pull the trigger.
Dare to target the daily range if you're a day trader. Dare to trade all-in/all-out if you've fallen prey to scaling out.
When demo-ing don't use stops, instead enjoy the freedom of an "always-in" method at first.
Risk management is the easy part - leave it until last.
My most destructive period was early on, trading with tight stops and being scared to pull the trigger.
Dare to target the daily range if you're a day trader. Dare to trade all-in/all-out if you've fallen prey to scaling out.
When demo-ing don't use stops, instead enjoy the freedom of an "always-in" method at first.
Risk management is the easy part - leave it until last.
new_trader
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Joey,
Not sure if you really got the gist of the thread. 'Nerves' only come into the equation when you back your opinion (trade) with a financial commitment. I trade with tight stops and don’t throw caution to the wind yet I am about 5 times more profitable in paper trading then I am with my live trading. Fear and hesitation does not enter into the equation with imaginary trades. I don’t really ‘get’ how your suggestion helps anyone trying to overcome fear in LIVE trading.
Hi,
Where do you get 10p per pt stakes. I've looked everywhere for that.
Thanks,
Mike
B
Black Swan
good post.
B
Black Swan
you will with IG for the first two weeks (then it's upped to 20p) on their trade sense programme which iirc lasts for six weeks before you have to go a pound a pip or 50p for forex, not sure about other SB companies. Damn good idea to pack in a lot of knowledge and practice during that time.
