Hello everyone. I would like this thread to clear up some of the hype of forex trading, and technical analysis trading in general. For the past five years I have studied trading, technical analysis and charting techniques by reading every book I could get my hands on. I have also actively traded the stock market using charts, and have recently dove into the world of forex. I have read so many books written by authors who are supposedly successful technical traders, but I often am left curious as to whether these "authors" are truly successful traders, or if they just decided to write a book to make up for there trading losses. Is there anyone out there in the ET community that actually does make a comfortable living by trading using support/resistance, moving averages trendlines, patterns and other simple technical tools? And if so would you care to share some insight on the transition between simply learning about the subject (by reading, studying etc) and actually applying it to use by trading real money? Thanks, and sorry about the long post.
All your reading was an introduction - just a big one with lots of repitition. Next take all those books outside, set them in a big pile and take a match to them. Now you are ready to start. Think about it. If you knew how to make a killing, why write a book and mass produce your competitors? All you got was the germ of an idea by reading. Either get a mentor that you can watch - someone who can prove they can cut it, or use your own invention. All you have to do is focus on where you are weak, and if you have it in you, the answer will begin to dawn on you.
How is your "trading" (stocks) doing? What strategy do you use with stocks? What indicators are you comfortable with? Do you use fundamentals with TA? Are you looking for short term "income", long term growth, or a mixture? Pay yourself "first" from your earnings (into longer term, stable investments). Best advice I ever got for "income" trading.... Find a couple highly volatile, high volume stocks, watch them everyday, understand their rythm, understand the effects of PR and news releases. Aside from money management etc., that's the best advice I ever received for day or swing trading for short term gains. Trade!
The Question & The Answer -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The general question of "Does Anyone Make Money In These Markets?" should be very clear and has been answered over and over again. It is a good question coming from a beginner, however, its is a question that is asked so many times, its annoying to experienced and profitable traders, a question that is asked when the answer is more obvious then the answer to why you would be asking the question in the first place. I do not mean to be rude whatsoever. But, it is apparent that ("YES") you can make money in the forex/futures/stocks/etc. The idea that you can NOT, or MAYBE you can't, is thought either by an ill attempt at profitable trading or a true beginner doing investigation. In the case of a true beginner, the answer should be obvious. All of the books, All of the glamour, All of the brokers, etc, are not around because no one has ever been profitable. However, those that are profitable are not the ones who write the books, but are the ones the stories are told about, and are the ones the brokers need to stay in business. Reading between the lines, is the concept in this business aswell as out of it. In all of the books, there is something there you can take from it, but, typically, it is not what is easily read. In all of the stories, there is something you can take from it, but trust me, it is not heard. And all of the indicators given to you through brokerage platforms, can be used, but not in the way perceived. As repeated many times before me, there are inefficiencies/edges that can be exploited in the market, but they only come with hard work and dedication. That means, keep reading, keep hearing, and keep perceiving and eventually, if you are meant to become a trader, it will just happen. In the case of the ill attempt, ask yourself, have you really done everything you could to maximize the probability of you being successful at trading? I mean seriously. Here is something I would like to share with everyone. I once read inside of a book, a girl was playing a piano, she was playing it in front of a huge crowd. She was playing fantastic, like a pro, almost magically. After her performance, a woman from the crowd walked up to her and said "I would give anything to play like you!", the pianist turned to her and said âNo you wouldnât", the woman replied, "Oh god, yes I would", the pianist again replied "if you would give anything then you WOULD be able to play like me, the thousand of hours practicing, the bleeding fingers, the late nights, the stressful chart analysis"...ok ok I rephrased a little, but you get the point. Thereâs a price to pay for everything, and unfortunately the price always comes first before the product, and again ask yourself...."Have I paid for what I want? Have I given 110% to get were I want to be?". Even on that note, thereâs always somebody out there working 10 times harder then you, always, remember that. YES, some SpotFX traders are profitable. Yes, some Futures traders are profitable. Yes, some Stock traders are profitable. But if you really want to play the piano this good, "Does Anyone Make Money?" should not be the question. - secXces Shane Rochester 9/6/2006
Stockman20, My apologies for being so vague in the above post, the post wasnât meant to be directly towards you. I have just heard this question over and over again, and now I can just use a link to this post, in this thread, for future reference, to my statement. As for your question, I personally due make rather good living trading the SpotFX. I chose this market specifically due to the opportunities that are given to everyone by means of volatility, broker restrictions specifically leverage, and hours of operation. These three things relate to my trading style and my personality, hence the reason im here. You have to make sure this is for you. I have seen a lot of awesome stock traders try to break into the FX markets and fail miserably. I do use moving averages, support and resistance, and many other simple tools. As for a transition, I really started to become profitable trading 4 months after reading a few books by John Elder and applying the knowledge I gained. Maybe 5% of what I actually do comes directly from his books, but the other 95% I came across when applying his materials. All of that changed even more rapidly when I started trading with real money. I can say this though, a couple weeks ago was the first time I broke the $10,000 in a week line. It was a great achievement and a big stepping stone for me. I donât make millions, but I would still only consider myself to be a novice. I have so much to learn, itâs almost scary. But Im also very young, and started very early. My goals are to break $100,000 withing the next 2 Years. That will be my next milestone. Good luck Stockman20, I wish you the best, may the pips fall from the heavens and land in your account. I hope I answered your question, and please do not take any of this as being rude. I have to repeat this sometimes as some people are quick to fight..lol. Cya, - secXces
Thanks to all who replied!! Although I haven't traded stocks for about 6 months, I can tell you that my experiences were mixed. I basically would break even on a month by month basis. I feel like my stock trading has been a huge success though, because of the mass amount of knowledge I was able to gain from it. There is no better way to learn than by trading real money! Trading stocks also helped me develop a better trading discipline, that I will be able to apply to trading in the future. My trading style was very textbook-like, basically using tools that I had learned from reading books. Trendlines, suppport and resistance etc. Most of my success came from trading pattern breakouts.
Wow secXces, thanks so much for putting in the time to post that reply! I absolutely am not offended, and do not think that you are rude! I think your advice about asking myself if I have worked hard enought was great! Many times I get caught up with the feeling that since I have read so many books and articles (including Elder) on trading, that I have already put in the work required to make money. This of course is a rediculous statement. I will heed your advice in the future, and try to think outside my little box of "book knowledge." Thanks again!