My 2 cents here: I believe an understanding of what the above means is THE single most important element in trading to making leap progress as a great profitable trader -- assuming what they mean is what I think they mean.
"Most important factor for success in FX" http://www2.oanda.com/cgi-bin/msgboard/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=16;t=004012;p=1#000005
I am not an accomplished trader. I am getting better. I was reading about combat the other day, and this applies to a lot of things. It is the ability to take the extra step when things are the worst. To step across the line and trust in yourself and what you believe. I think it is the ability to finally trust yourself. It is to move past fear, greed, mistrust, all human weakness, and trust yourself and your instincts. It is the ability to step across the line and take the chance. It defies the instincts. It is similar to what is said in the Star Wars movies. You must trust in the force. Before you condemn me, Star Wars is taken from an ancient Japanese Tale. Say whatever you want about me and the Japanese, but they were fearless warriors. And trading is about war.
Not one person, apart from myself as of this moment, has mentioned 'to be right'. As a rare poster, whose main purpose of visiting this Site, is to assess the Competition periodically, I am pleased to report to myself that I see no Warships on the horizon. ET remains an intellectual abyss, to my pleasure and horror.
A lot of good and logical points made. One not mentioned... There are two realities. Reality is the way it should, could, would be. Most losing traders trade this. Market Reality is the way it IS. Winners trade this. Can I leave now? sKaLpZ
oh yeah, another thing.. thus saith Gamal Saham Ruach: "thou shalt know thy instrument!" it may be stupidly obvious but know all the features about your trading platform too. almost every time I learned some aspect or feature about my trading platform it was by losing money because I didn't have certain options checked or unchecked. your instrument! what you're trading! you got to know your market, and the thing you are trading, like the back of your hand! this cannot be overlooked if you want to give yourself every advantage. and you HAVE to put in "market time." even though, for me, in forex since it trades 24-hours a day it could be easy to put in TOO much time. still the more you know about what you're trading the better it will be for you. Sam
Hi Sam, would you please let us know your idea when putting in how much time (and the hours) is considered not trading too much time? Thanks!
4:07AM PST shore. just because you have a trade open and monitor it doesn't necessarily mean you're "overtrading." in my mind, "overtrading" is more, like, making trade after trade after trade after trade after trade after trade after trade... having really no idea what you're doing, not keeping good records and notes, having no game plan, or not sticking with the one you have. you're all over the place - the market's going to eat you like a junk food snack. (read Dr. Alexander Elder) it does NOT mean simply putting "market time" in. therefore, you should see how your trade, your position, your system, your set-up(s), your tactic(s) work under a variety of settings and market environments. the majority of wipe-outs I've had, both live and on demos, were due to running a trade in changing market environments. what worked great in this situation may not work well in another or new circumstance. I then would agree with the sentiment, if you want to be a trader and progress you need to do it full-time. for some people "full-time" is a hard 3-hours a day. For others it is a hard 3-days at a time. each person will advance (or not advance) at his/her own rate. if trading is your profession I'd recommend over-working, over-achieving, over-studying. you're going up against the best in the world, you got to get good, man! you don't, you're going to get smoked! I guarantee it. the only way to win is to get better at trading than everyone else because it is they (the market) who will clean your clock unless you are more proficient at what you're doing... unless your trading system is better than everyone elses who is trading against you. having talent is great. I subscribe to the theory that to excel you've got to work hard. better to be too prepared and over equipped than to be under-ready. you going to fight your way through the jungles of Vietnam you want to be John Rambo or Liberace? knowing more than the guys you're trading against is always an advantage. having been in more fights, more scraps, more tangles, win, lose or draw is gunna give you more ability to win and get yourself out of losing situations that your opponents may be caught in whereas YOU got yourself out because you knew what you were doing. look at it this way, you're going to step into the ring against Bob Sapp. you're going to feel better about it knowing you trained as hard as you could for a year prior to the fight. you still might get killed. it's not the point. at least you'll have a smile laying there in your open coffin. unless Bob chewed your face off. Sam