When you are learning how to do anything new, including trading, the best way to cut your teeth so to speak is to start doing the easier levels first. You aren’t going to be a chef at a Michelin 3 star restaurant if you’ve only flipped burgers before at Rotten Ronnies. You won’t fight a black belt in karate in your first class.
New traders should seek out stocks that are steady movers and have a history of not making sudden, crazy moves. I’m talking here about not trading the ETFs, especially 3x ETFs. Sure it’s easy to be seduced by the excitement of it all in the same way a pair of high heels and long legs wrapped up in a mini skirt will catch the eye of any red blooded male. But just like when your wife or GF elbows you in the ribs, the reality of the ETFs can give you a more painful lesson. They are better left to traders who have experience trading them.
I have a bunch of slower moving stocks on my watchlists like ABX, BTU, CLF,GG, LVS, PCX that come in handy when I want to slow things down a bit. They all move well enough in the day to provide .50 or more runs, sometimes much more. They have no long tails sticking out from the candles which is a sure sign of volatility.
If you really stick to our plan and trade on the signals they give you will find you’ll be making less trades per day but holding on to them longer.
If you are suffering from losing days and getting your confidence undermined pick some slower stocks. This is just common sense.
Make sure your charts are set up in a way that gives you a clear picture of what is going on. Set the scale appropriately, a range that is relevant to your trading scheme and clear off any useless information.
Don’t use 1 minute candles as they put you to close to the action and you’ve just increased your decision making by 4x more. Don’t use 15 minute candle as it puts you too far removed. This applies to momentum day trading only.
Don’t increase your size to more than you can handle. When you set your stop, if you can’t kiss that amount of money gone, then reduce the size until you can.
Don’t over trade. Select a maximum number of trades per day and stick to it if you find you are engaging in revenge trading or are entering without a definite plan or edge.
If you are wrong 3 times in a row on a particular stock, stop trading it and move on as you are not in sync with what is going on with it.
There is no B league to learn trading in. You are going into the same arena with people who are professional with vast experience and deep pockets. It’s up to you to choose your time and place that best fits with your abilities and personality. Play your game and not someone elses. The market owes you nothing so don’t think you can just show up and be paid X number of dollars. It doesn’t work that way. The way it works is that it displays information in a neutral manner for all to see and trade as they see fit to. Some traders see more than others. The opportunities are there. You take advantage of it or not. There is always another opportunity around the corner.
Take some time to decide what is the best way to turn the opportunities you see into a positive result.
