MINDFUL CURRENCY TRADING: HOW TO ENHANCE YOUR PERFORMANCE 1/2

By Kathleen Brooks, Brian Dolan

Three things make you a good currency trader: platform, methodology, and psychology. Often traders have the first two covered, but they come up short in the psychology department.

Do you ever think that trading is too hard? That you can’t seem to make money or make a good decision? If so, that’s good! It means you’re a perfectly normal trader who shares the doubts and fears of traders all over the world. The key is to develop a strategy to manage those doubts and fears so that they don’t get in the way of your being a good trader.

Trading is hard on people — it makes them confront their fears around money, self-worth, and performance. In life, you spend most of your time somewhere in the middle, neither succeeding wildly nor failing miserably, but managing to muddle through. With trading, that isn’t the case — you either make money or you don’t, and you know how you performed immediately.

Here are some of the Achilles heels that can negatively impact a trader’s performance:

• Impatience: Many traders enter or exit a trade too quickly. They don’t stick to their plans, lose, and then blame themselves for days afterward. This blame game leads to self-doubt, which can make you hate trading. If you’re impatient, the key is to find out what triggers your impatience. Is it around major trading events like U.S. labor market data, when the market gets volatile for a few minutes? If so, don’t trade during that time. Does it tend to occur if you’ve just had a losing trade? If so, instead of placing the first trade that comes into your head, write it down and leave it for an hour; then read it over and see if you want to place the trade. (You probably won’t, but if you do, at least you’ll know it wasn’t because you were impatient.)
• Fear: Fear is an important reaction, but sometimes it causes traders to freeze. If you’re new to trading, just remember that currency trading gets easier the more you do it and the fear eventually subsides. Also, put things in perspective: No one will die as a result of your putting on one trade. If you use the correct money-management skills, and if you use a sell-stop order, then you should know how much money you may lose on any trade, which can limit the fear factor.
• Pride: You know that feeling in your chest — the one that feels like everyone is watching and judging you if you fail. If you’re worried about what other people will think of your performance, good news: Most people are too obsessed with their own lives to worry about yours. Plus, it’s natural to make mistakes, so give it your best shot and don’t let your pride get in the way of your learning and growing as a trader.

Tomorrow I will reveal the other 2 with a TIP!!!

http://www.dummies.com/personal-finance/investing/currency-day-trading/mindful-currency-trading-how-to-enhance-your-performance/

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Be sure to lookout for the TIP!!!

TRADING FOREX WITH OTHER ASSET CLASSES - MUST READ!!!

By Kathleen Brooks, Brian Dolan

You may think that the $5-trillion-a-day forex market may be too big to get caught up in the movements of other, smaller asset classes, but that’s not the case. The forex market doesn’t move in isolation — what other asset classes do can have big implications for currency prices.

Here’s how:

• Equity markets: If an equity market is rallying, check the domestic currency — sometimes it can follow suit. The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) believes that there is a link between forex and equities. In its view, forex trading can be driven by equity investors who go overseas to get better returns. Investors need to trade forex for two reasons:
  • To buy foreign assets
  • To hedge their returns
  Between June 2013 and May 2014, a puzzling thing happened: The Eurozone economy was underperforming many other global economies, but the euro was rallying. Instead of being driven by fundamentals, the single currency was moving in line with the Euro Stoxx equity index, which rallied nearly 10 percent over that period.
• Commodities: This is one of the most talked about correlations because the vast majority of commodities are priced in U.S. dollars. So, when the U.S. dollar rallies, the prices of commodities can fall because you need fewer dollars to buy your commodity. The reverse is also true if the dollar falls in value. If you see a sudden change in the dollar’s value, take a look at what gold and oil prices are doing.
  The commodity/forex correlation doesn’t end there. Some commodity currencies can also move with commodity prices. For example, Canada is the world’s sixth-largest oil producer, so if the price of oil is rising, this can be good news for Canada’s economic fundamentals, which can also be good news for the Canadian dollar, and vice versa if the oil price is falling.
• Bond yields: An economy that offers higher returns on its bonds can be an attractive place to buy currency for obvious reasons. So, countries with higher bond yields can see their currencies rise relative to countries with lower bond yields. But beware: Sometimes high bond yields can spell disaster. For example, during the financial crisis in 2008, Iceland’s two-year bond yields surged to 13 percent, but the government had to pay that much to attract funds because the economy was on its knees. It required a bailout, and the Icelandic krona fell more than 100 percent between 2007 and 2010.
• USD/JPY and the Nikkei: This is a popular cross-asset correlation, but it may not move as you expect. Because the yen is considered a safe haven, investors tend to buy it during periods of market distress. When the Nikkei is falling, the yen can rise, which weighs on USD/JPY. The opposite can also be true, so when the yen is falling (USD/JPY rising), the Nikkei can be on a march higher.

REMEMBER!

Multiple factors can drive forex markets. Correlations with other markets are just one factor, but they can be very effective. When you trade forex, keep in mind that currencies don’t trade in isolation.

http://www.dummies.com/personal-finance/investing/currency-day-trading/trading-forex-with-other-asset-classes/

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Most Important - Not everyone can trade Successfully! Only 1% of the Population has the mental, physiological and emotional ability to trade with Success.

For the other 99%, don't think you are lost or will never be able to tap into this lucrative market. With today's technology, it is possible to tap into this market through "Done for You Systems"

10 BEGINNER FOREX-TRADING MISTAKES - 8/10

By Kathleen Brooks, Brian Dolan

Overleveraging: Overleveraging is trading too large a position size relative to your available margin. Even a small market move against you can be enough to cause an overleveraged position to be liquidated for insufficient margin.

REMEMBER!
This common no-no is made more tempting by the generous leverage ratios available with some online forex brokers. Just because they offer you 100:1 or 200:1 leverage does not mean you have to use it all. Don’t base your position size on your maximum available position. Instead, base your position size on trade-specific factors such as proximity to technical levels or your confidence in the trade setup/signal.

Failing to adapt to changing market conditions: Market conditions are always changing, which means your trading approach needs to be flexible, too. Trends give way to consolidation ranges, and breakouts from ranges may lead to new trends. Stay flexible with your trading approach by first evaluating overall market conditions in terms of trends or ranges. If a trending move is under way, using a range-trading style won’t work, just as a trend-following approach will fail in a range-bound market. Use technical analysis to highlight whether range or trending conditions prevail.

http://www.dummies.com/personal-finance/investing/currency-day-trading/10-beginner-forex-trading-mistakes/

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Be on the lookout for my next blog where I will reveal 2 more "beginner" trading mistakes!!

Want to get involved in Trading the Markets? Look at this MUST HAVE TOOL!!!
It's free and Internationally Available....

10 BEGINNER FOREX-TRADING MISTAKES - 6/10

By Kathleen Brooks, Brian Dolan

Over trading: Over trading comes in two main forms:

• Trading too often in the market: Trading too often in the market suggests that there is always something going on and that you always know what it is. If you always have a position open, you’re constantly exposed to market risk. But the essence of disciplined trading is minimizing your exposure to unnecessary market risk. Instead, focus on trade opportunities where you think you’ve got an edge, and apply a disciplined trade strategy to them.
• Trading too many positions at once: Trading too many positions at once also suggests that you’re able to spot multiple trade opportunities and exploit them simultaneously. More likely, you’re throwing darts at the board, hoping something sticks. Trading too many positions also eats up your available margin collateral, reducing your cushion against adverse market movements.

WARNING!

Be careful about trade duplication and overlapping positions — a long USD/CHF position can be the same as a short EUR/USD or GBP/USD (all long USD versus Europe), while a short EUR/USD and a long EUR/JPY position nets out to be the same as being long USD/JPY.

http://www.dummies.com/personal-finance/investing/currency-day-trading/10-beginner-forex-trading-mistakes/

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Be on the lookout for my next blog where I will reveal 2 more "beginner" trading mistakes!!

Want to get involved in Trading the Markets? Look at this MUST HAVE TOOL!!!
It's free and Internationally Available....

10 BEGINNER FOREX-TRADING MISTAKES - 4/10

By Kathleen Brooks, Brian Dolan

• Trading without a stop loss: Trading without a stop loss is a recipe for disaster. It’s how small, manageable losses become devastating wipeouts. Trading without a stop loss is the same as saying, “I know I’m going to be right — it’s just a matter of time.” That may be so — but it may take a lot longer than your margin collateral can support.
  

  Using stop-loss orders is part of a well-conceived trading plan that has specific expectations based on your research and analysis. The stop loss is where your trade strategy is invalidated.
• Moving stop-loss orders: Moving your stop-loss order to avoid being stopped out is almost the same as trading without a stop loss in the first place. Worse, it reveals a lack of trading discipline and opens a slippery slope to major losses. If you don’t want to take a relatively small loss based on your original stop loss, why would you want to take an even larger loss after you’ve moved your stop? If you’re like most people, you won’t — and you’ll keep moving your stop to avoid taking an ever-larger loss until your margin runs out.

WARNING!

Move your stop loss only in the direction of a winning trade to lock in profits, and never move your stop in the direction of a losing position.

http://www.dummies.com/personal-finance/investing/currency-day-trading/10-beginner-forex-trading-mistakes/

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Be on the lookout for my next blog where I will reveal 2 more "beginner" trading mistakes!!

Want to get involved in Trading the Markets? Look at this MUST HAVE TOOL!!!
It's free and Internationally Available....

10 BEGINNER FOREX-TRADING MISTAKES - 2/10

By Kathleen Brooks, Brian Dolan

These “beginner” trading mistakes are made by everyone — from total newcomers to grizzled forex market veterans. No matter how long you’ve been trading, you’re bound to experience lapses in trading discipline, whether they’re brought on by unusual market developments or emotional extremes.

The key is to develop an intuitive understanding of the major pitfalls of trading, so that you can recognize early on if you’re letting your discipline slip. If you start to see any of the following errors in your own trading, it’s probably a good idea to square up, step back from the market, and refocus your concentration and energies on the basic trading rules.

Running losers, cutting winners: By far the most common trading mistake is holding on to losing positions for too long and taking profit on winning trades too soon. By cutting winners too early, you may not make as much — but then again, you literally can’t go broke taking profit. That said, you will deplete your trading capital if you let losses run too long.

TIP!

The key to limiting losses is to follow a risk-aware trading plan that always has a stop-loss order and to stick to it. No one is right all the time, so the sooner you’re able to accept small losses as part of everyday trading, the sooner you’ll be able to refocus on spotting and trading winning strategies.

Trading without a plan: Opening up a trade without a concrete plan is like asking the market to take your money. If the market moves against you, when will you cut your losses? If the market moves in your favor, when will you take profit? If you haven’t determined these levels in advance, why would you suddenly come up with them when you’re caught up in the emotions of a live position?

Resist the urge to trade spontaneously based on your instincts alone without a clearly defined risk-management plan. If you have a strong view, go with it, but do the legwork in advance so you have a workable trading plan that specifies where to enter and where to exit — both stop-loss and take-profit.

TIP!
Be aware of the increased risk of trading around important news and data releases. Study economic and event calendars to identify future event risks, and factor them into your trading plan. That may mean stepping out of the market in advance of such events.

http://www.dummies.com/personal-finance/investing/currency-day-trading/10-beginner-forex-trading-mistakes/

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Be on the lookout for my next blog where I will reveal 2 more "beginner" trading mistakes!!

Want to get involved in Trading the Markets? Look at this MUST HAVE TOOL!!!
It's free and Internationally Available....

Expert Advisers - FOREX TRADING

WHY DO MOST TRADERS LOSE MONEY?

Trading strategies, expert advisers (EA) and indicators on your trading account usually seem to work well in the beginning but after a while, a steady decline of your trading account balance start to occur. For many individuals, this leads to the belief that it’s not possible to create an income from forex trading and that this form of trading is a scam.

According to statistics, 90% of forex traders lose money to the market

That means that 9 out of every 10 traders are not making money from the market, instead, the market is making money from them.

The winning 10% are those traders who have learnt from experience that it takes more than a good trading strategy to stay profitable in the forex market.

Factors that influence trading performance

The biggest advantage of automated forex trading systems is that they remove the emotion from the process which tends to reduce the behavioral finance biases that negatively impact investment decision-making.

Decisions such as choosing a high or low leverage or not even using leverages on your trading at all, have a direct impact on your account. On top of this, these decisions are all correlated, which means that making a single mistake at any step will directly affect your overall performance which will consequently result in losses.

 * Psychological and Emotional conflict with the trading system 

 * Starting with a wrong amount of trading capital

 * Choosing the wrong broker vs. trading style

 * Choosing the wrong account type vs. trading style

 * Using the incorrect win/loss ratio vs. trading strategy

 * Using the wrong leverage on your broker vs. your capital

 * Choosing the wrong type of broker: ECN VS non-ECN

 * Use of stop-loss vs. non use of stop-loss

 * Currency pairs traded vs. trading strategy used

 * Money management vs. trading strategy used

Can inexperienced traders make a profit from trading?

To understand how decision-making affects your trading account, you need knowledge of the forex market and a true understanding of how it operates.

The only way to do this is to adopt the leverage used by pro traders – the ones that have truly mastered the art of the market and who knows how to profit from forex trading. 

This is why AFT Club’s experienced team of forex traders has developed a trading platform that will connect struggling traders with experienced veteran traders. AFT Club will give clients access to this platform, the same platform used by our veteran traders.

What is the AFT Club automated trader?

The AFT Club forex trading system was developed by a team of veteran traders and addresses all the pitfalls that inexperienced traders usually fall victim to. This gives traders the ability to start making money from the market immediately while they simultaneously study the market to expand their trading knowledge – a process that can take years.

Our automated forex trading platform – the Meta Trader 4 Robot – will do all the trading for you, similar to the way that a pro trader live manages an account. This tool can put you in the 10% of traders that profits from forex trading.

This expert adviser platform uses a combination of sophisticated money-management systems that only the most successful traders in the forex market have access to.

For a free account, visit http://aftclub.co.za/
Follow them on Facebook: @aftclub and see why they have a 5 STAR Rating

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