some faq in forex

What is Foreign Exchange?

The foreign exchange market, also refered as the "foreign currency," "forex" or "fx" market, is the largest financial market in the world with daily average transactions of approximately U.S. $2 trillion. The world's currencies are on a floating exchange rate and are always traded in pairs, for example Euro/U.S. Dollar or U.S. Dollar/Yen. Foreign Exchange is simply the simultaneous purchase of one currency and selling of another.

Is there a central location for the Forex Market?

Forex trading is not managed through an exchange. Since transactions are conducted between two counterparts, the FX market is an “inter-bank,” or over the counter (OTC) market.

Who participates in the FX market?

Central, commercial and investment banks have traditionally dominated the Forex market. Other market participation is rapidly increasing, and now includes international money managers and brokers, multinational corporations, registered dealers, options and futures traders, and private investors.

When is the FX market open for trading?

Forex is a true global 24-hour marketplace. The trading day begins in Sydney, and moves around the globe as each financial center comes to life. Tokyo follows, then London, and finally New York. Investors can respond in real time to any fluctuations caused by current economic, social and political events.

Which time interval is the best for entering a trade?

There is no single time frame. The best approach is using several at one time.

What is the best time of the day to trade?

Forex is a 24/7 market from Sunday evening to the Friday close of the New York session. This does not mean that anytime is the best time to trade. The best time to trade is when the currency pair is meeting the conditions the trader has established for the trade. When a winning pattern appears, it's the best time to trade.

When does Forex trading occur?

The first session, which is the Tokyo Session, begins each week on Monday morning in the Asia-Pacific region which is Sunday evening in the Americas. Trading continues non-stop moving into the London Session and on to the New York Session until all markets close on Friday afternoon.

How fair is the Forex Market?

The Forex market is so large and is composed of so many participants that no one player, not even a large government, can completely control the long-term direction of the market. So, many experts have called Forex the “most level playing field” on earth.

What are the most common currencies in the Forex markets?

The most “liquid” currencies in the Forex market are those of countries with low inflation, stable governments, and respected central banks. Nearly 85% of daily transactions involve the major currencies, including the U.S. Dollar, Japanese Yen, the European Union Euro, British ound, Swiss Franc, and the Canadian and Australian Dollars.

What is Margin?

Forex margin is a performance bond that insures against trading losses. Margin requirements in the FX marketplace allow you to hold positions much larger than the asset value of your account. Trading with WPP includes a pre-trade check for margin availability; the trade is executed only if there are sufficient margin funds in your account. The WPP trading system calculates cash on hand necessary to cover current positions, and provides this information to you in real time. If funds in your account fall below margin requirements, the system will close all open positions. This prevents your account from falling below your available equity, which is a key protection in this volatile, fast moving marketplace.

What are “short” and “long” positions?

Short positions are taken when a trader sells currency in anticipation of a downturn in price. Making this move allows the investor to benefit from a decline. Long positions are taken when a trader buys a currency at a low price in anticipation of selling it later for more. Making these moves allows the investor to benefit from changing market prices. Remember! Since currencies are traded in pairs, every forex position inevitably requires the investor to go short in one currency and long in the other.

What is the difference between an "intraday" and "overnight position"?

Intraday positions are all positions opened anytime during the 24 hour period after the close of Fx desk of WPP normal trading hours. Overnight positions are positions that are still on at the end of normal trading hours.

How is pricing determined for certain currencies?

The full range of economic and political conditions impact currency pricing. It is generally held that interest rates, inflation rates and political stability are top among important factors. At times, governments participate in the forex market in order to influence the traded value of their currencies. These and other market factors such as very large orders can cause extreme relative volatility in currency prices. The sheer size of the forex market prevents any single factor from dominating the market for any length of time.

What are the most commonly traded currencies in the forex market?

The most often traded or "liquid" currencies are those of countries with stable governments, respected central banks and low inflation. Most forex transactions involve trading of the "major" currencies which include the US Dollar, Japanese Yen, Eurocurrency, British Pound, Swiss Franc, Canadian Dollar and the Australian Dollar.

How are currency prices determined?

Currency prices are affected by a variety of economic and political conditions, the most important of which are interest rates, inflation and political stability. Moreover, governments sometimes participate in the forex market to influence the value of their currencies, either by flooding the market with their domestic currency in an attempt to lower the price, or conversely buying in order to raise the price. This is known as central bank intervention. Any of these factors, as well as large market orders, can cause high volatility in currency prices. However, the size and volume of the forex market makes it virtually impossible for any one entity to "drive" the market for any length of time.

What is the U.S. dollar as an instrument for trading?

Everyone refers to the U.S. dollar. But what does it really refer to when a trader considers action? The U.S. dollar can be an instrument for trading through the U.S. Dollar Index (USDX) traded on the New York Board of Trade. The USDX is recognized by hedge fund traders and worldwide as the instrument reflecting sentiment on the U.S. dollar. An additional way to trade the dollar is through any of the major currency pairs. The EUR/USD, the USD/CHF and other pairs with the dollar as part of the pair allows a trader to trade for or against the dollar but relative to the other pair.

What is the name of the Chinese currency?

The Renminbi.

Which currency pair allows you to trade the British pound against the euro?

This is called a cross pair - the EUR/GBP.

How is a cross pair different than the majors?

The dollar is not part of the pair. This leads to less volume and liquidity. The spread may be wider as a result.

Which six currencies compose the U.S. Dollar Index?

The surprising aspect to the composition of the U.S. Dollar Index is that it includes obscure currencies. It is composed of:
EUR 57.6%
USD/JPY 13.6%
Pound 11.9%
Canadian dollar 9.1%
Sweden Krona 4.2%
Swiss franc 3.6%

Why is the Spot Currency Market Attractive to Investors?

Professional investors for individual accounts have dramatically increased their level of participation in the cash Forex markets in recent years. Add to this the growing use of cash Forex by individual investors and you have a rapidly growing investment arena. The following summarizes the many reasons professional investors have flocked to this market. Liquidity This market can absorb trading volumes and per trade sizes that dwarf the capacity of any other market. On the simplest level, liquidity is a powerful attraction to any investor as it suggests the freedom to open or close a position at will. Access a substantial attraction for participants in the Forex market is the 24-hour nature of the market. In Forex, a participant need not wait to react to a news event, as is the case in most markets. Flexible Settlement Many professional investment managers have a particular time horizon in mind when they establish a position. In the Forex market, a position can be established for a specific period of time which the investor desires.

What is the technical basis for locating a stop loss?

Stops should technically be where the trade no longer makes sense. If you're buying a currency pair, ask yourself at what point would you be selling it? Or if you're selling the pair, at what point would you be buying it? The answer is a good first approximation as to where the stop should be technically. Remember, also consider the risk involved and cash management.

What are the four strategies for trading a sideways pattern?

Sideways patterns at first appear to be telling us that nothing important is going on. Doing nothing is in fact a trading strategy. Yet, if you are trading sideways patterns consider the following several strategies:
a) Do nothing and wait for a breakout.
b) Play a break off resistance.
c) Play a break off support.
d) Play a bounce off support.
e) Play a bounce off resistance.

What information does a candlestick pattern provide that is not in a bar chart?

Candlestick aficionados may argue this one, but the answer is that both candlesticks and bars provide the same information. Both provide low and high and open and close price.

Which Fibonacci level is the most important?

It is generally considered that the 61.8% Fib line is the most important. But, it's important to see what the prices are doing around any Fib lines. If the 32.8% Fib line seems to be showing that it is a line of resistance or support, then it becomes important to treat seriously.

What is the most important report that affects trading the yen and when does it come out?

The Japanese quarterly survey, the Tankan report, which is released April 1. A good place to check it out is www.boj.or/jp/en.

When the Federal Reserve Open Market Committee meets, what does it decide?

This committee decides on the short-term rates that banks have to have. Long-term rates are decided by the market auctions.

When trading forex, what is the cost of the trade when there is no commission?

Remember that there is no free lunch. The trader pays the spread between the bid and the ask price.

What are the two basic trading strategies for buying or selling as applies to any time frame?

One can start shaping a trading strategy by looking to where the price may find support or resistance. Then the trading strategy can be developed on whether to trade the break or failure to break those support or resistance areas.

What's the major problem with using moving averages?

They are all lagging indicators.

What is the average duration of a profitable trade generating 20 pips?

In other words, how long should one wait to be profitable after they enter a trade and capture 20 pips? Well, perhaps it depends on one's own patience and temperament. But a 20-pip move should occur, on a well-timed trade within an hour.

When you see a parabolic pattern, what does it predict about the imminent movement of the market?

Think of the path a ball takes when thrown to another person. It follows a parabolic path. When one sees a parabolic path reach its height it's a reversal indicator.

What is the most important fundamental piece of information to track before you decide to trade a currency pair?

Make sure you know if there is an economic news report about to be released.

How do you obtain free and professional advice?

The Internet is filled with good analysis and opinions on many sites. But remember the phrase- caveat emptor: Let the buyer beware.

What pattern always precedes a break of support or resistance?

Before a price has enough energy to break a pattern it is in there are signs of hesitancy. The range narrows and then a break occurs.

What is the definition of a "false" breakout?

The concept of a false break is really misleading. When a price breaks a support or resistance line, it has either tried to or may have closed above or below it, but then returned to the previous range. So a false break is really one that is short lived.

What is the best way to spot a trend reversal?

If the currency pair has succeeded in breaking through the 61.8% Fibonacci level of a weekly or daily move a trend reversal is a serious probability.

Which indicator compares the performance of two different trading systems?

There are several, but a useful one is maximum drawdown. If two different trading systems resulted in the same total return, look to which one had a tendency to lose more. The system that had greater drawdowns is more volatile.

Which key moving average period should be watched to indicate a trend reversal?

The 50-day simple moving average acts as a confirmation of a trend change.

When are technical indicators totally useless in determining your next trade?

Right before an economic news calendar report technical indicators get set aside as the market hesitates. Also, during a sudden move such as a response to a terror attack or unexpected news. The market will need time to recalibrate and then technical indicators work.

What is the difference of Forex from Futures?

As a potential investor it is important for you to understand the differences between cash Forex and currency futures. In currency futures, the contract size is predetermined. Futures traders exercise leverage by utilizing Margin to control a futures contract. (Margin is money deposited by both the buyer and the seller to assure the integrity of the contract.) But with liquidity in mind, the futures market may seem limiting because the data flow comes to a stop at the end of the business day (just as it does with the stock market) thus disrupting your perception of the market. For some traders this could lead to a certain level of anxiety. For example, if important data comes in from England or Japan while the U.S. futures markets are closed, the next day's opening could be witness to sharp movements. In contrast to the futures market, the spot forex market is a 24-hour, continuous currency exchange that never closes. There are dealers in every major time zone, in every major dealing center (i.e., London, New York, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Sydney, etc.) willing to quote two-way markets. The size of this market, over one trillion dollars per day gives you near perfect liquidity. Because of the advantages of sheer volume and daily volatility, the excitement of this market is unparalleled.

How much money do I have to keep in my account once it is open?

Once your account is open, there is no minimum balance requirement beyond the margin rates for any positions held in your account.

What is the current interest rate difference between the 10-Year U.S. Treasury Note and bonds in Europe?

The U.S. 10-Year Treasury Note rate is 4.0% while a comparable German bond is 3.75 %. Is this 0.25% big enough to make a difference?

Reason to start trading in forex

If you have time or money, there are lots ways to earn additional income like from active involvement in multi-level marketing, website development, property investment, residential construction security, etc. Trading in Forex (foreign exchange) is also another way of making that extra income.

In the Forex currency market, you have the flexibility of trading from any location (home, hotel, etc.) and at any time as long as you have a laptop and internet connection for your portable computer.

There are no specific requirements or experience necessary in this particular online income generating trading business. Just by attending a Forex training course should be adequate enough for you commence trading in Forex. Why trade in Forex?

Below are 7 reasons why people should trade in Forex:

1. Forex trading offers monetary leverage. Meaning that you can trade with a low capital outlay to control a large currency position. You can trade a standard of $100,000 currency lot by investing with a small capital of only $1000. However, some Forex brokerage firms permit even less that that by giving you up to 200 times the leverage. That is, with only $100 capital outlay you can control a 200,000 unit currency position.

2. Online Forex trading has low transaction charges even though if you have a mini account or trade in small volumes.

3. Forex market transparency is an advantage since there are no hidden figures. You get what you see and thus there is no unexpected surprise. Therefore, it enables you to manage your risk and you can execute your order within seconds if you want to stop further losses in a particular trade.

4. You can trade by buying or selling in the Forex market in either direction, i.e. when it is going up or down.

5. Flexible time is one of the advantages in Forex trading. The Forex market never shuts as it is an incessant electronic currency exchange taking place globally. Since it is worldwide, involving in diversity of currencies of various nations that float their currencies in the world Forex market, it operates 24 hours daily, allowing you to enter or exit a trade whenever you like. In this regards, you can trade whenever you have the free time and as long as there is an internet available anywhere.

6. As you accumulate your personal experience you can earn you extra income by profiting from this sort of online trading in foreign currency. If you trade smartly with the use of technical analyzing tools, you can profit from a trade by predicting the outcome of a trade based on observing the changing trend of a currency which normally repeatedly shows up in predictable cycles.

7. There is unlimited earning potential when you participate in Forex trading for it has a daily trading volume in excess of 1.5 trillion. That makes it the largest financial market worldwide when compared with the equity and futures markets of 50 billion and 30 billion respectively.

How to Avoid Losing Money In FOREX

45 Ways to Avoid losing Trading FOREX, by Jimmy Young

1) Knowledge Deficiency – Most new FOREX traders don’t take the time to learn what drives currency rates (primarily fundamentals). When news or a statement is due out they must close out their positions and sit out the best trading opportunities. They are taught to only trade after the market calms down. So essentially they miss the whole move and then trade the random noise that follows a fundamental price move. Just think for a moment about technically trading the aftermath of a price move; there is no potential.

2) Overtrading - I believe that Currency trading often with tight stops and tiny profit targets will benefit the broker. The desire to “just” make a few hundred dollars a day by locking in tiny profits whenever possible is a losing strategy.

3) Over leveraged - Leverage is a two way street. It can magnify losses as well as gains. Traders should employ a level of leverage that is in-line with their risk tolerance.

4) Relying on Others – Real traders play a lone hand; they make their own decisions and don’t rely on others to make their trading decisions for them; there is no halfway; either trade for yourself or have someone else trade for you.

5) Stop Losses – Putting tight stop losses with retail brokers is a recipe for disaster. When you put on a trade commit to a reasonable stop loss limit that allows your trade a fair chance to develop.

6) Demo Accounts – Broker demo accounts are a shill game of sorts; they’re not as time sensitive as real accounts and therefore give the impression that time sensitive trading systems, such as short-term moving average crossovers can be consistently profitably traded; once you start dealing with real money reality is quick to set in.

7) Trading During Off Hours – Bank FX traders, option traders, and hedge funds have a huge advantage during off hours; they can push the currencies around when no volume is going through and the end game is new traders get fleeced trying to trade signals. There is only one signal during off hours – stay out.

8) Trading a Currency, Not a Pair – Being right about a currency is half a trade; success or failure depends upon being right about the second currency that makes up the pair.

9) No Trading Plan - Make money is not a currency trading plan. A trading plan is a blueprint for trading success; it spells out what you see your edge as being; if you don’t have an edge, you don’t have a plan, and likely you’ll wind up a statistic (part of the 95% of new traders that lose and quit).

10) Trading Against Prevailing Trend – There is a huge difference between buying cheaply on the way down and buying cheaply. What was a low price quickly becomes a high price when you’re trading against the trend.

11) Exiting Trades Poorly – If you put on a trade and it’s not working make sure you exit properly; don’t compound the damage. If you’re in a winning trade don’t talk yourself out of the position because you’re bored or want to relieve stress; stress is a natural part of trading; get use to it.

12) Trading Too Short-term – If you’re profit target is less than 20 points don’t do the trade; the spread you pay to enter the trade makes the odds way against you when you go for these tiny profits.

13) Picking Tops and Bottoms - Looking for bargains works well at the supermarket but not trading foreign exchange; try to trade in the direction the price is going and you’re results will improve.

14) Being Too Smart – The most successful traders I know are high school graduates. They keep it simple and don’t look beyond the obvious; their results are excellent.

15) Not Trading Around News Time – Most of the big moves occur around news time. The volume is high and the moves are real; I believe there is no better time to trade fundamentally or technically than when news is released; this is when the real money adjusts their positions and as a result the prices changes reflect serious currency flow (compared to quiet times when Bank traders rule the market with their customer order flow.

16) Ignore Technical Condition – Determining whether the market is over-extended long or over-extended short is a key determinant of near time price action. Spike moves often occur when the market is all one way.

17) Emotional Trading – When you don’t pre-plan you’re trades essentially it’s a thought and not an idea; thoughts are emotions and a very poor basis for doing trades. Do people generally say intelligent things when they are upset and emotional; I don’t think so.

18) Lack of Confidence – Confidence only comes from successful trading. If you lose money early in your trading career it’s very difficult to gain true confidence; the trick is don’t go off half-cocked; learn the business before you trade.

19) Lack of Courage to Take a Loss – There is nothing macho or gutsy about riding a loss, just stupidity and cowardice. It takes guts to accept your loss and wait for tomorrow to try again. Getting married to a bad position ruins lots of traders. The thing to remember is the market does crazy things often so don’t get married to any one trade; it’s just a trade. One good trade will not make you a trading success; rather it’s monthly and annual performance that defines a good trader.

20) Not Focusing on the Trade at Hand – There is no room for fantasizing in successful trading. Counting up and mentally spending profits you haven’t made yet is mental masturbation and does you no good. Same with worrying about a loss that hasn’t happened yet. Focus on your position and have a reasonable stop loss in place at the time you do the trade. Then be like an astronaut – sit back and enjoy the ride; no sense worrying because you have no real control; the market will do what it wants to do.

21) Interpreting FOREX News Incorrectly – Fact is the press only has a very superficial understanding of the news they are reporting and tend to focus on one element and miss the point. Learn to read the source documents and understand it for real.

22) Lucky or Good – Your account balance changes don’t tell you the whole story about your trading; fact is if your taking a lot of risk and making money you will eventually crash and burn. Look at the individual trade details; focus on your big loses and losing streaks. Ask yourself this; if I had a couple of consecutive losing streaks or a couple of consecutive big loses, how would my account balance look. Generally, traders making money without big daily loses have the best chance of sustaining positive performance. The others are accidents waiting to happen.

23) Too Many Charity Trades – When you make money on a well thought out trade don’t give back half on a whim; invest your profits from good trades on the next good trade.

24) Courage Under Fire – When a policeman breaks down the door to a drug dealers apartment he is scared but he does it anyway. When a fireman climbs onto the roof of a burning building he is scared but does it anyway; and gets the job done. Same with trading; it’s ok to be scared but you have to pull the trigger; no trigger – no trades – no profits – no trader.

25) Quality Trading Time – I suggest 3 hours a day of quality, focused trading time; that’s about all your brain allows. When your trading being 100% focused; half way is bullshit’ it doesn’t work. Don’t even think that time spent in front of the computer watching the rates has any correlation to profitability; it doesn’t. Spend less time but when your trading be 100% focused on trading.

26) Rationalizing – Killer. Absolute Killer. Put your trade on and let it run. If it hits your reasonable pre-determined stop your out. Think of yourself as a prizefighter; you just got knocked out. Moving your stop is like getting up after being crushed with a knockout blow; it’s pointless; things will only get worse. Don’t ignore the obvious; your wrong – get out. Come back the next day and try again. A small loss will not hurt you; a catastrophic loss will.

27) Mixing Apples and Oranges – Have you ever done this; you see the EURUSD trading higher so you buy GBPUSD because it “hasn’t moved yet”. That’s a mistake. Most of the time the reason the GBPUSD hasn’t moved yet is because its already overbought or some 4:30am UK news was bearish. Don’t mix apples and oranges; if EURUSD looks bid buy EURUSD.

28) Avoiding the Hard Trades – Bank FX traders have an axiom; the harder the trade is to do the better the trade. This I learned from experience; when I needed to buy EURUSD and it was hard to get them that’s when it’s necessary to pay up and get the business done. When it’s easy to get them then sit back and wait for better levels. So if your trying to get into a trade or more importantly get out of a trade don’t putz around for a few points; get your business done.

29) Too Much Detail – If your trading more than 2 indicators then you need to clean house. Having many indicators stifles trading and finds reasons not to trade. A setup and a trigger is all you need.

30) Giving Up Too Easy – Your first trade of the day may not be your best but certainly it’s no reason to quit. I have a preset daily trading limit and I use it; you can’t make money by making excuses; getting trades wrong is natural and should be expected.

31) Jumping the Gun – Don’t be penny wise and dollar foolish; wait for your trade signal to be clear; put on your trade and give it a decent size stop loss so that you don’t get knocked out by random noise. Do trades don’t’ buy lottery tickets (extremely tight stops).

32) Afraid to Take a Loss - trading is not personal; it’s business. Don’t think that a poor trade is a reflection on you. It could be your just ahead of your time or a commercial order hits the market and temporarily creates a small unexpected move. Again, place your stop beforehand and NEVER increase your pre-determined risk; if it’s going bad it will probably get worse; I think that’s Einstein “in motion stays in motion…”

33) Over-Relying on Risk Reward – If you put a 20 point stop and a 60 point profit your chances are probably 3-1 that you will lose; actually with the spread its more like 4 to 1 (from entry point if it goes down 17 points you lose or up 63 you win; 17/63 is close to 4-1).

34) Trading for Wrong Reasons – Because the EURUSD is going up is not in itself a reason to buy. Buying EURUSD because its not moving so little risk is even worse; you’re paying the toll (spread) without even a hint that you will get a directional move. If your bored don’t trade; the reason your bored is there is no trade to do in the first place.

35) Rumors – Rumors are rumors almost 100% of the time; think about where in the motion you heard the rumor; if EURUSD is up 50 points in last 15 minutes and the rumor is dollar negative, well then you missed it. Whenever you trades determine where in the motion you are entering.

36) Trading Short-term Moving Average Crossovers – This is the money sucker of the century. When the shorter term moving average cross the longer term moving average it only means that the average price in the short run is equal to the average price in the longer run. For the life of me I cannot understand why this is bullish or bearish. Easy to set up on software, complete with lights, bells and whistles, and good for the seller getting thousands for the software but in terms of creating profit it’s a zero.

37) Stochastic – Another money sucker. Personally I think this indicator is used backwards; when it first signals an overdone condition that’s when I think the big spike in the “overdone” currency pair occurs. To be overbought means strong and oversold means weak. Try buying on the first sign of overbought and selling on the first sign of oversold; you’ll be with the trend and likely have identified a move with plenty of juice left. So if %k and %d are both crossing 80; buy! (Same on sell side; sell at 20)

38) Wrong Broker – A lot of FOREX brokers are horrible; get a good one. Read forums and chats in several different places to get an unbiased opinion.

39) Simulated Results – Watch out for “black box” systems; these are trading systems that don’t divulge how the trade signals are generated. Great majority of them are absolute garbage. They show you a track record of extraordinary results but think about it; if you could build a trading system with half a dozen filters using the benefit of hindsight, couldn’t you too come up with a great system. Of course going forward is an entirely different story. High-speed number crunching capabilities allows for building great hindsight trading systems; BEWARE.

40) Inconsistency – Every business (FOREX trading included) requires a business plan (trading plan). Unless you have taken the time to write down a set of rules that you can and will follow, it’s likely your trading will remain unfocused and directionless. Make a plan, have rules, follow them set goals that are realistic and you will achieve them.

41) Master of None – Focus on one currency for technical trading; each currency has a unique way of trading and unless you get intimate with it you will never truly understand its underlying idiosyncrasies. Don’t spread yourself too thin – focus – master one currency at a time.

42) Thinking Long Term – Don’t do it. Stay in the moment. Especially if you’re a day trader. It doesn’t matter what happens next week or next month, if your trading with 30 to 50 point stops restrict your thought process to what’s happening right now. That is not to stay the long-term trend is not important; it is to say the long-term trend will not always help you when your trading a significantly shorter time frame.

43) Overconfidence – Trading is not easy; statistics show 95% failure rate. If your doing well don’t take your success for granted; always be on the lookout for ways to improve what you’re doing.

44) Getting Pumped Up – The trick is to maintain an even keel; when you are in a trade you want to think exactly as you would if you didn’t have a trade on. To do this requires a relaxed disposition; this is not a football game; don’t get psyched up; relax and try to enjoy it.

45) Staying in the Game – I don’t recommend demo trading because traders learn bad habits when trading with play money. I also don’t think “letting it all hang out” right away is wise either. Start off doing trades and taking risk that is relatively small but still makes a difference to you if you win or lose; about a quarter to a third of what you expect to reach as your trading matures is reasonable.

Forex trading mistakes and what to do with them

1)Belief change.

Every mistake is a learning experience. They all have something valuable to offer. Try to counteract the natural tendency of feeling frustrated and approach mistakes in a positive manner. Instead of yelling to everyone around and feeling disappointed, say to yourself "ok, I did something wrong, what happened? What is it?

2) Identify the mistake made.

Define the mistake, find out what caused the mistake, and try as hard as you can to effectively see the nature of that mistake. Finding the mistake nature will prevent you from making the same mistake again. More than often you will find the answer where you less expected. Take for instance a trader that doesn't follow the system. The reason behind this could be that the trader is afraid of loosing. But then, why is he or she afraid? It could be that the trader is using a system that does not fit him or her, and finds difficult to follow every signal. In this case, as you can see, the nature of the mistake is not in the surface. You need to try as hard as you can to find the real reason of the given mistake.

3) Measure the consequences of the mistake.

List the consequences of making that particular mistake, both good and bad. Good consequences are those that make us better traders after dealing with the mistake. Think on all possible reasons you can learn from what happened. For the same example above, what are the consequences of making that mistake? Well, if you don't follow the system, you will gradually loose confidence in it, and this at the end will put you into trades you don't really want to be, and out of trades you should be in.

4) Take action.

Taking proper action is the last and most important step. In order to learn, you need to change your behavior. Make sure that whatever you do, you become "this-mistake-proof". By taking action we turn every single mistake into a small part of success in our trading career. Continuing with the same example, redefining the system would be the trader's final step. The trader would put a system that perfectly fits him or her, so the trader doesn't find any trouble following it in future signals.

Every trading activity is in fact participating in a battle. Winning the battle is a matter of knowledge, skill and experience. If you miss any of those you are going to join the long line of losers. Some says that 95 to 99 percent of the traders are lining up on the loser's side.

How to win the battle in the currency market? It is easy to answer that question, based on the above approach prepare yourself for the battle. If you treat currency market activity as a hobby you'll ultimately lose all investments there. If you treat it as a business you still may loose everything.

The correct approach is: consider each pressing of the Buy/Sell button as entering a battlefield. If you enter it without having a knowledge, skill and experience on how to win, you are destined to fail. You may have some lucky trades in the beginning, though. That, by the way, is the worst case scenario for the rookie in trading.

The earlier you get your bad lessons, the better for your overall experience. No mater how good you consider yourself prepared, after demo trading lessons, you have no idea of the forces ruling on the real market.

In fact the worst enemy you are going to face in the very beginning is not hiding behind the walls of the global currency trading centers. Your most dangerous foe is hiding deep inside of you. That enemy is so powerful that you will be amazed how quickly it will wash away all your carefully considered decision.