Ingot54

There is no such thing as easy pips! Yes, price did exactly as expected - retraced to the S2 PP, but that is as far as it moved. On the 15M chart, it is consolidating in a 25-pip range. At some point price will move out of this band, of course, and we have to be ready. I won't be bothering with the lower TF (15M) - I take my orders currently from the higher trends. The WEEKLY chart is in limbo as far as my indicators are concerned, but price action leads them, and we are currently in a retracement move. My Daily charts are signaling "sell" from 1.0087. My 8H chart is short from 1.0118. And finally my 4H tells me to sell from 1.0132. Once I have a downtrend confirmed, I set my orders to trigger from the low of the previous candle, as per the attached charts

Interesting ... is this for real? When I questioned my broker about slippage - about not getting the price I clicked on - about requotes - he said "It is your computer's latency - your processor is not fast enough to catch the price you click on." If I am to believe the info in your first attachment, it means that the broker is running an algo that purposely intercepts my offer. The algo delays my order for up to 5 seconds, and if price moves in my favor, I get a requote. If price moves in the broker's favor, I get slippage. Hmmm. Can this be proved? I actually told my broker I suspected he was using an algo that delayed orders exactly as you say here. Of course they could not admit it, but now it seems the truth is out. Is this really the truth, though?

The S2 PP exactly bisects the last red candle at midpoint = 1.0051. A possible scenario here would be that the current candle (on the 1H chart attached) might retest the S2 level before continuing its free-fall to parity once again. There does not seem to be a peg between here and parity that could stop it ... an easy 50 pips??

MysticForex - can you please elaborate a bit more on a couple of things: 1) The significance of the 1 standard deviation 2) The significance of the 800sma 3) What in the dickens is your "Radar Screen?" 4) What weighed on you to consider closing the trade? Hindsight is wonderful, but I suppose with the news release today re Oz employment figures, it was the correct course? Cheers Ingot

On zooming out a little, the AUDUSD looks like a tired chart. news is thin this week in the USA and the currencies are having a rest imv. Had I stuck to my original plan and placed my SL well clear, I might have still been confident of the trade succeeding. As it stands I am not re-entering, and will be happy to take my lumps as they come now. Off for a nap - it's been a long day! Cheers guys.

Hi MMS - I am now a bit more pleased that I had that tighter stop than I was 30 minutes ago. Price has continued to rally, and I would still probably have been stopped out at around yesterday's Rs @ 1.0157. Sometimes these small losses are the best ones, and if the trade does not immediately go in your favor, then it is best to be on the sidelines until the setup is better. The take-away lesson from this trade is that the DPP rules! I was right to respect it earlier - if you look at the chart, price is all about the Pivot right now. I mentioned earlier that price had been solid around the PP for 5 days - and really it has been 7 days if you zoom out a bit. For a rally, price is going to stall around 1.0160 and 1.0195, going on two failures at each level recently. I have no opinion on direction - the pair is in limbo, and I suspect it will take some unexpected employment data to really nudge the Aussie either way, on Thursday morning Oz time. In the meantime I am cooling it now - the market is zzzzzz'ing until we get that "wake up" when the figures. Westpac vank Consumer Sentiment news in 9 1/2 hrs time is unlikely to be any sort of catalyst to move things either, given the minimal jolt the market received by the better NAB Business Confidence earlier today. I'm hitting the hay - I don't like that large spinning top doji on the 1H chart - it is still respecting that DPP, and so I can only say: "Nothing to see here folks - move along!" One thing did emerge was the expected/probable the retracement of 50% of the previous 4H candle actually did come to pass, as I mentioned might occur in post # 10 (my plan ) so maybe we may yet see the break down to parity again in the Aussie! And my original plan may have been the better one, before getting bogged down in the lower TF!

Well that was just plain silly. Stopped out EXACTLY to the pip!!! The price actually rallied to only 1.0137, but the platform has a 3-pip spread, so I got done! Serves me right for trying to tell the market where it would stop!! I think I fell into the trap of trading on 4H and 1H TF, but placing tech stops on the 15M TF, or at least a lower TF. Lesson - stay with the established Support/Resistance that the indicators are pointing to ... otherwise remove the indicators!! I am not going to jump back in immediately - the trade is looking like it wants to pull back even further yet - but will wait for the right opportunity. PS - Just checked the chart, and it looks like price *may* have respected the DPP and be heading south. Will wait and see ... but will probably decide on an entry short again soon - with APPROPRIATE SL level! I would like to see lower lows first.

Current 15M candle has completed - if there is no effort to retrace I will short from the low point of the previous 15M candle. EDIT: Bloomie just reported that China has just raised interest rates in the face of the highest interst rates for 30 months. Of course Australia is riding on China's back, and this is seen as potentially slowing down the Oz economy, and thus the AUD weakness just now. I have shorted from 1.0114 SL - just above high of previous 1H candle, at 1.0140, or 26 pips away ... very tight. I have placed it this tightly, because price would need to re-penetrate the DPP, and if it does, then the high of the previous 1H candle would signal failure of the trade to me. TP - Remains at parity

There is a concerted push down in the AUDUSD over the past hour - making the 4H candle fully engulf the previous one, with one hour left to close out the candle. Can't say if it will punch through the Daily PP, but the indicators are happy about it, and the 8H TF is also looking strong - albeit with 5 hrs left before it too closes. So the trade hinges on the successful penetration and re-test of the Daily Pivot, followed by resumption of the downtrend. The current DPP is EXCEPTIONALLY strong - it has been established and re-tested over the past 5 trading days. Therefore there is nothing to be gained here, by preempting the move, and taking an entry whilst price is yet to encounter the DPP yet again. To preempt means to attempt to steal a few pips on any eventual down-move, and for the sake of maybe 15 pips gain, an early trade runs the risk of stopping out prematurely. Trading calls for patience - and while the current position has a lot going for it as a short - the probability is not well enough in favor of that just yet. Dangers: a) News ... currently nothing of high impact imminent for at least 24 hrs. On Thursday the Aussie Employment/Unemployment data will print, and we can expect in the light of recent poor retail numbers, that any good number would be a surprise! b) Technically we could have a 1-2-3 pattern forming, basing off the R2 and DPP, which *could* trigger another rally. However given the strength of the sell-off over these past 2 hours, the probability is smaller (imv) than the sell-off continuing. Plan: a) Wait for closure of current candle b) Then ensure the successful breaking and retest of DPP (This can occur on the 1H or even 15M TF) c) I would place a short entry around 1.0125 with a stop at 1.0188 ... 63 pips away. (A bit tight, but we have a strong move, and if price rallies to the stop (at R2) then we could safely day the short has failed anyway. d) Potential profit point: In this case I would look at the 1.0000 level, given that successive Daily candles attacked the level unsuccessfully a dozen times from the 6th January, before finally breaking through on 1st February. This (parity) would then seem to be the only natural support line below the current DPP. All other PP's are much weaker, and it is harder to see these levels repelling any sell-off. Finally, while we may have identified certain contingent scenarios, we can leave nothing to assumption and chance. Ultimately the market will tell us what it is going to do - and our job is to be alert and to nail the move when it happens. My personal expectation is that the new 4H candle will retrace - perhaps to 1.0160 (50% of previous 4H candle) - before driving down through the DPP. Of course it does not have to do anything we imagine - so be prepared for a rapid continuation of the sell-off as well. Would be interested in the views of others. EDIT - since I began composing this post, the 4H candle has indeed closed, and the 8H naturally has 4hrs left to run.

As we are only putting three titles forward, my best pick would have to be: Licensed to Profit by Trading in Financial Markets by Chris Shea (Market Coach and Psychotherapist) Probably unknown to most traders, but offers a significantly different way of looking at trading, and this book started me on the road to better trading 3 years ago. The book is a 'no BS and feathers' revelation of what is needed to succeed in trading financial markets. Shea also gives insights into probability ideas, and how to profit from outlier trades, while conserving capital during flat market conditions. A breezy easy read, full of practical and realistic trading help. I will give some thought to my next two selections.

Well the R3 was clearly and absolutely nailed as the current high for the week (Monday). Since then we have had a retrace of approx 50% the full length of the previous green candle. The current candle is not completed, but it has rejected the 30EMA for now and its next test looks like being the DAILY (central) Pivot. MY feeling is (without getting too far ahead here) is that we need to see a break of that pivot, and a successful retest, if the R3 bounce is to get legs. This is very much (imv) a wait-and-see, because the 30EMA is currently flat, indicating a market that has yet to show its direction. EDIT: Just realized I uploaded the 1H AUDUSD instead of the 4H!! :doh: So will add the 4H without removing the 1H which has its uses!

Yes - sound advice. Unfortunately altruism has been smothered a bit by the need to keep dollars flowing. But some make the flow of dollars the main game, instead of a part of why we do what we do. Once you get bitten a couple of times, you begin to look at what the Coach is getting from the interaction as well. Usually it will be a fair exchange, but there are reasons to suspect at times that the exchange will be your money for experience ... a very BAD experience! :doh:

Thanks for the thread MysticForex I am using charts that are not based on the same closing time as yours, so will download for comparability. My 4H charts are quite different. Also, I am using the FXI Pivots Indicator, with all the levels blanked out. If I use the full levels, plus add the weekly on top, it gets unreadable. Easy to rectify - can you tell me which Pivots indy you use please? If you can't upload it - just name it and I can probably locate it. But to throw in a comment I am seeing the AUD as just tracking sideways atm , with a bounce off the 30 EMA. This *may* lead to a rally ... or not. My current chart setup is not revealing direction clearly, though the bias seems to be to rally right now. There are still recent highs to break - 1.0156 for example. But my lower TF chart - the 1H is telling me a short rally is on the go, as it is testing the 30 EMA on that TF. I use other indicators - Stochastic (customised) and a (customised) MACD - but I will remove them because I don't wish to compromise other views I may be seeing with your chart. So can you let me know which pivot indy you use, and I'll shoot over a chart

I was wondering what a Mystic City boy would be doing backing a Wisconsin-based team ... but I guess the GB Packers are not so local anymore - national more like it. I had to ask my mate John Google about the packers ... and Mystic CT ( I cheated ... ) Anyway - I am heading over to your new thread with haste! http://www.traderslaboratory.com/forums/f24/aud-usd-9258.html#post110907

I have been using MT4 for close to 6 years - mainly for the charting and for strategy development., but today I find it indispensable for pinpointing entry prior to placing a trade. Ideally I would like to be trading live from my charts, but we are just catching up here in Australia. The most popular broker does not offer MT4, and I feel this has held back the charting package development in this country, through lack of competition. I have been very vocal about that, and more than once stirred the ire of my live broker's "cool" PR staff over it!! That non-MT4 broker's charting is atrocious, yet they spruik they have the "state-of-the-art" platform and charting package. I guess it won't fool traders for too much longer - but there are newbies coming into the markets as quickly as others leave, I guess. I have lost count of the templates created and discarded, and the systems utilized from other forums and vendors. I have learned something from all of it, and my current strategy and template was 100% developed on MT4 platforms. I have found that the data feed I have on demo differs from my live broker's quote by 2 pips consistently - ie I get in 2 pips higher, but I get out 2 pips higher as well, providing the spread is also consistent. Some of the larger USA and UK brokers have set up office in Australia in the past 18 months, and with them has come a local brand of MT4, as well as an offering of their own in-house platforms. So far I have not given in to the temptation to go live with one of them, because of the reports of slippage increasing, as spreads shrink. I have friends who use live MT4 here in Oz, and this is their biggest complaint - delayed execution, requotes and slippage. Yet the brokers all like to claim: "spreads from 1 pip." Hilarious ... and scary at the same time! At least with the current broker, I know the extent of slippage, and frequently place limit orders to circumvent their little games. If I have one issue with MT4 demo, it would be that at times there can be a data-feed freeze. I have taken this up with the supplying broker, via email, and the response was that "it can happen during busy periods due to resources being diverted to live platform feeds as a priority", meaning that demo is a secondary consideration to the data needs of live clients. That's as it should be. :2c:

Hey! MysticForex - you're on! I don't get many offers, and I'm taking this one with both hands. My "portfolio" includes only pairs that I consider "good" trenders, and whose daily ATR does not exceed my stop-settings. Having said that, I would be very interested in examining why one pair might be better than another to trade, and maybe even look past the usual blockers of spread and volatility/lack of volatility. What I am saying, is that I have never asked anyone *why* they prefer a certain pair - I just assumed the ones I trade are optimal, when they may not be. I remain teachable at all points here, and whatever I contribute, I do so from personal choice, not dogma. My 4 pairs are: EURUSD EURJPY AUDUSD EURAUD and I keep a weather eye on USDCHF. There are a couple of pairs in there that were chosen to avoid correlation, but another couple ARE correlated. I never trade more than 2 pairs simultaneously. Having established that, I invite you to choose any of the five - or even suggest another not listed - I am happy either way. I am heading out for a daily jog with my son, so will be back in about 2 hours - Please do whatever you need to set guidelines and ground-rules in a new thread - am truly looking forward to participating in this - and as you mentioned - I seriously hope other traders can also get involved and share in the benefits. I use MT4 for charting, and another broker for trade execution. There is a lack of decent brokers in Australia with access to the Industry standards in Forex Trading Platforms, Charting packages, and data at reasonable cost. I "grew up" with MT4 and my broker, but am not averse to change for the better. I believe NinjaT and T'Station are good, but I'm open to other suggestions re platforms/brokers/data and so on. Will worry about that later. I'll run another mile this afternoon!

Reminded of the very elderly lady whose husband had just passed away. The officiating minister at the funeral was a bit stuck for words to comfort the old lady after the ceremony, but finally managed to come out with: "Your husband lived to be a very ripe old age ... 98 wasn't he? And how old are you?" "97," she replied, "Hardly seems worth going home, does it?"

My wife asked me this morning: "What are you doing today?" I replied: "Nothing " She said: "That's what you did yesterday!" I said: "Yeah. I'm not finished."

MysticForex I enjoyed your serendipitous moment re a mentor, and all you did was evoke a bit of yearning in me for the same. Sigh. I hope there is a Genie out there in some bottle just waiting to be smashed, that will bestow on me the enlightenment and skills I crave. Maybe all the bottles are already smashed, and all the Genies are running rampant with totally expended wishes! Never mind - I am mostly self-taught and read as widely to the level I can understand, and this is why I have hit the wall now - I have come to the end of myself. Maybe there is a Genie bottled up inside of me waiting to be released? The bump to that thread: http://www.traderslaboratory.com/forums/f30/right-coach-mentor-3335.html was an attempt to raise these issues for many of us. We are very fortunate to have quite a few probably successful traders on TL and I expect some decent feedback (like yours) might yet eventuate. But I don't believe in the Magic Silver Bullet - unless I mine the silver myself and cast the die to mold it to shape. No, the Intrinsic Factor has to be identified and birthed, and I can tell you, this event will not be still-born. And I don't believe in Genies either. I already know what is required to get to the next level - I just can't identify the bit that needs the work, to raise it from the subconscious. I have always been a Fox Terrier of sorts, in that when I get hold of something, I will not rest until I have subdued and mastered it totally. I have a depth of stubbornness and commitment that WILL lead me to my goal. But every dog needs a man too, and I am looking for that master.

Just dusting this thread off since it hibernated 15 months ago. So - does anyone know if Eva found her solution? I found a few links to similar threads - not exhaustive ... :missy: http://www.traderslaboratory.com/forums/f37/trading-coaches-good-bad-indifferent-2084.html http://www.traderslaboratory.com/forums/f30/anyone-know-where-find-personal-mentor-653.html http://www.traderslaboratory.com/forums/f30/searching-trading-mentor-s-7179.html http://www.traderslaboratory.com/forums/f30/trading-mentor-necessary-not-171.html The purpose I am wanting to re-open the inquest, is because for me personally, this is becoming a gorilla in my trading room - a glaring lack on my part. Far from seeing a Coach/Mentor as someone who can turn me into a clone of themselves, I think the right Coach would already have the insight to avoid such an outcome. They would determine MY strengths and weaknesses, and understand MY system, and work with me on that basis. I am not so arrogant as to believe I have the best strategy available - but it is working for me ... at least it has shown me that it is now up to me to execute the thing well, if I want to move out of part-time employment for good. A Coach might point out a few tweaks perhaps, or maybe even recommend a makeover or to even scrap the method - dunno really - but I am happy with it as is. (I've heard a good trader can make money with any system, but a poor trader can not win with even an excellent system!) What I am unhappy with, is my progress. There is very nearby, another breakthrough, and another. Reaching those breakthroughs is proving a little elusive, yet I can see the next step right in front of me, but can't touch it. Given that good help comes at a price, I am willing to pay whatever it takes, as long as I am not "taken". And given that I don't know anyone personally, through at least regular correspondence, the job becomes even more vexing, to find that kind of support. I do know of a good Aussie coach, but as I have moved further north away from Brisbane, this is almost out of the question, unless I can work with him via Skype etc. Earlier in this thread, there is a link to Adrienne Toghraie's site here: URL Deleted by Moderator and a pretty good looking Home Study Course is offered. The questions that arise are: a) Are these Boxed Courses all they are cracked up to be? I mean, do seriously motivated student-traders actually get enough usable stuff that CAN be applied to make that breakthrough? b) Compared to the cost of the Coach I know of (ca $200/hour) are these courses comparable? (I already know and trust the coach, and had 2 sessions going back a couple of years now) I feel I would probably do better with live assistance as opposed to a DVD feed. c) Can any successful trader remember back far enough to know why this question is being asked, and then care to share their own pathway? (successful = you have "Trader" written on your IRS return/Income Tax return, stating 'TRADER' as your main occupation) I find the influence of a Psychologist to have a very useful place in trading, but how does that rate as compared to Mentor, and/or Coach? Or are the 3 terms subtly intertwined and all indispensable in terms of getting a professional to assist? I think the trader needs to be not only 'ready' to use a good coach - they also need to worthy of the coaches' time, notwithstanding that they are paying for the person's time. Just putting it out there ... thoughts? Getting a Coach seems to be the natural next step here.

This is not in my kitchen at all, but after a third reading of this entire thread, it left me needing further breakdown of the steps in this puzzle. Can I just ask if the use of say Donchian Channels might be of any help, in setting the range? The next part should simply be to switch on the bot. This video (which I dug up with the assistance of Google) shows software that allows the periods to be set with the use of a slider. MarketClub Videos: "Silly Season" behind us, it's time to get serious It is just the idea - forget the commercial side of that. Set me thinking that if the TF was set at any desired intra-day period, then this might be a giant leap forward in solving the puzzle. Probably totally useless info, but I like to dig stuff up, and if I could "get it" more clearly, then I might chuck in 5cents worth where I can. There are also price "boxes' based on H/L/range for set periods, but I think you are too far ahead of me for this not to have been considered as part of the solution. The short answer is: No - I have not seen this done. It seems to be a two-part idea you are probing for - a manual trigger for an auto-trader to get to work? You don't want the computer to set the zones - this is YOUR task ... is that correct? Then you want the computer to go to work and auto-trade, once you "tell" it the zone it is confined to? If I am too uneducated in the tech requirements, or totally off-track, I am hard to offend. There might simply be too large a gap for me to be able to understand and help. I like the concept though - as far as I have understood.

A lawyer went duck hunting in rural South Dakota. He shot and dropped a bird, but it fell into a farmer's field on the other side of a fence. As the lawyer climbed over the fence, an elderly farmer drove up on his tractor and asked him what he was doing. The lawyer responded, "I shot a duck and it fell in this field, and now I'm going to retrieve it." The old farmer replied, "This is my property, and you are not coming over here." The indignant lawyer said, "I'm one of the best trial attorneys in California and, if you don't let me get that duck, I'll sue you and take everything you own." The old farmer smiled and said, "Apparently, you don't know how we settle disputes in South Dakota. We settle small disagreements like this with the South Dakota Three Kick Rule." The lawyer asked, "What's that?" The farmer replied, "Well, because the dispute occurs on my land, first I kick you three times and then you kick me three times and so on back and forth until someone gives up." The attorney quickly thought about the proposed contest and decided that he could easily take the old codger. He agreed to abide by the local custom. The old farmer slowly climbed down from the tractor and walked up to the attorney. "Now, since this is MY property, I reserve the right to take the first 3 kicks," to which the lawyer readily agreed. His first kick planted the toe of his heavy steel-toed work boot into the lawyer's groin and dropped him to his knees. His second kick to the midriff sent the lawyer's last meal gushing from his mouth. The barrister was on all fours when the farmer's third kick to his rear end sent him face first into a fresh cow pie. The lawyer summoned every bit of his will and managed to get to his feet. Wiping his face with the arm of his jacket, he said, "Okay, you old coot. Now it's my turn." I love this part ..... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The old farmer smiled and said: "Nah, I give up. You can have the duck."

Young John had just completed high school in the bush, and was off to the city to college. He had a faithful cattle dog, 'Bluey', and insisted on taking the dog with him. Of course, the attractions of city life were quite new to John, and during his out-of-college time, he spent-up rather big on enjoying it all. Eventually, the money ran a bit low, and John was a bit short. He decided to ring his father for a little advance. "Hello ... Dad? You will not believe what is happening here - Bluey is learning to play the piano." "Go on, son. You're kidding me!" "No, Dad, honestly - you should hear him. But the dog teacher had to be paid, and I am a bit short" "No worries, John. The cheque's in the mail." Well time went by, and John again got a bit short of money, and he decided to ring dad again for some money. "Hi Dad. Bluey is so advanced that he is now playing the piano and dancing at the same time. He is a big hit down here. But the extra lessons are not cheap." "Don't worry son, the cheque's in the mail. It's a good thing you got going there with Bluey." John was happy until the day came for him to go home. He knew he had to face the family with a dog that could neither dance nor play the piano. The day he got off the train, Dad was waiting there to meet him. "Where's Bluey?" said Dad, "I was hoping to watch a performance." "Well Dad, Bluey became so advanced, that he began to talk. We used to have long conversations about the things we've seen and done. One night he told me about you and that little red-haired sheila down at the pub, and he told me what you and her ..." "Crikey, John," interrupted Dad, "I hope you shot him!" "Yes, Dad, I did. I sure did. "

Actually you are both correct. There is NOTHING wrong with filtering through, or scanning 100 stocks, or even 500, if your scan throws up a heavily filtered opportunity that is ready NOW. A chart is a chart, and if the signal says "go" then you take it. How you do that will depend on YOU, as well as on the software you use, the information at your disposal (sector, index, instrument, order book) and so on. Yet the person who, like Emazing, specializes in just 2 or three stocks is equally performing his art, as the results are dependent, amongst other things, on his knowledge of the "personality" or characteristics of those couple of stocks he trades. This is just a storm in a teacup. It is understandable that when one knows his method as well as the traders involved in this exchange of opinion do, then strong opinions are bound to emerge. As all are truthfully speaking of their own solid experiences with the market, it is proof to me that each side of this debate is operating a very robust system/approach to trading. I have enjoyed the thoughts evoked by all proponents in this discussion - thanks to you all. It is easy for me to see that we are actually all on the same page, but understandable that those on the right will have a totally different approach from those on the left! It is the results that count, and I look forward to continuing discussion. Perhaps we could look at why each of you believes so strongly in his approach, instead of dismissing the likely success all of you are achieving. What has led you to conclude that maximum 3 stocks are best to focus on, Emazing, as opposed to the many that Siuya farms in his approach? I think your responses would be very constructive to the discussion, from here on. Care to elaborate? I would enjoy your reasons for your views. EDIT: Siuya - the acronym for your username is a little rude - I doubt you would get the full version registered!