What to Trade??

[El_Barto 10]

Hello everyone,

 

This is my first post here, i ve been reading this forum as an un-registered member for some time now, in addition to a whole lot of other reading i ve been doing on trading in general.

 

I ll start by introducing myself briefly, i am 26 year old, i work in a call center as the operations manager, so for my age and where i live, i basically can't complain as far as my current situation, i live in a beautiful sunny place and earn a decent living for my age group.

 

Having worked in my current job for almost 5 years now and having climbed up the ladder of success as much as i believe will be possible for me to do in this company, i'm now sort of having a "quarter life crisis" if such a thing exists, and am exploring other possibilities of careers out there. After-all, if i managed to turn a simple call centre job answering phones to running the department with 65 people under my direct reporting, why could my next venture not also be a success?

 

So my search for job and general happiness brought me to looking into possibly starting out as a Trader. Now don't get me wrong, i m not foolish enough to think that i can just quit my job and start trading successfully right from the start, i m not even close to starting trading i m still reading into the trading fundamentals, terminology etc, basically step 1 of 1 million in the learning process. On a side note, from the very beginning of my self-education it has come very clear to me that the universal consensus from anyone or anywhere you read up on Trading fundamentals, is that the basic key to success is to develop your own system that works for you, stick to it with a ferocious, un-emotional discipline, make your winning trades and let them roll as much as possible whilst cutting your loosing trades asap and keeping your losses small, trading is a long term profitability game, not a lottery.

 

So this now brings me to seeking advice from experienced professionals on how to decide what to trade in. I ve always known the saying "jack of all trades, master of none" and i guess it couldn't be more fitting to any other situation than trading, it would be virtually impossible to be successful trading a large number of different stocks/futures/currencies/commodities etc all at the same time from the get-go, that in my mind is the recipe to the Doll line. So my question is: How do you decide what works for you to trade in? What factors do you take into account?

 

I m guessing that the below would be a good starting point to get answers to:

 

Times at which i want to be trading? i live in Europe on CET timezone

How much capital am i willing to risk to start with? Around 2000 €uros (is that enough??)

.....? What else?

 

Looking forward to your comments,

 

Thanks,

 

M.

[henryduncan12 10]

I keep sharp eyes on market trends, up and down and latest market news. I prefer to day

trade. So you can choose your preferred time according your time schedule. 2000 Euro is sufficient capital for starting forex trading.

[Obsidian 10]

Before you pick something to trade, it is better to learn the markets...learn how things work...Every market/instrument has its own characteristics...After you learn about trading basics, you can open demo accounts to find a suitable market according to your personality and expectations...it is like playing music, try different instruments, play styles and pick one..then master it...

[El_Barto 10]

Before you pick something to trade, it is better to learn the markets...learn how things work...Every market/instrument has its own characteristics...After you learn about trading basics, you can open demo accounts to find a suitable market according to your personality and expectations...it is like playing music, try different instruments, play styles and pick one..then master it...

 

Thanks for the responses!

 

"Every market/instrument has its own characteristics" <-- can you give me an example so i know what i m looking for?

 

 

"find a suitable market according to your personality and expectations..." <-- i understand the expectations bit, or at least i think i do, but can you please explain to me how my personality can affect my decision when it comes to selecting what to trade?

[BlueHorseshoe 10]

I'm not a fundamental trader, so I can't give you any advice on selecting markets to trade.

 

Given that you'll be makin g decisions based on the strength of your convictions (unless you're taking a more quantitative fundamental approach), then I would imagine you would want to trade those markets about which you have the strongest convictions.

 

One key thing to develop will be your 'philosophy' about particular markets. A revealing question to ask yourself is: 'do I, on balance, expect that this particular market is more likely to continue in the direction it is going, or reverse and head back where it came?' For me, for example, for the Euro I would consider the former to be the case, and for the S&P500 the latter. So I want to try and trade trends in the Euro, and trade counter to the trend in the S&Ps.

 

Most new traders have completely unrealistic expectations about what they will achieve and how soon - you don't seem to be burdened with such expectations - so you're already off to a great start!

 

Good luck!

[donkeykong 10]

don't trade forex.

 

my finance teacher said: currencies have no god.

 

In my native language it makes more sense. But he means that you can never know where

the currency is going to move unless you think long term( i guess)

[BlueHorseshoe 10]

don't trade forex.

 

my finance teacher said: currencies have no god.

 

In my native language it makes more sense. But he means that you can never know where

the currency is going to move unless you think long term( i guess)

 

That translates perfectly in to English - I know exactly what you mean

[Obsidian 10]

Thanks for the responses!

 

"Every market/instrument has its own characteristics" <-- can you give me an example so i know what i m looking for?

 

"find a suitable market according to your personality and expectations..." <-- i understand the expectations bit, or at least i think i do, but can you please explain to me how my personality can affect my decision when it comes to selecting what to trade?

 

For example:

Markets...Operating hours, minimum investing (account, trading) size, leverage options, risk factors, volume etc...

 

instruments...every stock or currency pair has its own way to move...daily range, volatility, volume etc...these differences also brings the fact that there is no single technical analysis method/indicator to give us the best result...for one instrument moving average(50) works fine to follow the trend, but it may not work for another one...you may have to adjust numbers...

 

your personality affects your trading style. for some people trading on daily charts (longer time frames) is the best...some traders like faster markets or smaller time frames...

 

try different things and experience yourself

[YertleTurtle 10]

If you want to trade real money I would recommend spot forex. You can trade mini lots which are worth only a few cents a pip. Also the forex market tends to move the most during the european session so it seems like a logical fit.

[YertleTurtle 10]

don't trade forex.

 

my finance teacher said: currencies have no god.

 

In my native language it makes more sense. But he means that you can never know where

the currency is going to move unless you think long term( i guess)

 

This isn't true. Forex markets tend to be faster than stocks or futures but they are still governed by supply and demand. A finance teacher probably doesn't know much about trading.

 

Also - your ability to do your job at a call center and move up the ladder has zero predictive value on your ability as a trader. Hard work and discipline do.

 

The reality is that trading anything but forex with 2000 euro would be the same as setting money of fire. You just need deeper pockets. On that budget forex is your only choice. Pick a pair to concentrate on. I would recommend either EUR/USD GBP/USD or AUD/USD to start. Only watch that pair and only trade that pair. Like most things its the little details that make all the difference and you will only pick up the little things by studying one market at a time.

[lylec305 10]

Sounds like your current position involves interpersonal skills. Trading has little to do with people skills. Fulltime traders rarely interact with people. We stare at monitors all day looking for the perfect setup. Once it's perfect the trade is triggered and it may still go the opposite direction, there is a certain amount of luck involved.

 

My advice, learn everything there is about trading. It's a craft like anything else. Pick your specialty, equities, futures, options. Take time to master each. Know what you're getting into. Money can be made but a loss moves much faster...

[mooregd 10]

There are lots of ways to trade so your going to get lots of different answers. Some folks prefer to trade stocks on a daily basis others use options. Some use futures or forex. My suggestion is for you to trade something that you are interested in. You work in a call center may be you could find a few stocks that are in that sort of business and follow them or trade them. Or if you have to drive a lot and worry about the cost of gas and oil, follow the oils. Find something that interests you and make it part of your list to get to know all about it. Pick out 5-10 items (stocks or futures or currencies) and just become an expert on them. You should know their probably opening price the next morning and how many shares are outstanding. This idea of chasing different hot stocks around is not a good idea unless you like loosing money. Pick some and become an expert on them and you'll make money. You need to learn basic discipline too. Money management is the most important lesson to learn. If you learn it you will do OK. If not, just send your money on over to me. Learn how to protect your shares when you expect bad news and how to time markets. Best of luck to you.

[donkeykong 10]

This isn't true. Forex markets tend to be faster than stocks or futures but they are still governed by supply and demand. A finance teacher probably doesn't know much about trading.

 

 

It's true it is governed by supply and demand.

There are too many factors and unknowns in the fx market.

 

My finance teacher trades futures and he seems pretty well off.

[YertleTurtle 10]

It's true it is governed by supply and demand.

There are too many factors and unknowns in the fx market.

 

My finance teacher trades futures and he seems pretty well off.

 

I trade forex successfully. I therefore know it can be done. Like anything it has its advantages and disadvantages. I'm sure if I tried trading options I would lose my shirt. This doesn't change the fact that there is nothing wrong with learning to trade options. We all have a bias toward the things we personally have chosen. I'm sure there are even successful forex traders who have sworn off futures.

[donkeykong 10]

I trade forex successfully. I therefore know it can be done. Like anything it has its advantages and disadvantages. I'm sure if I tried trading options I would lose my shirt. This doesn't change the fact that there is nothing wrong with learning to trade options. We all have a bias toward the things we personally have chosen. I'm sure there are even successful forex traders who have sworn off futures.

 

k, what's your strategy?

i am curious, i hate forex. i wasted too much time on it/

[CortneyWilliams 10]

Currency is easily the most heavily traded commodity in the world, that also can make it|helps it be probably the most liquid. Which means you will will usually look for a marketplace for major currency pairs, which can be EUR/USD, GBP/USD, USD/JPY, USD/CHF, USD/AUD and USD/CAD. For anyone just starting to trade in Forex,the processis knowing the terminology and ways to track price movements after a while.

Good Luck

[marty221 10]

You ask that working your way up to manager, trading can;t be all that hard. I would caution you to go small or your stash might not last that long.Be careful about all the TRADERS that sell many things, most of it does not work. Read a couple of books, two I might recommend would be john Carter Trade the Markets and the other is Al Brooks Reading price Charts bar by bar.

 

I also felt how hard could it be. I served 21 Years in the Marines Became a Senior NCO Could do everything from packing parachutes, working on ejection seats, Aircraft electrician Metal work. I also have a pilot licence and a couple of other fAA licences. I was very successful at what I did. TRADING IS A MUCH DIFFERENTLifestyle than what you have been told all your life.Finally I am profitable.

 

GOOD LUCK TO YOU

[KLTrader 10]

El -Barto,

My experience leads me to stocks every time..The right stocks at the right time frequently offer a trader the possibility of earning 2 -5 % per trade on a regular basis. No other trading vehicle comes close while at the same time offering the liquidity to exit in relatively safe manner when it becomes necessary.

 

El- Barto,....... I don't mean to be harsh........ but trying to trade an account as small as you describe will be frustrating at best. You will be limited to very small positions in whatever market you are allowed to trade and it will leave quite a sour taste in your mouth.

 

You are very young and have plenty of time to acquire the funds and training necessary to "do it right". Work in your present position or a better one until you are able to really "do it right".. In the mean time, you may want to take a gander at a book written eons ago entitled "The Science of Getting Rich". If nothing else it should give you pause in all that you think and do in your current world while preparing you for the future. God Speed...........

[joshdance 10]

So I want to try and trade trends in the Euro, and trade counter to the trend in the S&Ps.

 

A trend is a trend, and fading the S&P will kill a trader just as fast as anything else. People say that the S&P is more of a mean reverting instrument but fading is generally a losing strategy regardless of what's being traded.

[steve46 12]

Hmmmm.

 

 

I would suggest spending some time getting a decent background....a general background.....choose any exchange (CME, CBOT, NYSE NASDAQ)...and go the website...at the top of each home page you will see a tab titled "education" or "educational resources"....start using that resource...go through as much of it as you can...and just take in the information....but DO NOT TRADE.....and do not get involved with any vendors.....period. Spend your time getting enough education and experience to make your own decisions....instead of asking strangers for their opinion.

 

Alternatively go to Amazon and start browsing book titles....check out some of the classics about trading (Livermore, Marty Schwartz, any of Jack Schwager's books) and read until you have some idea of where you want to go and what you want to accomplish..

 

IF you spend your time wisely now, you will save yourself a lot of money and grief later...

 

Good luck

Steve

[El_Barto 10]

You ask that working your way up to manager, trading can;t be all that hard. I would caution you to go small or your stash might not last that long.Be careful about all the TRADERS that sell many things, most of it does not work. Read a couple of books, two I might recommend would be john Carter Trade the Markets and the other is Al Brooks Reading price Charts bar by bar.

 

I also felt how hard could it be. I served 21 Years in the Marines Became a Senior NCO Could do everything from packing parachutes, working on ejection seats, Aircraft electrician Metal work. I also have a pilot licence and a couple of other fAA licences. I was very successful at what I did. TRADING IS A MUCH DIFFERENTLifestyle than what you have been told all your life.Finally I am profitable.

 

GOOD LUCK TO YOU

 

Hehe thanks to all for the comments, i think it may have been a bad idea to introduce myself at such length and specially stating my rise into my current position as it seems it was taken as a comparison to my expectations in trading. That couldn t be further away from the truth, i was mearly stating that my personal mindset and general dedication got me to where i am today, and if i managed to work hard to get where i am i would expect that a similar commitment to another topic, such as trading, would only be beneficial

 

But thanks, comments duly taken on-board

[Obsidian 10]

Good luck to you on your trading journey

[tommason 10]

So if you work during European time means you will play during US market open ?

it is possible with 3000 €uros if you want to play with mini sized account. (for beginner this is great as you will lose much less).

 

if you want to use standard contract, it is possible but you have to be really good and discipline.

 

but Euro/USD pair, AUD/USd pair is the best to trade. (AUD/USD) is more trending therefore good for letting profit run scenario.

 

 

Hello everyone,

 

This is my first post here, i ve been reading this forum as an un-registered member for some time now, in addition to a whole lot of other reading i ve been doing on trading in general.

 

I ll start by introducing myself briefly, i am 26 year old, i work in a call center as the operations manager, so for my age and where i live, i basically can't complain as far as my current situation, i live in a beautiful sunny place and earn a decent living for my age group.

 

Having worked in my current job for almost 5 years now and having climbed up the ladder of success as much as i believe will be possible for me to do in this company, i'm now sort of having a "quarter life crisis" if such a thing exists, and am exploring other possibilities of careers out there. After-all, if i managed to turn a simple call centre job answering phones to running the department with 65 people under my direct reporting, why could my next venture not also be a success?

 

So my search for job and general happiness brought me to looking into possibly starting out as a Trader. Now don't get me wrong, i m not foolish enough to think that i can just quit my job and start trading successfully right from the start, i m not even close to starting trading i m still reading into the trading fundamentals, terminology etc, basically step 1 of 1 million in the learning process. On a side note, from the very beginning of my self-education it has come very clear to me that the universal consensus from anyone or anywhere you read up on Trading fundamentals, is that the basic key to success is to develop your own system that works for you, stick to it with a ferocious, un-emotional discipline, make your winning trades and let them roll as much as possible whilst cutting your loosing trades asap and keeping your losses small, trading is a long term profitability game, not a lottery.

 

So this now brings me to seeking advice from experienced professionals on how to decide what to trade in. I ve always known the saying "jack of all trades, master of none" and i guess it couldn't be more fitting to any other situation than trading, it would be virtually impossible to be successful trading a large number of different stocks/futures/currencies/commodities etc all at the same time from the get-go, that in my mind is the recipe to the Doll line. So my question is: How do you decide what works for you to trade in? What factors do you take into account?

 

I m guessing that the below would be a good starting point to get answers to:

 

Times at which i want to be trading? i live in Europe on CET timezone

How much capital am i willing to risk to start with? Around 2000 €uros (is that enough??)

.....? What else?

 

Looking forward to your comments,

 

Thanks,

 

M.