Technique, psychology and money management are the three essential elements that must be mastered to become a successful trader. You’ve developed a money management system, you’ve got your head in the profit zone (see our posts dated July 19 & 20), now comes the hard part: developing a system and honing your technique.
Honing Your Technique
- Find your key. To become a successful trader, you don’t have to master a laundry list of skills, just two or three key techniques that work for you.
- Look ahead. The past can’t be traded. Focus your energies on what is happening NOW! The future is unknown and you cannot predict what will happen.
- Chart your path. Charts are the single-most important tool in the futures trader’s arsenal. You must learn to develop, read and analyze charts to be successful. Charts can tell you where the market is, where the money is and what the big boys are doing.
- Stick to the technicals. Technical factors (volume, price patterns, momentum, etc.) tell the true story of any stock, commodity, bond or FOREX currency pair. Emotional news reports or rumors on the street do move the market. Interpreting the news and its effects is almost impossible. Watch the charts and go with the flow of the market.
- Study up. Don’t expect success overnight. You need time to learn the elements, develop your system, practice it and fine tune it. Don’t risk too much too soon; give yourself a chance to learn from your mistakes. Keep a trading journal and faithfully record all aspects of every trade. Remember: Profits follow knowledge.
- Timing is everything. If you buy the right futures contract at the wrong time, you lose. Stock prices rise when more contracts are being bought than sold, nothing else really matters. Learn to time the rise using our no-lagging indicator system.
- Believe in your system. When you draw your line in the sand (i.e., your stop), don’t be tempted to cross it. Your system is based on facts and knowledge, not emotions. Don’t second guess yourself. Let your system work for you.
Visit the Futures Trading Secrets website to find out how you can master the essential elements of futures trading and learn the expert secrets that will allow you to become a successful futures trader.
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