Menu
Sister Sites

Options

Bookmark Thread

First Page First Unread Last Page Last Post

Print Thread

Similar Threads

How To Calculate Swap And Forward Points - Newbie Here 3 replies

How long do you forward test a discretionary system? 7 replies

Forward Testing Discussion Thread 241 replies

Forward Testing Results Only 33 replies

Attachments: How do I move forward?
Exit Attachments

How do I move forward?

  •  Finoli
  • | Joined Feb 2011 | Status: The mouse goes "pip pip pip" | 106 Posts
So, I can't close my trade because the server is probably down or something..
Annoying? Yes.
Attached Image (click to enlarge)
Click to Enlarge Name: Capture.PNG Size: 144 KB
  •  Finoli
  • | Joined Feb 2011 | Status: The mouse goes "pip pip pip" | 106 Posts
Quoting frankkn
It depends on what your rules are like
So.. what should they be like?
Quoting highlander2
The funny thing is that many of the things a professional trader does can easily be done by the beginner trader.

Sit back for a moment and think how a professional trader goes about his day, think about the actions he takes and how he responds to events that happen in the market and how he acts when he takes a loss or has a win.

Go as far as writing down a list of things you think a pro does.

For example,

keeps a journal,
has a trading plan and a rule set,
has a daily routine.
remains calm at all times.
[b]Exercises his trades flawlessly...
this could well be the best post on this thread
Quoting Finoli
Great tip..
I have a question about rules in trading..
the market is always changing, and rarely looks alike. If you would have a set of rules that tell you when to trade, wont that hold you back?
What the market looks like is all about YOUR perception. If it rarely looks alike to you, then you'll have to find setups for those times it does look alike. Or alter your perception to find other angles where things start to look alike and then go through the historic data on multiple pairs to see if the pattern is consistent enough to bet on.

If one pair or time frame isn't showing me what I like to see I find the one that does. I actually tend to see too many setups and have to dial it down to which ones fit my time frame and volatility tolerance. But I'd consider that a blessing and not a problem.
Quoting Finoli
Great tip..
I have a question about rules in trading..
the market is always changing, and rarely looks alike. If you would have a set of rules that tell you when to trade, wont that hold you back?
I think rule number 1 should be "I will never move my stop away from my trade"

For me rules fall under two categories,

1- Money management/trade management.

and,

2- Rules about the setups you are using.

Money management rules could be simple or complex, i suggest you keep it simple to begin with.

"I will risk 2% of my account on each trade"

simple rule yet some people don't follow it. A big mistake is when people don't risk the same amount each time. They may risk more if they "feel good about the trade" In my view this is a bad idea especially if you are just starting.

You will have rules for stops, when to move to BE if at all etc.

Trade setup rules may include-

"I will only take setups at key support and resistance"
"i will trade with the trend"
"i will not enter my trade until the signal is formed (common mistake)

The rules there are straight forward but deciding whether or not a key resistance level is present is not and where you must decide.

Sundry other rules may include-

"I will not trade in the three days before NFP"
"I will not trade on holidays"
"I will not trade in the run up to major news release"

SO many rules will depend on how you trade so its hard to answer but these are the kind of rules I do my best to follow.

If you complete your 20 trade batch, go through all your trades, have a look and see if things like moving to BE affected the bottom line. Consider changing your rules if you feel you can improve, but be aware 20 trades is still not a lot to go on but its better than 1.
Quoting highlander2
If you complete your 20 trade batch, go through all your trades, have a look and see if things like moving to BE affected the bottom line. Consider changing your rules if you feel you can improve, but be aware 20 trades is still not a lot to go on but its better than 1.
Yeah, 20 trades really isn't a lot depending on how you trade. I do a lot of add-ons when a move in my favor. I was recently looking back at my past 20 and it was only 2 days worth. But there was enough info there to make adjustments that made a huge difference for the next 20-30.

I'm normally a 2-3 day swing trader but I"m currently under evaluation to trade for a prop firm and they prefer day traders. In looking at my last 50 intraday trades or so, some more patterns are emerging and I can adjust my strategy, tactics, and fine tune my system and rules around what I'm seeing even further.

It's always a work in progress.
jeez, 20 trades? i did more than that just tonight... and i didn't even mean to :/ .

i've pumped through on a sim a couple of hundred trades that were all on the up and up and then the whole curve went south... after a few... hundred... trades!

20 trades tastes a bit on the small size.
Quoting nubcake
jeez, 20 trades? i did more than that just tonight... and i didn't even mean to :/ .

i've pumped through on a sim a couple of hundred trades that were all on the up and up and then the whole curve went south... after a few... hundred... trades!

20 trades tastes a bit on the small size.
I would agree, and the outcome of 20 trades does not prove anything either way, but its more in line with how an edge works than looking a 2 or 3. To many people get hung up on the outcomes of the past couple of trades.

Its more to be able to look back and see if you made any execution errors which led to losses or missed profit, rather than how good the system is. Once 20 are complete he can take another 20 and then he will have a larger sample of data. Then another 20, then another.

The idea is to stop looking at 2 or 3 losses as if the end of the world had come.
Quoting nubcake
jeez, 20 trades? i did more than that just tonight... and i didn't even mean to :/ .

i've pumped through on a sim a couple of hundred trades that were all on the up and up and then the whole curve went south... after a few... hundred... trades!

20 trades tastes a bit on the small size.
Depends on your time frame and risk tolerance. 20 swing trades are going to tell a completely different story than 20 scalpers.
Quoting highlander2
I would agree, and the outcome of 20 trades does not prove anything either way, but its more in line with how an edge works than looking a 2 or 3. To many people get hung up on the outcomes of the past couple of trades.

Its more to be able to look back and see if you made any execution errors which led to losses or missed profit, rather than how good the system is. Once 20 are complete he can take another 20 and then he will have a larger sample of data. Then another 20, then another.

The idea is to stop looking at 2 or 3 losses as...
The meaning behind doing 20 trades has been lost in this thread; if you read the book, you will understand, the exercise is not about winning or losing, it is developing the traders mindset, here is a quote...

The first stage is the mechanical stage. In this stage, you:
1. Build the self-trust necessary to operate in an unlimited environment.
2. Learn to flawlessly execute a trading system.
3. Train your mind to think in probabilities (the five fundamental truths).
4. Create a strong, unshakeable belief in your consistency as a trader.
Maximize wins, minimize loss, stay in the game as long as you can
  •  Finoli
  • | Joined Feb 2011 | Status: The mouse goes "pip pip pip" | 106 Posts
Quoting highlander2
I think rule number 1 should be "I will never move my stop away from my trade"

For me rules fall under two categories,

1- Money management/trade management.

and,

2- Rules about the setups you are using.

Money management rules could be simple or complex, i suggest you keep it simple to begin with.

"I will risk 2% of my account on each trade"

simple rule yet some people don't follow it. A big mistake is when people don't risk the same amount each time. They may risk more if they "feel good about the trade" In my view this...
Okey I get it.. will make a list of rules soon then. May take a while though.



I wanted to ask you guys another think..
Is it bad to trade e.g. 10+ pairs? I mean, as I want to get into mid-term trading, an opportunity may not arise for a while. Meanwhile, I guess one could look at pairs that are less traded than the e/u, like a/j.

Someone once told me that I should stick to 2 pairs, and that trading more may confuse me. Is this true? Or should I trade more pairs so I recieve more signals?
Quoting Finoli
I wanted to ask you guys another think..
Is it bad to trade e.g. 10+ pairs? I mean, as I want to get into mid-term trading, an opportunity may not arise for a while. Meanwhile, I guess one could look at pairs that are less traded than the e/u, like a/j.

Someone once told me that I should stick to 2 pairs, and that trading more may confuse me. Is this true? Or should I trade more pairs so I recieve more signals?
If you're trading longer time frames like 4 hr's and up, trading multiple pairs shouldn't be an issue. But I would make sure that they're not correlated pairs. Like trading E/U and G/U. Not as identical as they used to be but similar enough. When I trade non-correlated pairs I go for something like E/U and A/J or G/J.
  •  Finoli
  • | Joined Feb 2011 | Status: The mouse goes "pip pip pip" | 106 Posts
Quoting JR97
If you're trading longer time frames like 4 hr's and up, trading multiple pairs shouldn't be an issue. But I would make sure that they're not correlated pairs. Like trading E/U and G/U. Not as identical as they used to be but similar enough. When I trade non-correlated pairs I go for something like E/U and A/J or G/J.
I see. Thank you. Seems like there will be some memorizing to do.. I mean, the daily chart for E/U is pretty much imprinted in my mind, I only need to look at the current candle to see what's going on
Quoting Erebus
The meaning behind doing 20 trades has been lost in this thread; if you read the book, you will understand, the exercise is not about winning or losing, it is developing the traders mindset, here is a quote...

The first stage is the mechanical stage. In this stage, you:
1. Build the self-trust necessary to operate in an unlimited environment.
2. Learn to flawlessly execute a trading system.
3. Train your mind to think in probabilities (the five fundamental truths).
4. Create a strong, unshakeable belief in your consistency as a trader.
It has to a degree.

But I did say in previous posts that he should focus on flawless execution rather than on P/L.

And i did say that the idea is to stop looking at a couple of losses as a if the world had ended and to learn how to keep playing your edge, or words to that effect.

On a video interview mark did say that "the trader should take 20 trades and review the results, if he gets the results he likes he should take another 20. If he didn't he should tweak his method so he gets better results"

I see no problem in going over the 20 trades and using the info to improve performance, both of the trader and the strategy.

But with the focus on "flawless execution"

hope this clears things up.

h2
  •  Finoli
  • | Joined Feb 2011 | Status: The mouse goes "pip pip pip" | 106 Posts
Quoting highlander2
I see no problem in going over the 20 trades and using the info to improve performance, both of the trader and the strategy.
That was what I had in mind when I started that method. If I like what i've done, why change? If I dont, why stick to what Im doing?

Finoli
there are ways to move forward, don't guess the market

http://www.forexfactory.com/showthre...25#post5060925
hang with the basics until you know enough about other indicators to use them. learn, read all you can and put that knowledge to the test on a demo. make sure you are successful in the demo first. keep practicing.
match your attitude to your own trading style. or take advantage of what you already know. for some they are more comfortable day trading and others are not. you have to learn that yourself. in time and with attention you should figure it out. it comes with time and knowledge. it depends how much time you put in and how much knowledge you gather.
Market sense, a feeling for the way price moves and how the bars on the chart are formed, is essential. To gain this I would spend a lot of time watching the lower time frames.

To start with I would pick one time of the day. This is because the market behaves very differently at different times. What works very well for one time zone may not work at all for another. No point in confusing yourself.

A couple of hours before London opens is a good time. Japan is feeling mellow then and you dont have to worry about news, ninja or otherwise. Moves are much more mild and you are less likely to be caught out with the wild, unpredictable moves that happen during regular hours.

To make "getting a feel for the market" more interesting I would also play a guessing game. This is done quite simply by saying to yourself "I think PA will go here" and slapping a line on your charts and watching.
  •  Finoli
  • | Joined Feb 2011 | Status: The mouse goes "pip pip pip" | 106 Posts
Quoting rayray
hang with the basics until you know enough about other indicators to use them. learn, read all you can and put that knowledge to the test on a demo. make sure you are successful in the demo first. keep practicing.
match your attitude to your own trading style. or take advantage of what you already know. for some they are more comfortable day trading and others are not. you have to learn that yourself. in time and with attention you should figure it out. it comes with time and knowledge. it depends how much time you put in and how much knowledge...
I know the basics, but I trade more or less naked. I plot a few MAs and pivots, and then mass the chart with longer termed trendlines and S&R. I've gotten more into mid-term trading, holding positions for a day or two. I used to be a daytrader, because it felt like the natural way to trade for some reason..
I need to study price action a bit more I think. I sometimes get stopped out too early and I need to know what the market is capable of doing so that I can adjust SL and TP accordingly.
Practiced I sure have. I need more, of course...


..but...


...thanks to all the great answers in this thread my results have improved. Counting the trades I've made since the start of the thread, I've only lost 30% of my trades, and not a single one had a lower risk/reward than 1:1. I cannot rely on thinking that I know this now, because I dont. I need to trade a lot more to see if I've actully learned something and that I'm not simply being lucky for a month

200 posts already, I'm really happy keep it coming
Thank you all anyways <3
  •  Finoli
  • | Joined Feb 2011 | Status: The mouse goes &quot;pip pip pip&quot; | 106 Posts
Quoting AaronWard
To start with I would pick one time of the day. This is because the market behaves very differently at different times. What works very well for one time zone may not work at all for another. No point in confusing yourself.

A couple of hours before London opens is a good time. Japan is feeling mellow then and you dont have to worry about news, ninja or otherwise. Moves are much more mild and you are less likely to be caught out with the wild, unpredictable moves that happen during regular hours.
I am GMT+1, so trading a couple of hours before london open is something that would rather complicate stuff, or I'd have to sleep no later than 9 pm
Any other times? Maybe for other pairs than the majors?
0 traders viewing now