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My personal experience - Lost 5,000 USD in 4 months Forex. Please advice.

  • #41
  • Jan 4, 2007 10:12pm Jan 4, 2007 10:12pm
Quoting loser
Thanks for all the contribution.

I am always a fighter within, even though I've a optimistic mindset before everything, but lately the loss dealt much into my confidence and esteem. I started out few months back thinking I want -and I will- become the best trader of all time, even against the very person sitting beside me. No fight.

But all came crashing down due to stupidity, and add to that insult is that I am by no means IQ below par (not saying that I've high intelligence), just to say that how in the h$ll that my mind was thinking the right way but my heart was pumping like hell on the other way.

Ever since I found Forex, I've actually found life after that. I don't know, I can sit before the screen, or books or ANYTHING related with Forex.. 25 hours a day (to indicate that I can sit all hours whatever a day can give). If you ask me about passion, yes hellya Oorah! I have it, if you ask me about myself whether I'm in or I'm out, "Oorah!" yes fcuking he#! I'm in for this in the long haul whatever my life can give me.

I cannot digest all posts in such a small column but I did read all of them, and yes I want to be the Michael Jordan of trading (I know I can), yes I'm going to read Mike Douglas book, hell yes I will be fcking back into the market but not sooner, I tell myself there must be a balance of power or hell will break lose, I will take no matter how long it takes, no matter how hard it takes, I will try, no, I mean I must overcome all factors that are hindering my trading path if I want to have the slightest chance of becoming a successful trader.

I sound like my 5 grands is a billion to me when some of you actually lost many times over, I am ashamed. I want to thank you all to give me the momentum to keep me going. I don't know how to explain it, but I do agree with one of you mentioned that trading is not for everyone, but ironically everyone here thinks that trading is for him/her. I myself thinks the same way as the person who posted it. You will know what I mean, I don't want to quit yet because deep inside I know I can do it. I totally agree with you, but not unless further down the road that I am convinced that this market is not for me, I will stay in for as long as my passion lives, perhaps in the lifetime.

This forum has helped me to adjust my inner wound by just creating this topic. With so many voices around here, you guys all became "one voice" within me, almost God-like calling out my name that I will have to persevere, and I must. Not until the time that once again God will come out and tell me what to do next. Right now, God is telling me -via you- that I must stay afloat and I must fcuking learn from all.

Thank you guys. Thank you for all your passionate replies.

I dunno what to change my username to, perhaps this eye-catching nick might spur some people to know more about themselves. If I change, it will change to whole impression of what this thread supposed to be.

You might want to check out Rob Bookers Website and Materials. They are very good and easy to understand and he also offers a mentor style training program as well as alot of other features. Here is the link to his site:

http://www.robbooker.com


Also there's another trader, Jordan Lindsey, that has a very popular and successful trading group. He also provides a mentoring style trading program. I myself have joined his group and it has helped me alot. Here is the link to his Website;

http://www.jcls-forex.com/index

Both Rob Booker and Jordan Lindsey try to teach you the basics first and how to approach trading with the proper mindset and pschology, as a business with proper money management.

Anyway, just a couple of more suggestions I thought I'd throw at you. To me it kinda sounds like you might benefit most from some one-on-one mentoring.
  • #42
  • Jan 4, 2007 10:42pm Jan 4, 2007 10:42pm
It sounds like you've been to some dark places and back more than I have, but I completely relate to what your saying and now I'm worried!
By seeing you helped it's helping myself.

My non-forex tips to keeping sanity and a clear mind. What works in one place works in another.
Take a step back, and go for a walk. I used to get all my inspiration and thoughts walking.
Somedays you win, somedays you lose. I was watching The Natural the other day and I remember that line being said.

I stare at the screen way to much too. The weekends is a nice change of pace lately. Maybe taking a step back sometimes will help. The more I sit here, the more anxious I get to make a trade, instead of monitoring for a good situation forming periodically.
Hopefully...
But I'm a newbie compared to some of the people on here, or most of them. I would think with the knowledge and experience, you're a few steps ahead of most people already. To find the solution you have to identify and isolate the problem.
  • #43
  • Jan 5, 2007 12:11am Jan 5, 2007 12:11am
After the phenomenal comments from Bear, Twinc, and Mr Trend the only thing I can add is that you should question your underlying reasons for wanting to be a trader.

The un-discussed thing about trading is that it changes you. It shows you the type of person you really are and either rewards you or punishes you depending on how that revelation sits with your values. At the moment you think your upset about the $5k you lost, but that isn’t what prompted you to post your situation on the forum. People lose many times more or less then you and don’t express the shame and disappointment that you have. You’re disappointed with yourself for pretending to be something you’re not and that $5k was the punishment you delivered upon yourself to learn the lesson. Tomorrow you can start with a brand new account and trading system, but if you don’t pay attention to the lessons your mind is trying to tell you you’ll find yourself back here again sometime soon.

Figure out exactly why it is that you do what you do and your trading will surpass your wildest imaginations.
  • #44
  • Jan 5, 2007 12:55am Jan 5, 2007 12:55am
Here is the bottomline:

1) Support and resistance breakout.
2) Trendlines breakout.
3) Channel breakout, triangle etc. breakout.

I)Learn how to Straddle (Placing entry order before the breakouts.)
II) Watch out for false breakouts.
III) "Know when to hold them, know when to fold them"

Most imporatnt:
A) Only trade 1 to 2 micro lots (1,000), untill you consistently win.
B) Never allow yourself to loose more than 3% of your account in a single day. (There is a new opportunity every day.)
C) Stay fit (physically and mentally.)
  • #45
  • Jan 5, 2007 1:29am Jan 5, 2007 1:29am
I spent 2 years studying and learning forex... only to find out that forex the game is unbeatable !! u know why ? because forex is control by the banks and the banks want u to loose money and ripped your account.

Ya i know people say forex is so much volume... but eventually your account will be a target by the big players... when there is not much volume .... hahha now is your turn...

My advise is to quit forex... gambling is soccer match at least you know why u loose is fair...
  • #46
  • Jan 5, 2007 1:36am Jan 5, 2007 1:36am
Quit? NEVER!!!

There is a way to make money in trading, find it.
  • #47
  • Jan 5, 2007 2:06am Jan 5, 2007 2:06am
Quoting dontjump
I spent 2 years studying and learning forex... only to find out that forex the game is unbeatable !! u know why ? because forex is control by the banks and the banks want u to loose money and ripped your account.

Ya i know people say forex is so much volume... but eventually your account will be a target by the big players... when there is not much volume .... hahha now is your turn...

My advise is to quit forex... gambling is soccer match at least you know why u loose is fair...
dontjump,
Just curious.
If it's not working after 2 years why are you still here?

"Where skill and discipline converge success will emerge" (quote from 'The Trading Pillar' by Mark Olivero)

Hope your efforts eventually payoff.
  • #48
  • Jan 5, 2007 2:29am Jan 5, 2007 2:29am
Quoting dontjump
I spent 2 years studying and learning forex... only to find out that forex the game is unbeatable !! u know why ? because forex is control by the banks and the banks want u to loose money and ripped your account.

Ya i know people say forex is so much volume... but eventually your account will be a target by the big players... when there is not much volume .... hahha now is your turn...

My advise is to quit forex... gambling is soccer match at least you know why u loose is fair...
To be fair I think this is the most useless piece of advice I have ever heard... talk about a defeatest attitude...

I have to agree with a previous poster... if your advice is to quit forex then why are you still here?
  • #49
  • Jan 5, 2007 2:34am Jan 5, 2007 2:34am
useless comments by dontjump. you're not helping at all!
  • #50
  • Jan 5, 2007 2:38am Jan 5, 2007 2:38am
Quoting loser
I started out few months back thinking I want -and I will- become the best trader of all time, even against the very person sitting beside me.
So common, you overstimate your importance.
This is a great lesson for you:

If you don’t stay humble, the market will make you humble.
  • #51
  • Jan 5, 2007 2:55am Jan 5, 2007 2:55am
Quoting Micardo
To be fair I think this is the most useless piece of advice I have ever heard... talk about a defeatest attitude...

I have to agree with a previous poster... if your advice is to quit forex then why are you still here?

I'm here because i see all people loose money in forex and i just want to advise u all ....

Its People like you who are too foolish to give the banks money. I also hope that forex is profitable but the fact it is not.

The days of George Soros is gone with the wind.
  • #52
  • Jan 5, 2007 3:03am Jan 5, 2007 3:03am
Dontjump,


You need to get a hobbie.

Anyone can make it in forex- self belief, game plan and after that is just a numbers game.
  • #53
  • Jan 5, 2007 3:23am Jan 5, 2007 3:23am
Quoting Jarret
Dontjump,


You need to get a hobbie.

Anyone can make it in forex- self belief, game plan and after that is just a numbers game.
Guys,

There's always positives and negatives in everything. So, if you agree, why don't we just ignore the negative voices around this thread? Forex is also about emotion, right? So, don't get too emotional to see those who disagrees with us.

I think this thread is really needed for people like loser (thanks for starting it, man) and myself. Please, let's get going.

Jimmy.
  • #54
  • Jan 5, 2007 3:30am Jan 5, 2007 3:30am
I am going to be harsh with you, because first of all you dont know how to trade, nor do you have a trading strategy that works for you else you would not keep changing it, and in doing so you cannot regulate and fine tune what you already know, because everytime you change your strategy you have to learn again when and when not to enter the market, so you will always loose, and never learn by your mistakes.

Second, What the heck are you doing opening an account with money you cant afford to loose, whats wrong with starting with $300, absolutley nothing, thats what, i blew many $200/$300 accounts just finding a good broker, with a platform i liked thats before i managed to transform my trading strategy into a winning strategy.

Rant over, try again, with a small amount of money, stick to a trading strategy you enjoy using and understand FULLY! make it your own and understand what drives the markets, when to get in, when to get out.
then your half way there, When i press the button to buy and sell i set everything up stops, limits, moving stops and i can then either walk away or goto sleep, its that easy and stress free, when you do it properly.

by the time i blew my third account i think i just laughed, and topped it up, with money i could afford to loose.

Any way good luck chappy, hope you have learnt something from your mistakes, any advice you need forex factory is the right place to come.
now go and open a mini account and start learning properly
  • #55
  • Jan 5, 2007 4:01am Jan 5, 2007 4:01am
Hi!

When I read your story, I thought you stole some memories from my head!!!
I had a similar experience. I started it in a big way. Made small profit and then lost about 25% of my account - jumping from system to system and trying to recover what was lost during the jumping process. I did a lot of backtesting to prove myself, that it can be done. By that time I was trading 5 min Cable - which is time consuming and emotionally killing job - if you are not experienced trader. Well..I wasnt. Being a newbie and trading with money I couldnt afford to lose has put an enormous pressure on me. So defense mechanism kicked in. I browsed the forums just to prove to myself, that "I am a trader", "I know what news are we expecting today", "I know where Cable and Swissy are right now" , I bought one super advanced math indicator book..I programmed so-called nonlagging moving average indicators..just to get the previous job done with new tools.

However, I got smarter by that time. Before putting real money on the line...after 1+ month of programming the essential tools and because I still couldnt trade with real money..I did backtesting - completely mechanical - over a long period of time (2 years on 5 min tf). One would call this fanatism..maybe it was. All I did was a proof, that my newest system was profitable..or should I say slightly profitable. Now the funny part begins.

I took the results, I tried to modify the MM just to be able to gain as much money as possible. My head was in the sky from the nice numbers. When Im writing about my previous myself - it was curve fitting and emotional. Around that time I figured out with one of my friends, that longer timeframes should do the job. I was member on FF for a while, but I never read James16 chart thread, WHICH WAS A VERY BIG MISTAKE!!!

I dont mean to discourage you and certainly I didnt write everything about my past as a "trader", but I wanted to show you, that many many of us experienced what you did, many of us learnt from the same mistakes and many of us lost money.

Back to the beginning of one beautiful journey with Jim´s thread. Once you read it, you will understand, that it takes more then money and internet access to become a trader. It takes PATIENCE, DISCIPLINE and EXPERIENCE, and of course...little money.

I can promise you, that once you do your homework, which includes
1. reading the James16 Chart Thread
2. making notes about what you have read
3. thinking about what you have read
4. understanding and applying what you have learnt on charts
5. learning some more like money management

With trading you will encounter many many traps of your personality, but once you master yourself, you will master the markets, so that they will provide you with whatever you want.
It will be a long journey (I personally gave myself 7-8years to become a fulltime trader), but I bet it will be a nice one. Start with small amount and make sure you FULLY understand what position sizing and money management means and set you goals. After that it takes only time.
Nothing less, nothing more.

Wish you a nice journey

Bluefish
P.S.:
I wrote you small part from my journey, because I felt your desperation, when there is no need to be desperate. Just learn and be happy throughout the process. If you dont enjoy being a trader, do not try to become one.

P.P.S.: In Jim´s thread you can learn about price action. Then you can decide how you want to trade - whether with indicators or not - it will sure give you something what you cant find anywhere else.
  • #56
  • Jan 5, 2007 4:11am Jan 5, 2007 4:11am
I definitely agree with MM, you have to lose that name!!!
Always remember, it starts with YOU... how you view yourself. It's so easy to blame a loss on someone or something else or just plain bad timing. The truth is, it starts with you pal... get your mindframe right and know that you have to pay for your education, even after trading demo for 6 months.
Hang in there and know that you are not the only one.

PS: Stop lying to your friends and family, you need them to support you on highs and lows...

Goldilocks
  • #57
  • Jan 5, 2007 4:28am Jan 5, 2007 4:28am
Yup. Been there. I'd try demo trading until you prove to yourself that you've arrived. When you return to live trading, start out very small. Other things: Find the trend--daily, hrly, on down. Look for a situation where there is the potential for 70pips. This will keep you from jumping in and out on smaller moves, 10/20 pip stuff. Remember, the dealer gets paid the spread right off the top of each trade. Adds up quick. Risk/reward. I pick a couple opportunities in 24 hr period if I'm only trading one currency, such as the EURO--and that's it. One good trade a day is enough. I am absolutely quick to cut my losses, to admit I was wrong and walk away for several hours. Or, say you make some money--walk away for several hours, clear your head. Chill. Capital preservation is what it is all about. Patience is a virtue.

Best wishes.
  • #58
  • Jan 5, 2007 5:02am Jan 5, 2007 5:02am
unelevable story but a friend of mine 7 years ago was trading forex.
he started with 200'000 $.

9 months later his account grew up to 1,8 million $

but it was then that his luck turned around.

he lost all his account balance and he lost another 300K.
luckily for him he's from a family that could survive such a loss.

i can't immagine how he felt and i am sure there is no way to describe that feeling.

i personnaly blew my account twice and it was tought. luckily for me it was only 300$ the first time and 700$ the second time.

i now discovered that my broker have micro accounts and i started with my remaining 30$. and i made 12$ this week and this makes me kind of happy.

i am starting to trade with a minimum of stress since my risk is of 2$ per trade and i want to see how much can i make if i conpound for a year.
wish me luck

and i hope for all us loosers to make some money to get our REVENGE from that forex market.
  • #59
  • Jan 5, 2007 5:15am Jan 5, 2007 5:15am
Ask yourself this:
What the hell do I need to do to get out of MY way?

This opens you (slowly but surely) to changing your attitude towards losing trades.

As someone said before don't chop and change systems, have a few systems that you like to trade (5min, hourly, daily), set the rules, trade them, and improve them while you are trading them - make them YOURS!

You are not going to profit on every trade, while you were losing your money there will have been periods where you were on fire! All trades went your way, then you allowed yourself to justify not using your stop loss and it went against you and you kept it (maybe even added to the position) in the hope it will come back your way and it bombed (its happened to me too).

Remember - there are numerous opportunites to make pips, whatever time frame you are trading. I believe that your account equity should increase like the S&P500 index has increased since July (steady increases followed by small quick retraces over and over) - this relies on taking those stop losses at predetermined levels - admitting you are wrong is hard - humble yourself.

What should be done is when you enter a trade you know how much you are willing to "risk" (lose if it goes against you 1%/3%/5% its upto) and if you are screen watching intraday have your hand on the mouse to click away (or set an auto stop loss)

If you are uncomfortable in any trade you take - don't stay in it - more often than not your discomfort is justified! (You can get back in it at the next opportunity - when probabilities are more in your favour)
You do need to change your forum name.

I better stop for now...
_____________ Kavs Make It Happen For Yourself
  • #60
  • Jan 5, 2007 6:07am Jan 5, 2007 6:07am
Quoting techno79
For all this talk about thinking positive, the talk about how no one can do Forex, of all things, isn't positive or encouraging. If we have the apititude and ability, the barriers to entry look low and promising. Saw a hundred points go through on Cable last night in an hour, someone somewhere made money off of that.
He isn't saying "no one can do Forex". He's saying that not many will succeed. It is precisely the low entry barrier that leads so many to believe they can make a living from it. Most highly paid professions have numerous gatekeepers that keep out the unqualified. Think of areas like the medical and law professions.

He's also saying that just determination doesn't cut it. Yet, it's what everyone says about themselves, as the OP did as well. At some point, many people have to give up trading because it's just not for them. Many restaurants go out of business, it's true, but it's not because they all failed. Many of them quit because it's not what they expected, nor wanted from life. The same is true in trading, and any endeavor.

Finally, think of this. Half the population is below average in every measurable aspect of human characteristics...intelligence, discipline, motivation, etc. Yet studies have shown that a percentage only in the single digits rate themselves as such. We all think we're smarter, tougher, etc than we are. And at times it's probably a good thing. But in the long run it means that we deceive ourselves about our abilities. As mentioned, most professions have means of preventing those without the abilities from even trying, thereby saving both the time and resources of all concerned. (Yes, some with the ability are left out due to gatekeeping, but all in all, the system works just fine). This doesn't exist in trading, hence the amazingly low rate of success amongst its practioners.

I'm not suggesting you or anyone will or won't succeed at this. I'm simply saying that the fact that it is so difficult to do so shouldn't be a surprise and that when one eventually gives in, they shouldn't be ashamed for not succeeding. It's a field that attracts some of the brightest people, not to mention the devious, cunning, etc. The level of talent in the trading field is pretty high, higher than most simply because of the potential rewards. And you are competing against them, whether you think so or not.


BTW, Steenbarger is probably the only shrink who is actually a successful trader.
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