which market wizards book is best for forex?

Which of the Market Wizards book is the best and most suited or relevant to the Forex Market?


I think there are 3 all together...

Also any other books with interviews like this?

Or for that fact any books which will help with my one little niggling issue....

You see I have found a system which I have forward tested for about 4 months now and makes consistent nice profits... However... it is now time for me to do the right thing and get involved properly in the market and start to make a living from this but I have a little thing in the back of my head saying...

What if the system doesn't work? What if those 4 months were a fluke? What if the system only works now but in 6 months will be useless...

Can anyone help with the book question but also this phsycological barrier

You must fix that thing in the back of your head before anything else will matter. Trading is not like anything you have ever done before. I was successful in business for years, but have struggled tremendously with trading. I know how to trade. I know when to get in a position. I know when to close a position. Surprisingly, this is not enough. Get that head repaired. Have to go now. Appointment with my head doctor in an hour !! Yes, I am serious.

Yes it is literally just a confidence thing...

You see I can call a direction all day long but it is just having the confidence to put on the trade...

The problem is that you always hear that 95% fail... well why is that? it is a scary number.. and I guess I just assume that something will go wrong...

Thats why I wanted to read about successful traders to give me the confidence that it can actually be done...

So many people love to give advice on this forum but when it comes to people telling of there success, you get very few people step up to the plate...

I know this maybe private but then why come to a forum such as this

The market wizard book are a great read. Very entertaining and make you feel good books. For your problem, you should read. Mark Douglas's book Trading in the Zone. I'm about half way through right now. so far so good. Good luck


RSQ

I haven't read the books but whenever I have a confidence problem, and I believe everyone does occasionally, I will drop my contract size to the smallest possible that my account allows.

For my account this is a mini ($10,000 instead of $100,000 for a full contract) and then just do it! Of course I'm worried that I will lose money (confidence again) but at least if I do then it's a much smaller amount. It's amazing how a handful of trades at this level will improve your self confidence. Then I start scaling my trade size back up to where I normally trade.

Action begets action. Get started. It will work out in the end if your system and money management are sound.

Voice of experience speaking here.

Terry Walers

I believe your reaction is 100% proper, because rather obvious reasons - what if your system fails? Will you have enough money to survive?

I believe there are two solutions:

1. add all months expenses plus something for unexpected, multiply it by six and put in the bank. A this moment you will have 6 months of a free time, even if your system fails you survive and maybe find a job or whatever.

2. prepare not one but two or three different systems - play with yhe best in reality, with the second on demo... One should be a long term one, catching large moves and compounding profits from multiple entries - these are the most profitable ones according to my analysis. such systems have also very positive effect on psyche.

I love the first market wizards book. That is my favorite. It seems a bit out of date, however, so if you're looking for current stories it's not going to fit the bill. But a lot of the wisdom in the book is timeless.

I also recently read "Inside the House of Money" which is a sort of advanced version of Market Wizards, and it's totally new - just published in 2006. It contains more advanced material, a lot of talk about money managers that trade currencies, and more good stories about money management, risk control, discipline, etc.

The second seems to reveal more than the others.



Did you forward test it trading a demo account? If so, that's great it works, but you have no idea if you'll work. It's a completely different game when you're trading real money. Rule of thumb is the performance of the system will decrease dramatically once you go live unless you're a very experienced trader...which you are not.

Those 4 months could have been a fluke, it all depends on the type of system and when you tested it. For example, if it is a trend following system and you tested it during a trend, well great. But it'll suffer during a prolonged ranging market. You need to address the two issues of type of system and conditions of market during testing to have a decent idea if it was a fluke or not.

Your third question ties into the answer above. If you understand what it is about the system that gives it its edge, then you should have a good idea if it'll fail in 6 months for any reason. Many systems will continue with adjustments. Highly specialized systems will fail when certain conditions cease to exist. Only you can answer this question by careful examination of the system and the market conditions.

You wrote that you "found" the system. You can always find another. It's better to build them. You do this by looking at many systems, working with them, get experience and cobble together your own that suits you.

The fact that you "found" the system suggests you don't really know it. If this is true, how are you going to a) tweak it when necessary, b) know the difference between a system failure and a prolonged losing streak? Many new traders abandon systems with, well, abandon. They don't understand the probabilities of losing streaks and they quit a perfectly good system. If your system is a good one that provides you with an edge, then stick with it.

The fact that you have voiced your concerns here in a public forum suggest to me that you really don't have much confidence in it at the moment and you're looking for reassurance. You're going to get nothing but platitudes on forums. Confidence in your system comes from "ownership" of the system...in other words, it's yours...you built it. It doesn't have to be an original system in that you create your own indicator, name patterns, etc. But it has to be designed by you...all the rules laid out by you. This gives you the confidence you need to stick with it when the losses come...and they will come. Using a "found" system will not give you the confidence you need...and without confidence there will not be any success.

Finally, don't be in any hurry to quit your day job. The markets aren't going any where in a hurry, but your capital and your savings can disappear in a blink of an eye.

Nat

All three books should be read, as the impression you get from reading all of them is that certain truths about trading are universal regardless if you are a fundamental or technical trader, regardless of what market you trade.


{link removed, see rule #2} is a group of traders that try to fix thier heads, it is founded and lead by one of the market wizards.

I have read all of the market wizard books, a very enjoyable read. In stock market wizards there was an interview with Ari Kiev M.D, he was a former olympic psychologist. Steve Cohen (owner of S.A.C) has him come in weekly to help his traders with the psychology of trading. Kiev has written a number of really good trading books that apply directly to your problem, you should give them a read. They really help with the psychology it takes to control your emotions, entries, loses, exits.

Read: Trading to win - The psychology of mastering the markets

It should help.

-MaTt

Did u get the Trading in the zone by Ari Kiev or Mark Douglas?

You need the Mantras... :o)