Can anyone help to mentor?

Hey there,

As this is my first post I’m sure that it will be met with a healthy dose of skepticism – I’m sure I would be equally skeptical in your position – but, my reasons are genuine. I am here in the hope of gaining a little (honestly, a lot) of help. I have been lurking on this forum for many years – since I was a teenager – and have attempted to learn as much as I can. Unfortunately I have never had much time to trade, but I have tried with the little time I have. Now I have more time I would like to start trading more seriously, but could really do with some help and guidance. I’m sure that finding a ‘mentor’ in this business is almost impossible; however, I’m hoping to find someone who is willing to help me out. I would love to prove that I’m here for a valid reason – I’m not just trying to jump on the ‘get rich quick’ bandwagon – however, this is very difficult to prove. If you have the time to read, I would like to tell you a little bit about myself.

Since I was a lad I have seen that there are many different faces to the world. We all grow up in different communities; we all come to see the world differently. I was born into a fantastic family. My family has always been extremely loving and tried to do their best for me. We have never had much money, but I was still given a great education. I was sent to a private school were all the kids had rich parents – I managed to scrape myself a scholarship – but, I always felt out of place. My school used to have successful business people visit to give talks. One talk was particularly interesting; it was given by the manager of a branch of Barclays bank. She talked about money and how it moved through the economies of the world; I found it totally fascinating. Anyway, this was my first introduction to the financial markets. I started reading about finances, etc – more because I found it fascinating than for any monetary gain.

I’m at the point that I now want to support my family. Tough times financially have taken a toll on them all, but I have vowed to give my family a secure future. I don’t want to go on about this; I will make sure this happens one way or another.
I’m currently at university studying for my postgraduate degree. I intend to start working next summer, but rather than spend money I plan to invest and trade it. I don’t want to be rich, I just want to make sure I can live comfortably and support the people I love. That’s why I’m here.

I don’t have any money to offer, I don’t have anything to give. However, I’m hoping there may be a few traders here who have been in a similar situation and may want to help someone out. I have enjoyed many of the threads here (cheers folks), but feel that I need someone to explain the underlying principles and strategies that are employed. If someone could give me hand or ‘mentor’ me, then please let me know. It would be appreciated beyond any words I can type here.

This is an exceptionally long shot and I’m sure this monologue will be met with scorn – I don’t blame you at all. However, if you don’t ask . . . .
I’m going to succeed one way or another; I’m just hoping to cut the learning curve a little bit!

*I’m fairly sure that as a junior member I can’t receive PMs, but feel free to email me at: [email protected]*

First you have to learn some basic stuff, even though you have a economic background (due to your studies if I understood that correctly).

You need to understand things like leverage (very important!!!). You will find a lot of systems here at FF. Most of them are just crap. Forget systems which are use dozens of indicators where even the thread starter doesn't know what they are doing.

There are some gems here (threads), like the James16 thread, even though I have to admit that I never read it.

i understand how you feel and for me .. mine is a hard and long way.. i had 3 margin calls and nearly gave up many times..

if you wish, drop by my blog www.thegeekknows.com and read the forex articles.. these will give u some basic knowledge...

every trader has a different trade style, you should find your trade style first before find a mentor.

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support resistance

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Ah, I should mention that I do have some experience trading -- though very limited.

I did not originally entitle this thread 'Can anyone help to mentor' as I didn't necessarily want it to appear as a desperate hunt! Instead, I'm just looking for help in becoming more knowledgeable about the markets. I understand concepts like: breakouts, reversals, leverage, Fibonacci sequences . . . it's more a case of coming to understand how they can be used together, etc.

Sorry if I misled anyone, but I'm not a complete beginner.

If you have lurked for a while my guess would be that something along the way would have caught your attention and made you read more. I would suggest that for the next month or so, backtrack to some of the threads that you found appealing, spend some time reading and understanding them and see if they fit your personality.

Its got to fit you, and the mentor is no different. You may get a few people prepared to offer there assistance but if your trading scope is completely different then you will be wasting time. For example if you like breakouts and you feel comfortable trading them then a mentor who basically trades breakouts as there primary method would suit more than say a scalper or a dedicated day/week trader.

You need to find the groove that you feel comfortable with, and you will know it because it will entice you to want to learn more about it. Ill give another example. Myself, I love breakout trades so along the way I have read some works on Joel Rensink (his VBO) and Crabel. I looked at threads that incorporated breakouts primarily and did further reading.

Im sure that once you have come across a particular model/method it will hit you like lightning if it fits your persona, from there join the discussion and give it a real go. After that if you need more you will have witnessed those who seem genuine in your field and who may be able to mentor you to the next level.

Take care and best wishes in your endevour

Razor

it seems you dont even know what you want to know, trading is about yourself. understanding the markets, having a system or knowing indicators is only a tiny bit of trading.
you said you didnt trade often, well here is your problem, you can read hundred books but if you never felt how it is to see a trade develop and watch your own emotions, then it doesnt matter if you graduated in economics or someone laid the holy grail in front of you, no one can give you the experience. if you want to trade then start trading, be your own mentor, on the way you will find out what you need to know and its easy to find the answers, either from people on the forum or in books.

in the end only you can find out what works for you.
good luck to you!

That is a very good point and one that is often completely missed. The experience of trading live is the only way to gauge your emotional aspects. You will discover truely your limits in a very short period of time. Having a mentor give you the skills is irrelevant if you are unable to allow a trade to be execute because you cannot accept the risk involved.

Razor

I would have a bit more experience under my belt, but until this week I could not afford the internet. However, not I'm finaly online I can hopefully get going.

I should mention that my degree was in no way related to finance.

I do have a strategy -- unfortunately I was only able to backtest it on paper -- but, I have been playing about with it all week. Hah, it soon shows how quickly the market can rip apart what a person thinks is quite a viable strategy.

I swear, my current method is going to be: KTSS (Keep things simple stupid!).

Anyway, I will keep you updated on how I get on.