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“Perhaps the most exciting and daunting fact is that on this journey to becoming a successful Forex trader you’ll eventually realize that success and consistency have very little to do with which indicators you decide to use and more to do with your mindset.” – Gavin Knoesen

Hello:

It’s unfortunate that many traders don’t know what they’re doing. Rather than cutting their losses and running their profits, they cut their profits and run their losses. Those who make the matter worse are those who use too high position sizes, relative to their account sizes, because they believe that an entry system has high winning rates. They want to become rich quickly. They still feel it isn’t sensible to use small position sizes in spite of heavy losses they may’ve suffered in the past. They think they can beat the markets with their ‘magical’ entry systems. They don’t know that a sailor doesn’t beat the weather; he has to cope with it.

Don’t forget that those you compete against are professionals who’re willing to make gains from the money you lose. This is the attractiveness of the financial markets: each market speculator uses the position sizing they think is the best for them and trade the way they like. But at last, it’s our consistent survival and profits that’ll serve as the justification of our trading beliefs.

July Trading Results
The profits mentioned here were realized last month. The trading results on live accounts and demos are similar; the difference is the position sizes that are proportional to each account balance. The USDCAD proved to be difficult in July, but we made some gains anyway. We made additional 14.42% as closed profit. That’s the purpose of this non-directional strategy: to make money regardless of what happens in the market. We can only look forward to more growth this August and the months to come. A future article would discuss further the details of this kind of strategy.

Last month, the Gap Trading strategy made at least, a net profit of 4,700 pips (a minimum of four thousand and seven hundred pips), enabling the account equity to grow by 24.4%. This was possible because there were over 45 signals from this strategy last month; the more the signals, the more the profits. It doesn’t mean that there were no losses. We had many losses as well as gains, but we moved ahead by applying the simple trading principles that work. A future article would shed more light on this strategy. Risk management always comes first in our mind, for traders should only play safe. Adroit funds managers must also be effective risk managers. We don’t trade instinctively, but according to clear rules. If you have a system that constantly works well, you must stick to it.

Beginner traders are far more impressed by what professionals do than by what they say. In fact, professionals who practice what they say are more likely to have more followers who listen to what they’ve to say. Here, we don’t simply talk about risk management and survival on the battleground of the financial markets; we show it. We acknowledge that traders can expect losses. A sane mentor doesn’t promise that trading will be easy, but risk control measures will help. To this end, positive testimonies have been received from trainees and clients.

Our confidence has been elevated to new heights, and yet we know we’re only experts in progress. We’re reassured that we could expect to see risk management in action in our trading career, especially in the face of the uncertainties of the markets. We’ve higher hopes and brighter expectations. Without doubt, doing the right things on the markets will help us accomplish great things in trading.

If you’d like to have access to my trading activities and trade like me (seeing when and how I place trades, plus how I manage open positions), you may gain access at: http://www.fxinstructor.com/en/analytics/ituglobal

Lastly, the team at Fxinstructor.com has been caring for the interests of Forex traders worldwide. You’d do yourself a great favor by taking advantage of their services.

NB: Please watch out for my coming articles with these titles: ‘Testimonies from My Subscribers,’ ‘Excellent Money Management Flexibility – Make the Best Choice!’ ‘Resist the Lure of High Risk – Part 3 (Use Low Risk and Reap Benefits),’ ‘Worst-case Scenarios – Facts Are Sacred,’ ‘Effective Swing Trading in Forex,’ ‘Advanced Gap Trading – Trading with Insane Accuracy,’ ‘3 Recent Gap Trades,’ ‘Trading for a Livelihood – One of the Best Jobs in the World,’ ‘Developing the Right Attitude towards Losses – Part 3,’ ‘The True Holy Grail – The Long Sought for,’ ‘Suicide Trading Techniques,’ ‘Achieve Success through Sensible Risk-to-reward Ratio (An Interview with a Trading Enthusiast),’ ‘ Clarifying Some Issues – Part 5,’ ‘ Trade to Win!’ ‘Optimization of the USDCAD Hedging Strategy – Bringing the USDCAD to Subjection,’ ‘A CHF Breakout Strategy,’ ‘Overview of My Signals Strategies,’ ‘Is It Realistic to Give Guarantees in Trading?’ ‘Monthly Trading Report (August 2011),’ etc.

I end this article with more quotes from Mr. Gavin:

1. “Beware not to be drawn to the over elaborate setups consisting of a plethora of indicators as this can often be quite intimidating to a new trader. When developing you methodology you’ll come to realize that a cleaner and simpler display of your charts will result in more concise trade planning and execution. Remember price action is the purest indicator you can use – learn it, listen to it and master it.”

2. “Forex Trading is one of the most rewarding and challenging journeys that you’ll embark on. The truth is that if you treat it with due respect and give it the time it deserves it’ll reward you generously. The early days will be tough, be under no illusion of that, and will require discipline, patience and hard work. You’ll learn many things about yourself and your character, but be rest assured that when you summit that initial mountain, the view is beautiful, the satisfaction sweet and the lessons learned are absolutely invaluable.”

Your questions and opinions are highly welcome.

Thank you.

With best regards,

Azeez Mustapha
Forex Signals Strategist, Funds Manager &Coach

Email: amustapha@fxinstructor.com

Yahoo! Messenger ID: saazalmu

Get my Forex trading signals at: http://www.fxinstructor.com/en/analytics/ituglobal

And my past articles are also available at: www.ituglobalforex.blogspot.com

NB: There is risk of loss in trading, but it is possible to be a successful trader.

About Me
My Articles

“…When it comes to making good trading decisions, I actually find all the necessary information on the chart.” – Thomas Kahdemann

Hello:

This is an update on some of the movements on the markets and what I’m doing about them, plus my losses and profits. The analyses are based on 4-hour charts, looking at the trend. My preferred leverage is 1:100 and my position size is 0.01 lots for each $2000. The risk per trade stands at 0.5%. The Stops are my life insurance policy. I use the Price Behavior rules for strategic decisions and customized indicators for tactical entries. I believe that a ‘buy’ signal that fails is a ‘sell’ signal; and a ‘sell’ signal that fails is a ‘buy’ signal. I open primary positions with a risk-to-reward of 1:3, riding the trend until the target is hit or I’m stopped out. The value of patience will forever be emphasized. As long as I stick to my rules and keep my risk low, I’m immune to fear.

Traders must accept the unpredictability of the future and see this phenomenon as an advantage, trading safely anytime a strategic signal is generated. Concomitantly, our safety measures must be sound and conservative in parameters. This is the only way to ensure long-term survival in the unpredictable financial markets. Yes, unpredictability is our permanent associate. The bright side is that it’s only unpredictability that makes it possible for us to realize all the returns from trading.

Below is the summary of some of my trading activities this week.

AUDUSD
Primary Trend: Bullish
The price level at 1.1000 proved to be a great resistance, though in the context of an uptrend. I sold short and made a profit. There’s been a serious violation to the bullish trend, but only an extended bearish movement would render the primary trend invalid.
Order: Sell
Entry date: July 29, 2011
Entry price: 1.0990
Stop loss: 1.1092
Trailing stop: 1.0840
Take profit: 1.0692
Exit date: August 3, 2011
Exit price: 1.0692
Status: Closed
Profit/loss: 298 pips

NZDUSD
Primary trend: Bullish
The level at 0.8840 has been a great resistance. The price has been falling in the context of an uptrend, just as the AUDUSD has done. The continuation of the present scenario would render the bullish trend invalid (unless the price resumes its northbound journey). As it’s inevitable, the trend would soon come to an end.

EURCAD
Primary trend: Bearish
This cross has been largely bullish this week, but again, it’s the continuation of the bulls’ domination that could render the bearish outlook useless. Personally, I anticipate more weakness in the Euro – for its days of strength are being numbered.

EURAUD
Primary trend: Bearish
There’s been a significant bullish breakout on this market. The Aussie has been clearly weak against the Euro. I’d like to wait to buy a pullback upon the turning of the trend to clear bullish, or I’d find a way to sell high, trading pro-cyclically.

EURNZD
Primary trend: Bearish
From a bottom of 1.6190, the price has arisen by over 550 pips. The price is quoted above the SMA50 but still below SMA 200. The ADX 20 level is slightly above the level 30, indicating a strong trending mode. The +DI has crossed the -DI to the upside. I’ve no new position here, for I’d like to see further developments before I enter.

AUDJPY
Primary trend: Bearish
On this instrument, what started this week as a bearish bias began to turn bullish on Wednesday. The trend is still bearish and I’m already in a short trade which was negative before turning positive. I’m not afraid whether the price moves against me or not, seeing that the market is a mere mass of individual players flowing in a certain direction.
Order: Sell
Entry date: August 1, 2011
Entry price: 84.65
Stop loss: 85.68
Trailing stop: 83.42
Take profit: 81.68
Exit date: N/A
Exit price: N/A
Status: Open
Profit/loss: 212 pips

Conclusion: Why do certain traders still look for ‘foolproof’ entry systems despite the available reality to the contrary? Why do so many traders act irrationally and greedily while trading, targeting high returns? Below, the quotes from Thomas Kahdemann answer these questions. The quotes end this article:

1. “When we’re in extraordinary – either positive or negative – situation, our body releases hormones that block rational thinking.”

2. “The… insight, which I fortunately gained long ago with the help of my mentors, is that the… market and in particular trading is a huge shark tank, where there’s only one goal: survival. This in turn implies that it’s all primarily about risk management and only secondarily about the maximization of profit. Those who choose to ignore this will very quickly ‘be eaten.’ ”

3. “So far, nobody has died of lost profit yet. The first loss is always the smallest, and since risk management always comes first, it’s irrelevant whether or not a position later turns. – Italics mine

Your questions and opinions are highly welcome.

Thank you.

With best regards,

Azeez Mustapha

Forex Signals Strategist, Funds Manager &Coach

Email: amustapha@fxinstructor.com

 Get my Forex trading signals at: http://www.fxinstructor.com/en/analytics/ituglobal

And my past articles are also available at: www.ituglobalforex.blogspot.com

Yahoo! Messenger ID: saazalmu

NB: There is risk of loss in trading, but it is possible to be a successful trader.

About Me
My Articles

“Yes I do (I believe that successful trading can be learned). But it’s obviously not easy. Once you’ve worked your way to a professional level, it’s also important not to want to optimize everything excessively. The KISS rule (Keep it Simple, Stupid) has proven to be a reliable guideline for professionals… It’s important that things don’t get too complicated here. So keep your strategy as simple as possible and avoid overly complex interpretations since this can exert unnecessary pressure on you while trading in real time.” – Thomas Kahdemann

Hello:

I used to believe that institutional traders were more skillful than private traders. Then, I wondered how long it’d take me to be like them, but later it dawned on me that they also can’t predict the future with absolute certainty. The fact that a trader has access to huge funds to manage doesn’t automatically make her/him a better trader than a trader who has less money. Furthermore, some people believe that trading in summer months is difficult because some traders tend to take vacation, yet I know those who currently make profits regardless of this belief; for there are always trending pairs/crosses somewhere. The fact that most top traders find the market difficult right now doesn’t mean that some private traders aren’t making money. I’ll continue saying that traders need to keep their strategies simple, because I’ve seen how a single indicator which is combined with price actions makes more pips than a complicated strategy using expensive charting software. There is no trading guru somewhere: the only way to become a guru is mentioned at the conclusion of this weekly update. And you’d do well to see the quote that follows at the end of the article.

Below is the summary of some of my trading activities this week.

AUDUSD
Primary Trend: Bullish
Last week, I said it was good to go long on this pair. I had a long trade here. Why? It was because the price action confirmed it: there was no other reason. However, it may be too late to go long right now.
Order: Buy
Entry date: July 22, 2011
Entry price: 1.0830
Stop loss: 1.0730
Trailing stop: 1.0959
Take profit: 1.1124
Exit date: July 29, 2011
Exit price: 1.0986
Status: Closed
Profit/loss: 156 pips

NZDUSD
Primary trend: Bullish
This pair has continued its journey northwards since last week. The kiwi remains a strong currency, but its days of strength are numbered. It’s possible for the price to retrace at this point. It’s always good to look left to make the right decisions.

EURCAD
Primary trend: Bearish
The pair is trying to edge its way upwards now, though the overall trend remains bearish. The price would need to break the price level at 1.3700 for this assumption to be true. I’m still anticipating more weakness in the Loonie.

EURAUD
Primary trend: Bearish
The strength in the AUD has been asserted again this week. There has been a sharp sell-off on this instrument. It’s better for speculators to find price levels by which this bearish move could be taken advantage of, rather than asking about the whys and wherefores of the market move.

EURNZD
Primary trend: Bearish
Slowly but steadily, and contrary to what I expected, the bearish move has continued. The price is still quoted below the SMA50 and SMA 200. The ADX 20 level is pointing towards the level 30, indicating a possible renewal of strong bearish pressures. The -DI has just crossed the +DI to the upside. I’ve no new position here.
Order: Sell
Entry date: July 15, 2011
Entry price: 1.6789
Stop loss: 1.6889
Trailing stop: 1.6639
Take profit: 1.6521
Exit date: July 19, 2011
Exit price: 1.6949
Status: Closed
Profit/loss: 268 pips

AUDJPY
Primary trend: Bearish
This market looks difficult: the long-term trend is still bearish, but the bearish outlook has been seriously violated. My last order was exited at breakeven. It’s better to stay away from this market now, as the AUDJPY is currently misbehaving.
Order: Sell
Entry date: July 12, 2011
Entry price: 85.42
Stop loss: 85.42
Trailing stop: N/A
Take profit: 82.46
Exit date: July 26, 2011
Exit price: 85.42
Status: Closed
Profit/loss: 0 pips (breakeven)

Conclusion: I’ve always revealed the folly of trying to predict the markets or using complicated strategies. We should focus on trading with very, very small position sizes; cutting losses as many as they are and running profit as many as they are. There’s no other way to be victorious.

The article is ended with a quote – which is an eye-opener – from Thomas Kahdemann.:

“When I was at the beginning of my career, working in a bank’s branch office, I always thought that people at the Frankfurt headquarters were better than everybody else and knew ‘how the … market really works.’ When I later worked at the headquarters, I quickly realized that this was not the case. There was the same uncertainty there as in branch office. Then I thought that at least the traders in the trading departments, for example, in Zurich, should know. When I worked there in proprietary trading, there was no trace of omniscience either. ‘But the top traders in the US are bound to know how it works,’ I thought. Yet again, I was disappointed when I worked in Chicago and was looking for the Holy Grail. No-one knows with absolute certainty how to achieve continuous gains. As a trader, you’ve to accept that and learn to cope with the inevitable uncertainty.”

Your questions and opinions are highly welcome.

Thank you.

With best regards,

Azeez Mustapha

Forex Signals Strategist, Funds Manager &Coach

Email: amustapha@fxinstructor.com

Get my Forex trading signals at: http://www.fxinstructor.com/en/analytics/ituglobal

And my past articles are also available at: www.ituglobalforex.blogspot.com

Yahoo! Messenger ID: saazalmu

NB: There is risk of loss in trading, but it is possible to be a successful trader.

About Me
My Articles

I WISH I’D KNOWN THIS EARLIER

“If a trader believes that a talent or ability is trait-like, and unchangeable, he or she will be crushed after a failure. If, on the other hand, the person believes that a talent or skill can be improved and honed through experience, he or she will be less upset, less likely to internalize the losses under the same circumstances.” – Joe Ross

Hello:

If I were a trading neophyte, I’d be wary of those who promise 50% – 1000% returns on a quarterly basis, let alone on monthly basis. If making profits like that was easy, they’d never have to market their secret to colossal wealth. Going after huge profits is no different than courting financial disaster. Based on my personal experience, I’ve realized that there’s always a price to pay for stupidity. It’s better to learn lessons from others’ harsh experiences than from one’s harsh experiences.

If I were a beginner trader, I would ask prospective coaches to show me their own track records and forward them to a professional trading risk manager to interpret for me. I’d be suspicious of trading results that look too good to be true. I’d never be lured by account histories that use high risk to achieve huge profits in a short period of time or account histories in which stops are absent. I’d never trust any results that come from any source other than those that can be accessed by a valid login and investor’s password of a reliable brokerage account, live or demo. I’d also believe experts who make trades in live trading rooms and survive the uncertainty of the markets. By doing this, I’d escape the wiles of sham trading experts who’re out there to capitalize on my ignorance. The trading world is replete with criminality and hypocrisy. How could someone be callous enough to offer to give people what he/she doesn’t have? Many of them are out there. I can’t imagine how someone who can’t deliver consistently would ever offer to train others. Even if a trainee wouldn’t trade exactly like a coach, the coach should show him or her that they’re also surviving in the markets (if trainees would still choose a trading method that fits them). Who could be a more shining example than the best in their trades? A mentor should also be a successful trader, not just an adviser or educator. If a trading educator can’t show me his/her track records, I’d conclude that they’re not successful, and therefore, they aren’t qualified to teach me. The only criterion I’d honor is not university degrees or fame or business attire, but good trading track records.

If I were a trading neophyte, I’d create demo accounts on trading platforms of brokers whose demo accounts don’t expire. I’d practice, practice and practice on the demo accounts until I reached the level of consistent competence. Those who open live accounts when they’ve no good track records on demos may think they know what they’re doing, but the markets would soon prove them wrong. I’d never open a live account until I reached the level of competence, no matter how long it took me. It’s easy to open an account: it’s also easy to receive a margin call.

If I were a beginner trader, I’d choose only the brokers that allow excellent money management flexibility. I’d choose a high leverage to significantly increase my buying power, but I’ll keep my account intact with safe and stingy lot sizes. I’d never put $1000 into a standard account: plus using 0.1 lots for a position on $1000-capital is completely out of the question. Using 1% or less of my capital ensures that if and when a period of drawdown does occur I don’t lose too much!

If I were a trading neophyte, I’d discard any trading system that doesn’t include satisfactory risk management recommendations. I’d stick to a positive expectancy system I use despite occasional losses. I’d bear it in mind that complicated strategies can never achieve better results than simple ones. I’d simply cut my loss if I’m wrong and run my profit if I’m right. I wouldn’t complicate my trading strategies or add many more indicators.

If I were a beginner trader, I wouldn’t give up in the face of discouraging advice from those who are ignorant of what trading is all about; neither would I feel inferior to the so-called top or institutional traders. Losses don’t discriminate. A committed private trader may even be more skillful than an institutional trader. The biggest difference between retail and professional traders is that professional traders have someone else as a risk manager who forces them to follow sound money management practices. Retail traders have the difficult task of monitoring themselves.

If I were a beginner trader, I’d never forget that I’m a student of the markets. Trading is hard at best; losses and difficult adjustments abound. When a trader shouldn’t sustain heavy losses or a margin call, accepting the reality of the market unpredictability, intermittent loss, and discipline can lead to happily brighter experience. Trading success is more about discipline than talent. It’s built on the back of the habits you form, and the commitments you make. It’s worth noting the fact that there are substantial differences between traders. There’s no single blueprint for market success. Instead, there are many paths to success and this means that each individual can find their own way.

If I were a trading neophyte, I’d never give up despite the challenges the markets would throw at me. I’d stick to trading until I find the secret to success. Those who explore other areas of human endeavor also face stubborn challenges. Life out there is very hard. Too often, we run from challenges. Yet successful traders whose results we wish we could duplicate continue getting impressive trading results because they battled challenges. Would life not be better if you were free of the daily grind – the conventional job and boss – and instead succeed or fail purely on the merit of your own trading choices? We’re the masters of our fate.

NB: Please watch out for my coming articles with these titles: ‘Testimonies from My Subscribers,’ ‘Excellent Money Management Flexibility – Make the Best Choice!’ ‘Resist the Lure of High Risk – Part 3,’ ‘Carrying Out Stealth Raids in Weak and Strong Markets,’ ‘Worst-case Scenarios – Facts Are Sacred,’ ‘Effective Swing Trading in Forex,’ ‘Advanced Gap Trading – Trading with Insane Accuracy,’ ‘3 Recent Gap Trades,’ ‘Trading for a Livelihood – One of the Best Jobs in the World,’ ‘Developing the Right Attitude towards Losses – Part 3,’ ‘The True Holy Grail – The Long Sought for,’ ‘Achieve Success through Sensible Risk-to-reward Ratio (An Interview with a Trading Enthusiast),’ ‘ Clarifying Some Issues – Part 5,’ ‘ Trade to Win!’ ‘Optimization of the USDCAD Hedging Strategy – Bringing the USDCAD to Subjection,’ ‘A CHF Breakout Strategy,’ ‘Overview of My Signals Strategies,’ ‘Is It Realistic to Give Guarantees in Trading?’ ‘Monthly Trading Report (July 2011),’ etc.

This article is ended with a quote from Louise Bedford, an experienced female trader:

“When you truly desire something, your habits and actions will align themselves with your priorities. You’ll find yourself doing things that are congruent with where you want to be in life, and you’ll be granted some bonuses along the way as some things you’ve been desiring miraculously fall into your lap.”

Your questions and opinions are highly welcome.

Thank you.

With best regards,

Azeez Mustapha
Forex Signals Strategist, Funds Manager &Coach

Email: amustapha@fxinstructor.com

Yahoo! Messenger ID: saazalmu

Get my Forex trading signals at: http://www.fxinstructor.com/en/analytics/ituglobal

 And my past articles are also available at: www.ituglobalforex.blogspot.com

NB: There is risk of loss in trading, but it is possible to be a successful trader.