Becoming a rich trader isn’t about finding winning strategies, catching the next GameStop, or buying magic indicators. Focus on basics like support and resistance, trading patterns, and risk management plan to build a profitable career. Historic price can give you an edge in finding the most likely areas of support and resistance to trade from. Use biases to determine if you expect the market to go higher or lower based on the trend and price.
The Basics of Profitable Trading: Five Steps to Follow
Introduction: Simplifying Trading
Finding success in trading is often seen as a complicated and challenging task. Many individuals believe that becoming a millionaire trader requires finding a strategy that wins 90% of trades, catching the next GameStop, or purchasing a magical indicator from a pip unicorn. However, these approaches are not effective and can lead to failure. Instead, the key to profitability lies in simplicity and focusing on the basics. This article outlines the five simple steps that have helped the author succeed in their trading career.
Step 1: Spotting Major Levels of Support and Resistance
Support and resistance are the foundations of technical analysis. Support is the level at which the market is supported, while resistance is the level at which the market faces resistance. The author identifies the two most effective ways to find significant levels of support and resistance: recent levels of structure that were broken and historic levels that have been tested multiple times. By using this approach, traders can gain an edge over the market by predicting where the market is likely to react.
Step 2: Trading Price Action Patterns
Price action patterns, such as double bottoms and head and shoulders, are time-tested and proven to be profitable. By identifying these patterns, traders can make accurate trades that lead to significant profits. The author emphasizes the importance of learning and understanding these patterns to achieve consistent success.
Step 3: Knowing Where to Place Stops and Targets
Knowing where to place stops and targets is crucial to successful trading. A trader must have a good chance of winning the trade and not being stopped out, while also maintaining a reward-to-risk ratio of more than one-to-one. By focusing on this aspect of trading, traders can reduce their risk and increase their chances of profitability.
Step 4: Having a Solid Risk Management Plan
A solid risk management plan is essential to successful trading. It is necessary to keep emotions in check and prevent traders from making poor decisions based on fear or greed. The author emphasizes the importance of following a strict risk management plan, which includes setting maximum trading amounts, establishing stop loss levels, and remaining disciplined in following the plan.
Step 5: Staying Disciplined
Finally, the author highlights the importance of staying disciplined in all aspects of trading. By remaining disciplined and focused, traders can better follow their trading plans, limit their risk, and ultimately achieve success in trading.
Conclusion: Achieving Success in Trading
The key to successful trading lies in simplicity and focusing on the basics. By following the five steps outlined in this article, traders can increase their chances of profitability and achieve success in their trading careers. It is essential to remember that trading is not a get-rich-quick scheme and requires time, effort, and dedication to succeed. By staying disciplined and committed to these steps, traders can improve their profitability and become successful traders.