Being inexperienced sucks

[nutmeg]

I took a position on a stock and watched it go to zero. I could have sold anytime, I pretty much figured out it was going to zero long before it got there but I wanted to see what it felt like.

I suppose you could say that was crazy but there were a few issues I needed to think about while doing this.

 

[achilles28]

Quote from Lethn:

So I've just lost a large amount of money because I stupidly left a trade on all weekend, thankfully I've built up a small reserve stash so I should be able to get it like it was. $200 lost though, burns!

I was well on my way to making back what I lost too. Any of you had any major slip ups like that due to simply not understanding how the markets work? I know I'll be able to make a lot of money with some good effort just like I was a week or so ago but I'm beginning to wonder if there's anything else I should look out for as someone who's just started trading. I've also found myself completely buggering up for a long while due to opening up a trade way to early or alternatively too late, think that might be another sign of just needing more experience again.

I'd recommend you stick to one pair, use 5 charts at minimum (the market is fractal), read *everything* on technical analysis and price action (the market applies some TA principles in a non-traditional way - never seen it in a book), then watch and absorb. Screen time.

For a newb, I think the most difficult and confusing aspect of the market is range contraction and expansion. Price always does the same thing. When the market contracts, that's when "distribution" happens. Dumb money gets transferred to smart money. When a trader can't profit in tight/slow markets, they need to reevaluate their approach. Price action/patterns work great in heavy trending/volatile markets. When things slow down and chop up ? Look out.

FX was mediocre the past 6 months. US news drives the market and its common place to see a flat overnight session coming into New York headline data. On top of that, moves are notably slower, muted, and less volatile. Still very tradeable, however. Slow markets always require a trader pullback, and use a longer time frame chart. Fast markets are just the opposite - 10 sec - 1 mins charts do the trick. It requires some getting used to. Most inexperienced traders cut their teeth in heavy trending markets, then get disoriented/chopped out when the market slows down. It's that constant range expansion/contraction cycle that keeps dumb money off guard, second guessing, and panicky.