learning to trade....

[achilles28]

Quote from NevouS:

Why did it take seven years? Were you just being very casual about it?

Not at all. I averaged 2-3 hours a day, over 7 years. The last 18 months, bumped it up to about 5 hours, a day.

I learned on my own. Prop would have helped (mirror/befriend profitable guys).

Its a moving target. Some guys learn quick. Others, like me, learn slow. Most never learn at all.

5 years is about average. I was profitable after year 5, but nowhere close to what I needed (30% doesn't cut it).

It takes a long time to sort the wheat from the chaff. As a neophyte, you must figure out what works, what doesn't, and what doesn't appear to work, but does

That takes a lot of screen-time. Thousands of hours. Also depends where u begin looking.

 

[achilles28]

Quote from kxvid:

The best way to learn is to open a brokerage account and trade. There is no substitution for live trading. I watched the market for years and thought I had some things figured out. But then I opened an account with 5k and promptly lost about a grand.

So don't expect to make any money in your first 6 months trading, but expect to learn a lot. You will probably lose money, so I'd suggest trading small until you are ready to size up.

The market can be both rewarding or incredibly frustrating. The market giveth and the market taketh. At the end of the day it is just a silly game some of us choose to play. You can get rich playing it if you can crack the code or lose everything. gl

That's great advice.

All you noobs, promptly open a demo account and live trade. No better substitute. Otherwise, you could spend years fooling yourselves on the bench. A demo gives immediate, constructive feedback (pass/fail). No fantasy delusions.

Also, spend no more than 20% of research time on message boards. Largely, they're a waste. Journals are the best online resource. Mirror other profitable traders. Forums can only point newbies in the right direction. You must learn to apply the tools on your own.

 

[sophiekay]

Find a good trading room. Learn their methodology, then move on to the next trading room.