Because trading psychology is one of the most important aspects of our industry, we emphasize the need for emotional discipline. Now don’t get us wrong—you don’t have to be a robot to see success in your trading, but you certainly need to be in control of your emotions.
Trading becomes a whole new ball game once you’ve earned a live, funded account. Statistically, there are some significant changes in behavior that manifest themselves when the money is real. Though the initial balance is smaller on a live account, which reduces the impact of a single trade becuase we are trading a smaller lot size, we still tend to get a little cautious with real money. Too often, newly-funded traders’ equity curves begin to show a downward slope because they suddenly aren’t letting trades run and they’re cutting their winners short—all in the name of capital preservation!
To counteract this, we at the Apiary Fund emphasize that traders should establish a set of rules and stick to them. There isn’t a set of universal trading strategies that work for everyone, but when you find out what works for you, practice with it. Tweak it when you need to. But once you’ve established those rules, don’t ever break them.
- How To Form a Trading Strategy
- Trading Psychology Barrier: Fear of Failure
- Trading Psychology Barrier: Fear of Risk
The rules won’t always determine which positions you take, but they should help determine how long you hold them. It will be easier to accept losses that way. You will put less pressure on yourself, and you’ll find that your trading will improve!
One last thing to realize before you focus on your trading psychology is that change takes time. As humans, we have to practice something a lot before it becomes a part of our nature. If you are working on making a change to your trading psychology, or even your trading strategy, be patient. If you mess up, see it as an opportunity to learn and reinforce your purpose for change - don't let it become an opportunity to quit. Failure is a sign of progress unless we choose to make it final by quitting. Here at the hive, we truly believe that our success comes from the growth of our traders. That is why we challenge them with programs such as the Beeline to Funding. Forex traders are mentally tough, which helps lead them to success.
Happy Trading!
