I see so many traders that seek the “Holy Grail” of trading and search for it for years. They are always students and are very light with their trading of real capital because they are always waiting and trying to ‘figure it all out”. The truth is that there is just a few things to really ‘understand’ before you trade. If you really have a good understanding of position sizing to avoid the risk of ruin, if you understand how to create a trading plan with an edge using a robust trading system and then follow it with discipline you are ready for the real work to begin. Trading is really all about researching the principles that lead to success, let winners run, cut losses short, trade with the trend in your time frame, risk enough to make it worth your trouble but not enough to cause you trouble and on and on. Trading is really about getting the monetary rewards because you have put in the work and effort. Different trading methods are winners in different market environments the key is surviving the rough environments when what you are doing does not work at all. There is no magic formula, you will have winning trades and losing trades your profitability will come when your either have more winners than losers when they are equal in size or you will have winning trades so big that they pay for all the losing trades even with a small winning percentage. Your work as a trader is to understand what a positive expectancy model is, develop one through researching historical data that fits your personality and risk tolerance, and then to follow it with discipline and perseverance while always trying to become better, trying to learn and adapt. Everything else is just noise and most of what you hear as a new trader is just foolishness as someone tries to sell you something because they are not traders, they are salesman. Real trading is something that you understand internally by putting real capital at risk over and over and making a profit. You will never get to be a profitable trader unless you stop looking and start finding out what it really means to become a trader by trading. Start small, do your homework, then get in the arena. You can’t sit in the stands forever and expect to ever win the game you have to be on the field of play for that.
