Habits of successful traders

The ultimate goal of becoming a trader is to be successful. Many people venture into the trading world to successfully open and close trades. People are attracted to the lavish lifestyle that comes with trading. Like the expensive cars and the expensive vacations on some islands. Becoming a successful trader requires a lot of patience and principles. To become a successful trader you need to map out a plan and follow it judiciously. Nobody was born with trading skills or habits. Certain habits of successful traders make them stand out.

As a new trader, it’s normal to have low-income trades. No trader started with millions of profits, every successful person went through the phase of low profits. The good news is you can accelerate your profits by imitating the behaviors of successful traders. The trade market is unpredictable, hence it cannot be controlled. Your behavior as a trader can be controlled. To become a successful trader, you must have control over your behavior and habits. You need to act like a successful trader to become one.

17 HABITS OF A SUCCESSFUL TRADER

1. KEEP TRACK OF ALL YOUR TRADES.

Always keep a Journal with a record of all your trades. A successful trader records all his/her profitable and nonprofit trades. Make sure to track all the market changes and the effects they had on your trade. Jotting down your previous trade helps you make better decisions in the future. Once in a while, you refer to your journal to find patterns that can help achieve positive results.

2. TRADE WITH STOP LOSS

Using a stop loss in a trade is crucial. A stop-loss tool ensures that you don’t lose all your funds completely during a trade. As a trader, if you don’t use stop loss in your trades then you’re just an average trader. However, an average trader is bound to end up losing sooner than later. To be a successful trader you need to strive for perfection. Take control of your trades when you can. Choosing when to leave a trade is almost as important as when you enter a trade. Using your stop-loss tool can help you minimize loss.

Additionally, ensure you make use of other trading tools provided by your Forex broker. There are so many trading tools provided by a Forex broker after a trader registers. These tools were designed to assist you to make good trade decisions.  To become a successful trader you have to employ these tools in all your trades. Tools like economic calendars give you an insight into the economic value of a country. There are other trading tools such as video tutorials, and educational materials.

3. MAKE A BALANCED SCHEDULE FOR YOUR TRADES AND EVERYDAY LIFESTYLE.

Most traders make the mistake of not creating a balanced schedule for their grades and everyday life. When your schedule is disorganized, it is bound to affect the performance of your trade. In some cases, traders spend less time trading. That is spending less time trading, which is a bad idea. How can you generate good income when you don’t trade enough? Lastly, some traders tend to overtrade, that is trading more than you should. This is also not proper, everything needs a balance. When you constantly trade, while neglecting other aspects of your life, it will negatively impact your trade. To become a successful trader, you have to have an organized schedule.

4. TEST YOUR TRADE STRATEGIES.

These days most brokers provide their traders access to a demo account. This demo account helps you test your trading strategies by trading Forex using virtual money. They say practice makes perfect, in this case, it is correct. When you back-test your trading strategy before use, it helps you detect issues. The best part of this is you won’t be performing this trade with any real money. Instead of just gambling, you are sure of the right steps to take when it comes to opening trades with real equity.

5. TREAT YOUR TRADING LIFESTYLE LIKE A CAREER

Most average traders do not take trading seriously; they see it as a side business. You can never become a successful trader with this outlook towards your trading career. You need to show a level of seriousness and create a business plan. To become a successful trader you have to set your priorities right and create a business plan, schedule, and daily routine. This habit will help you excel in the trading industry.

6. BE SINCERE TO YOURSELF AND OTHERS.

Successful trader is honest and themselves and others. The ability to accept mistakes, and tell yourself the truth is important. Self-deceit is a bad habit that must be dropped if you want to be a successful trader. You have to learn to be humble and learn from your mistakes. When you develop the habit of lying to yourself, it will be difficult to excel in your trading career. Be accountable for every mishap you encounter.

7. ACCEPT CHANGE AND FACE REALITY.

Adaptation is the keyword. Learn to adapt to new possibilities. As a trader, you need to be ready for anything. The forex market is unpredictable and volatile; anything can happen at any time. The ability to easily accept change irrespective of the outcome is one of the habits of successful traders. In a case where the trade doesn’t favor the trader, he/she needs to be able to do whatever it takes to move forward. Don’t dwell on the past, develop the habit of moving forward from unfavorable situations.

8. CONTINUE TO EDUCATE YOURSELF.

To become a successful trader you must always defeat the market. The market is constantly changing and unpredictable; winning two or three trades is not a guarantee. You constantly have to read more educational materials on trading. Successful traders know the importance of constantly equipping themselves with educational materials.

9. RELATE WITH FELLOW TRADERS.

This is another important habit to take note of. A successful trader does not isolate him/herself, or relate with other traders. Relating With other traders helps you maintain a certain level of growth. Join trade forums or a group chat. Communicate with other traders, and share trading ideas. One person can never know it all. You might find out new things that can help improve the performance of your trade. There are other professional traders out there who are ready to help you grow positively. Join a community and share ideas.

10. BE GENEROUS.

This might sound a little bit odd, but the fact is generosity helps you build wealth. A successful trader should be willing to help other traders. You should be able to share your trading strategies and stories to help other traders grow. If you join a trading community you will meet other traders who are willing to help others. When you gain from their generosity, you should be able to do the same. Drop ideas, trading signals, strategies, and pros and come that positively affects your trades. Do not be at the receiving end, give as much as you get.

11. BE PASSIONATE

Be passionate about your trades. Do not take it for granted. A successful trader takes his trading career as a full-time job. You cannot be a successful trader if you trade once in a while. You need to be a passionate trader, and daily learn about the best ways to improve performance. Don’t be overly passionate; always know when to apply the brakes. Being passionate alone can’t make you successful; this is just one of the many habits of successful traders.

 12. BE POSITIVE BUT BE REALISTIC ABOUT YOUR PROSPECTS

You must have a positive approach towards all your trades, irrespective of the situation, and believe that there is a silver lining. A trader must believe that the combination of good discipline and great knowledge can yield good profits. But it is advisable to keep your optimism in check and be realistic in your goals. Do not expect the impossible. Always know that you won’t always have a favorable trade, there are days of profits and days of loss. Irrespective of the outcome of trade always have a positive outlook, the losses will be gained back. These losses are not going to be frequent, so of course, the probability of making more profits is high.

13. DO NOT TRADE WITH YOUR EMOTIONS

A successful trader never trades with emotions. There are lots of emotions that can negatively affect your trades. As a good trader, it is advisable to keep your feelings in check. Do not make any trade decisions under emotional circumstances. Emotions such as fear, or greed should not affect your trades. Do not get scared and make a decision when losing in a trade.

At the same time know when to draw your profit limits, and do not get too greedy, and overstay in your trade. One wrong market move could cost you all your generated profits. Always have a profit target, once you hit the target leave the trade. Do not sell trades out of greed, and do not buy a trade out of fear of losing out.

 14. STICK TO A TRADING STRATEGY

Always stick to the strategy you know best. The market is constantly changing, and highly volatile. It is only natural to adjust your trading strategies from time to time. However, if you do not stick to set rules, it will be difficult to become a successful trader. Do not hop from one strategy to another, stick to your set rules and avoid irrational judgments

15. FOCUS ON REGULATING RISK AND SAFEGUARDING EQUITY

A successful trader is always able to make profits while using minimal risks. As a trader, you should be able to observe the normal risk management procedures. Since you cannot control the market movements, at least you can control the risk involved. Set a limited risk for each trade, do not trade more than you are willing to. Protect your capital by going into trades with set risk limits. If you trade carelessly it might negatively affect your trades.

16. ADAPT A STRONG TECHNICAL ANALYSIS APPROACH

A successful trader relies on both fundamental and technical analysis. If you are more of a fundamental trader, you will also need technical analysis. Technical analysis such as the exit and entry-level of traders. The support and resistance level of trades. All these things are needed to ensure a good and profitable trade. Your forex broker provides you with all the necessary tools required to deduce all of these. A price chart that helps you pinpoint the support and resistance levels of trade, and also the best entry and exit level for each trade.

17. SUCCESSFUL TRADERS DO NOT GAMBLE, THEY CONCENTRATE ON THE ODDS

Many people try to equate trading to gambling. Trading is not a form of gambling. With trading you have to take calculated risks; you analyze the market before going into it. Analyzing the market helps you know what to expect from the trades you place. If a trade is going to be profitable or not you will know. Gambling is different, gambling is like going into a trade blindsided. You don’t know what the outcome will be; you only wish it would be profitable. With trading, you have to calculate the odds, market trends, and structure of the trade before making a decision. If you trade like a gamble you will end up losing your capital in the long run.

CONCLUSION

These 17 habits of successful trades are important and not ambiguous. Applying these rules in your everyday trading activity will help you go a long way.

All these habits could be hard to develop, but it is important to apply them. With time you will have full control over your behavior, and it will become a part of you. Most traders make the mistake of thinking that successful traders are born with these traits. Most successful traders you see had to gradually apply these what’s in their day-to-day life. You can become a successful trader if you can pick up the habits and practically apply them.

However, these habits do not guarantee a profitable trade. Other technical aspects need to be learned and applied in a trade. Becoming a disciplined trader is a start. The other technical aspects will follow if you are determined and focused. When you treat your trades as a full-time business you will unearth all the technical aspects.