5 key questions to see if you will end up as a trading statistic as many people do. Trading is not a hobby, it is a profession. See if trading the markets is something you could succeed in

2. There's a lot written on the subject of
trading these days. Often you'll find
articles and blog posts about how to
improve your trading where the
author gives you insights and quick
fixes. Some are useful and some are
not so useful. However, that is not
what I want to do here.

3. I want to make it perfectly clear that
there are far too many people who
just won't commit to the process of
trading day in, day out - whether it be
day trading or swing trading. If you
find yourself not tending to your
trading business each and every day,
then consider this your wakeup call: -

4. DON'T BE "JUST ANOTHER STATISTIC" FULLY COMMIT TO TRADING OR WALK
AWAY

5. I've spoken and helped many different
traders over the years and there's one
recurring theme. Retail traders frequently
just don't have the level of dedication in
order to make it. In fact I see it all the time
- even now. I do understand that if an
individual has personal and work
commitments, it can be difficult to juggle
your time.

6. But if you can't commit to focusing on
your trading for enough time every
day, either adjust your approach to a
manageable level or walk away.

7. Now I know that some people want to
find a "push button trading solution"
and I can understand why. If you have
a system which you only have to turn
on or off, there's no commitment
required right? But I'm afraid to say
that this type of solution really doesn't
exist.

8. Sure, if you know exactly what you're doing
with a system, you might be able to
operate it with less effort. But the truth of
the matter is that there's still a lot to do in
order to understand a system, maintain
performance over time and expand into
different markets as your trading business
grows.

9. If you aren't prepared to do the work,
you're effectively just dabbling - and
how many people make a success by
dabbling at something?

10. There are at least two very good reasons for
what I'm saying and they both involve
continuity. The first reason has to do with
watching the market day by day. By seeing
what's happening in a market and by seeing how
it's happening, a trader is much better able to
get an understanding of context and get in sync
with market rhythm.

11. And this gives a trader enough insight
to know when to pass up on an
opportunity and when to really hit the
gas.

12. But not only that, by seeing so much
of a market's auction process, you'll
see different opportunities that you
just wouldn't know were there
otherwise and then be able to
formulate new strategies to capitalize
on them.

13. Getting into the flow of the markets
and immersing yourself in trading is an
essential step in understanding a
specific product. But it's also an
essential step in understanding
yourself

14. Seeing what you're good at and what
you're not is one part of this. Another
aspect is then dissecting your
problems and fixing them. A good
analogy for this might be a golf swing.
If you have an issue that you want to
fix, playing golf now and then is not
going to dramatically improve things.

15. By taking the time to practice it every
day you will give yourself a much
better chance to improve. You won't
have to be constantly reassessing and
struggling to identify the root causes
of the problem - you'll know what
you're looking for from the beginning
of every session.

16. The problem and the way in which you
choose to go about fixing it, will be
fresh in your mind and the solution
you choose to improve your swing will
at the very least have the chance to
work.

17. Okay so this is really a "am I fully
committed" checklist - clearly there
are lots of other facets to determining
whether a trader fails or not. But being
fully committed is the first step.

18. And without this step you'll probably
find yourself floundering in your
efforts to improve all the other parts
of your trading. I know that realistically
there are times when you won't be
able to show up.

19. But ask yourself these questions in
order to figure out whether you are
prioritizing your trading to the extent
that you'd expect if you were paying
someone to trade for you. I'm sure
you'll think of other questions, but the
object is for you to assess your level of
commitment.

20. Do you turn up every day and on time,
even if you think it might be quiet?

21. Do you consistently and effectively
prepare every day before you consider
trading?

22. Do you effectively track your trading
results and analyze performance on a
regular basis?

23. Are you aware of pertinent market
moving events and market focus?

24. Does your life get in the way of trading
or does trading get in the way of life?

25. Nobody wants to fail, I know. But if
you don't get a handle on things and
really start to dedicate yourself to
becoming a successful trader, the
chances are high that you won't make
the cut.

26. The old adage that "if a job's worth
doing, it's worth doing well" certainly
rings true here and unfortunately, if
you don't fully commit, you're likely to
be wasting your time and money.

27. If you can't stay committed to trading,
you'll never see the results you're
looking for.