It is possible but you also have to take into account some losing months…
my point is radically different… instead of % try to rethink your goals in pips. Forget about the money and establish a truly solid and thorough trading plan. It may sound easy but it will need a huge effort just to plan it well. this work ahead will pay you off in the long term but it’s absolutely necessary. trust me, to achieve something different you need to make something different.
Having a targets in forex trading is a good thing, but I don’t think that we should stop trading after we reach the monthly goal because not every month will be that successful so when you have a good trading month you should continue trading to make it up for those not successful months.
Thanks for the comment TMS. In the past I’ve set growth goals for the month, then reached them in the first week only to loose my gains in the rest of the month!
I hear what you’re saying tho so what I’ve decided to do is have 2 accounts. One as my investment account where I deposit monthly and have my 10% monthly goal and a second where I will trade normally once I’ve hit my goal on account one.
I mean if it helps you with the psychological aspect then go for it, but mathematically it is exactly the same as opening whatever trades you would open on the original account.
I think monthly goals are something you should have a hard time hitting very often. I set mine at 30%. If I hit that, I keep trading. Each trade you take is statistically no more likely to be a loser than the next one. So in essence [I]if you have an edge[/I] and you stop trading once you hit your monthly goal, you are really only depriving yourself of profit in the end.
I am very new to the whole FOREX game myself, so I can’t give any advice as to 10% being too much of a goal or not. But I must agree whole hardheartedly with many of the reply comments per your question.
I have just begun to study in depth great detail about all the aspects of economics, investing, trading, etc. These were subjects saved only for the college bound interested in such fields, or those who were born into money when and where I was growing up. I will say from personal experience as well as what the experienced and a successful investor would tell you, you idea of what to do is in the correct area of thought.
It will take extreme discipline, and determination to stay that focused and to stay dedicated enough to achieve that goal in the very hopes it will pay off in the end. If you can afford a diversified portfolio, that will be an excellent way to achieve a growth rate of 10% return a month. With only a starting capital of $200, it might be a bit difficult. It’s not impossible, but it will be difficult.
The best thing you really can do for yourself is to learn what you can from those with lots of background and success with investing. Most of all, regardless how dim or hopeless things may seem at times, don’t let discouragement get the best of you. Don’t let greed consume you either.
I have been given some great pieces of advice from some very knowledgeable and experienced people who have/do work in the investment world.
- Study and read. Don’t just read one or two books on the subject, but read all you can.
- Invest and save what you can every pay period. But don’t put to the side any amount that will avoid the necessary bills from getting paid.
- Always get help if needed, and/or ask for advice/opinions from everyone. And always do your research before asking someone to help be it for pay, or simply for free.
- Understand how the 4 animals of Wall St. (bull, bear, chicken, and the pig) make it or loose it.
The two other Wall St. animals whose names are rarely used often, the chicken and the pig: “The chicken will make make little profit on their investments if that’s the only way they invest, and the pig will be slaughtered and get served at the lunch counter”. Basically stated: It’s OK to be the chicken, and sometimes it’s even good. But most importantly be a bear when it comes time to be a bear, and be a bull when it comes time to be a bull, but never ever be a pig!
Always Remember: The right amount of determination for success, and the right amount of know-how is what got man off the planet Earth, to the moon, and beyond.
Good luck and good trading!
I think that people have too high expectations of profit in forex trading which is why so many fail. A bank will give you 5% a year in the best of economic conditions but now you are lucky to get a couple of % unless you live in a country like Australia. So making 10% a month, which compounded works out to over 200% a year is excessive. It basically means you will be taking far too much risk. I like a figure like 20% - 30% annually, which is probably achievable without taking too much risk. But making 200% will mean taking so much risk you will probably lose it.
You are absolutely right, ‘reinerisme’!
Also, if you think that 20% is about twenty times more than what a savings account could give you,
you should be very happy, as a trader, with that result… It all depends on WHY you trade: if keeping
your money above the rate of inflation, then even making 10% yearly profits would be MAGNIFICENT; if, however, you
wanted to make more than that, you may want to look at it in a different way…
Just after writing this, I got a message from my bank, telling me the following:
It just goes to show that investing your money is definitely better than letting it devalue in a savings account,
given the poor rates on offer…
Welcome to the financial markets :17: a place where the big guys justify everything with the “woe is me strategy . . .I have a big Virginia Ham, but no bread; woe is me” Next you’ll see the record profits since the beginning of the year. Having said that you do need balance and can’t have all your eggs in one basket, but for currency traders that balance is hard to achieve, when in one place you earn o.50 % a year and in another not to difficult to earn 2% a month from trading.
Absolutely, gp00053!
I love your image of
‘I have a big Virginia Ham, but no bread’ !
As you said, welcome to the financial markets!!
The ‘naughty’ bankers got a slap on the wrist from the British government, but no sooner had they done that than
the latest figures for bankers’ bonuses hit the news and another scandal was born…
Pah!
Traders, is it then more realistic to expect a 2% per month growth?
No one can answer your question, that would be applicable to you. Traders who set proper goals, set them based on their experience, current situation, such as available capital, personality, family etc. The best way to set income goals in my opinion is base them on your own experience and current situation that way once you have some history goals will be more accurate and give you a true measure of your trading. In the beginning instead of setting an arbitrary number picked based on what other traders who you don’t know their experience and situation tell you, forget the $$$, set your goal to have more positive trades in a month than negative. I think this would be an easier way to measure your performance.
Depends on trader’s experience, time and effort contribute towards trading. 10% is not easy but achievable.
I wouldn’t expect anything, per se. You’ll be hard-pressed to break-even when you start out. If you can reach that point, you’re already better than 60% of traders.
I know traders who make -100% every month. They load up their account at the start of every month and lose it all. Over and over again.
I also know a couple traders who make 10% [I]per week.[/I] I have no doubt that they are among the best of the best, and I’ve made sure to learn as much as I can from them.
Really the only limit is you. How smart are you? How hard are you willing to work? What are you willing to risk? Will you stop at nothing to achieve your goals?
But yes, I do think statistically that most profitable traders fall into the 1-3% per month range.
Lofty goal and yes, its possible … i have a demo running with no holds barred, something you wouldnt do with real money
i keep a detailed report i update weekly or monthly at
Statement: 1443352 - Jo Declercq you can check it its just a mt4 report, no malware, cookies or anything. It shows that a madman can definitely grow $4000 into over $6000 in about two months.
However, i said this many times before. [B]DO NOT[/B] set a goal as to how much you’re gonna make. The markets will not follow you, you lag behind the markets, thats the way it is. Think about they psychology involved. If your methodology starts from a set goal of x% profit you will try and find trades to get there. If there are none you will start looking for maybe’s and maybe’s (although everything in forex is maybe) is a step away from [B]MUST WIN[/B]
I’m the last person to tell anyone how to do theirs since i hate people telling me how to do mine but setting a goal for profit thats rigid is imo a very bad idea since it will push you to making trades to achieve the goal. Goal number one in any case is : [B]thou shalt not burn out[/B], however you do that, stop losses, risk management, the odds of a pair moving x pips per week calculated over the last ten or twenty or fifty years, thats your business. You pick what works for you. Believe in compound interest and increasing lot sizes. Do not believe in the mother of all trades. The mother of all trades is gambling. Forex might be considered so in some countries (lucky the man who does not pay taxes on it yay for spread-[I]betting[/I] and such). But forex is in fact not gambling your chance of winning is a lot higher than playing the lottery since there are factors you can foresee. Dont start out eyeballing all pairs or even all majors, try and find a few or maybe one, they all have distinctive moments and reactions. Some guy, i know warren buffet read him as well said : the market will always react the same to the same even under the same condition. This goes (for forex) pêr cross-pair, not for every pair. They all have distinct different movers. Its not something you get done by taking a three week course.
If you spend LOTS of time on it, neo, you will see the matrix, or at least part of it, you will see some people making a speech means there will be movement, you will see one announcement will make it move, etctera. It takes time to perfect and it stays a job of chance and probability. No technicals are 100% sure since they take all data over all time over all pairs from all history and take the common denominator out of it, regardles of socio-economic or political climate. This would be like saying the statistic goes for the yen right after the war just the same as it does in 2014 (which is NOT so)
but i elaborate … i think setting a goal for profit is a bad idea since you wont know if you will get the opportunities to reach it every month. Devising something that works for you and looking for the movers, the baselines (or medians), the current trend and what people with decades of experience have to say is something id start out with, and rule number one: the only goal (other than becoming millionaire over time)à IS : [B]thou shalt not burn out[/B], everything you do starts from that one, not from ‘i have to make this more to get my goal’
nuff said, good luck, its wise to start out with only a few 100 mah frend, id even recommend lite or nano accounts and starting out with $1 or $10 but the few 100 might add a bit of psychic pressure which you will also need to learn about.
may the pip be with you then
[I]p.s.[/I]
i always edit my posts, i mean add stuff, they’re never complete
i feel i should say, as to the newbie, which i still feel like i am one myself really after two years of discovering forex was not a nigerian scam trying to make me deposit money i would never see back… euh, i was saying …??
oyea !
dont get blinded by that demo account, thats mad gotham city joker trading with no holds barred, its an experiment but it shows what is possible in theory, if i went really joker i could probably have doubled it on the same time, however, if something happens like it did in last july that account would be done for. The point of that one is to grow to a consistent lot size which gives me what i would deem a livable income
(too bad i dont just have $4k i can risk to try for real)
after that i keep the lot size, withdraw half every month and keep the account growing, we’ll see where it gets
i still have to ask my broker if they can be so kind as to simulate withdrawals on demo accounts when i get there or im gonna have to make a new one every month to simulate the withdrawal …
we’ll see about that as well
anyways, good luck
Exactly, the prob that most newbies have is in setting actual dollar goals when it would make sense to have goals specific to winnable trades…the point being that setting goals is kind of like a double edged sword. On one hand having goals can motivate a trader to trade better, in order to acheive the required pip range, fair enough. The trick is in learning not to jump the gun when you fall short of the required goal. Most newbies, tend to get frustrated when their goal is not reached, get impulsive and blow out their account…
As for the %, a 5% is achievable, a tenner, a bit hard but can still be done…quite a few traders post the same or more, regularly on Fxbook
‘‘i always edit my posts, i mean add stuff, they’re never complete
i feel i should say, as to the newbie, which i still feel like i am one myself really after two years of discovering forex was not a nigerian scam trying to make me deposit money i would never see back… euh, i was saying …??
oyea !
dont get blinded by that demo account, thats mad gotham city joker trading with no holds barred, its an experiment but it shows what is possible in theory, if i went really joker i could probably have doubled it on the same time, however, if something happens like it did in last july that account would be done for. The point of that one is to grow to a consistent lot size which gives me what i would deem a livable income
(too bad i dont just have $4k i can risk to try for real)
after that i keep the lot size, withdraw half every month and keep the account growing, we’ll see where it gets
i still have to ask my broker if they can be so kind as to simulate withdrawals on demo accounts when i get there or im gonna have to make a new one every month to simulate the withdrawal …’’
That’s some good advice for newbies.
Well said, fund managers have Capital preservation as paramount and with good reason. 10-40% annual growth is considered good (the upper end, VERY good). As a retail trader keep your total exposure of all open trades below 2% (tops) of account balance and rely on compounding to build the account.
Thanks for everyone that has contributed so far, I really appreciate it. I have taken the following from all this:
The 10% goal needs to be there but the more important goal is the one of being more consistent and improving my win lose ratio.
If I’ve hit my 10% for the month in the first week, I wont stop trading but continue.
Biggest goal is to protect my capital.
Trade rules
1 Edge present
2 1-2/3RR
3 Risk 1-3%
My account is available for viewing on myfxbook to track progress under HundredfoldFX(Theres no record at the moment as this is my first month) and I will do a monthly update here to see where I can correct things and challenges I’ve faced etc, anything we can all learn from.
Cheers,
T