This August we’re giving some serious virtual high fives to forex junkies out there who are brave enough to trade the choppy summer trading environment!
Let’s meet some of the popular men in the forums this time of the year, gp00053, Cyco, and Pips Ahoy!
In their interviews they have shared their forex trading origins, their trading routine, and even some tips for the newbies.
These guys don’t bite (unless provoked) so don’t be scared to say hello!
[B]Cyco[/B]
1. Tell us little bit about yourself. Where are you from? What are your hobbies?
I grew up in Sydney, Australia and am currently living in Perth, Australia after spending most of 2007 living in The Netherlands and Norway.
As far as hobbies, I’m into anything that’s fast, fun or mentally stimulating; cycling, motor racing, making money…
2. When/why did you start trading forex? What resources did you use to learn how to trade (websites, books, apps, mentors, etc.)?
I started to trade after buying a book with a title that I though was an impossible goal ‘From $1,000 to $1,000,000 in 80 days’. I still believe it is impossible to do so, and not blow up (they advocate 10% risk to start with, and plan on no losing trades…).
I have long been a fan of Robert Kyosaki’s Rich Dad series of books, and whilst the adrenaline rush of scalping is fun it was never going to give me the time freedom that I desire. I then found Courtney D. Smith’s ‘How to make a living Trading Foreign Exchange’, and whilst not an easy book to read, its systems have proved to be very profitable.
Both books expect far more knowledge from the trader than a lay person has and it was between the two that I found BabyPips’ School. Without this I’d probably given up long ago - I was in way over my head.
3. What do your friends and family think about you trading currencies?
I have a close friend that started trading just after I did when we discussed the possibilities. He is still trading, but has not been quite as profitable over the last 6 months as I have.
4. What were your first strategies in forex trading? How are they different from your strategies today?
To start with I was just doing some massively overleveraged gambling! My demo account period involved me shorting GBP/JPY in Aug/Sept 2011. Almost impossible to lose, however my 1st live trade was a short on the 1st day of the major double bottom…
I now trade a variety of trend following systems, with a daily chart being my shortest time frame.
I now have far less stress and far more profit per trade.
5. Describe your current daily or weekly trading routine. What do you do before you trade?
I get up!
I trade in the morning, over breakfast. This coincides approximately with the NY close time so the current candle is almost closed, and I don’t have much in the way of retraction after this to worry about. I scan over 20 currency pairs, a few commodities, and some other instruments (Indexes, bonds) in about 20 minutes and
then I head to work.
6. What are some of your most unforgettable trades and trading moments?
Other than the stupid stuff I did to start with I try and have almost no memorable trades. Keeping the losses small, and I never get out of a winner before it retracts somewhat keeps my emotions in check and so it helps me trade in a rational, and clinical way.
7. What non-trading activities are you into when you’re not trading?
Reading - I generally have 3-6 books on the go at any one time. I also love to travel, play various sports, do some yoga, cook, and go to my day job.
8. Complete the sentence: “If I hadn’t learned about forex trading, I would probably _______.”
Be trading something else.
9. Forex trading is not an easy business. What motivates you to continue trading when in a trading slump?
Freedom. All the systems I use are very mechanical, though I do make some of what Ed Seyokta describes as ‘expert trader’ discretionary exits. As most of my trades take days to play out, and I’ve had over 20 open at once, I don’t get attached to any of them and so a period of lower profitability leads to seeking improvements to my systems, rather than depression, or questioning my trading in its entirety.
10. Do you have any advice for trading newbies out there?
This isn’t a get rich quick scheme - it takes a lot of work and if you want to be lazy just post your initial deposit cheque to me, and it will save you a lot of time and frustration.
Pick a far longer time frame than you initially like, and don’t try and be right. I have a win rate under 40% yet I appear to be more profitable than many of the forum posters who claim win rates over double that. Having a massive positive expectation bias (up to 10 times) makes it easy to keep entering trades, even if you have a few losses.
Good interview, thank you.
Cool interview, always good to hear success stories, gives a person a push to continue on.
Great work
This is a popularity-based contest wherein participants submit their trade ideas that will be voted on by the BabyPips.com community. So yeah, winners will be determined by the number of votes that their trade ideas generate.
sara
Its good, its always better to learn from senior traders, in this way you could learn fast.