I think trading is one of those “onion- shaped” activities - every time you work through one layer there is always another underneath! 
But at least you seem to know where you want to get to and that is a big asset. No matter how good the road map, it is useless if you don’t know where you want to get to!.. 
Yup! And THAT’S the difference between a job and trading.
Assuming one is making those gains… 
I think forex is good for both.
Yup. And this is why I don’t quit. Look at past charts, and you can see what you shiuld have done. The profits are there. I can see it. Every trader on this forum can have profits, but most of us won’t.
Not because it’s impossible, but because of our own choices. All we gotta do is filter thru our emotions, and slowly make adjustments to our thought process and the money will take care of itself.
Do not quit. If it’s something you want, do not quit.
I fully agree with you. It is clearly possible. It is only a question of learning - learning both the theory and the practice. This is why I always say that the key to success is not in the trades, it is in the trader and the preparation work.
The trader MUST develop a professionalism. There is no place for revenge trading, over-trading, FOMO, and all the other common errors that emanate from our human characteristics. But that does not mean one has to de-humanise, it just means learning the discipline. One can only imagine the discipline and training needed to fly and land an aeroplane, or lead troops in dangerous territories, or sail a small boat in heavy seas, or carry out a surgical operation. No-one can do any of these without the training, knowledge and discipline in procedures - trading is no different. People just have to realise that and work at it - it is not impossible, it is not even difficult.
It is just hard to do alone, with no formalised guidance and learning, just through one’s own mistakes, the hard way.
Interestingly, I just received an e-mail from a trading company and in it they state:
*It’s not enough to tell people what you did in a good trade. Because what really matters is the very specific information that led to that good trade. I.e. what caused you to do what you did in the first place."
Kinda similar thoughts!
Traders lack seriousness if they trade as a hobby in the market.
I’m not sure I agree. The beauty of forex is you can have a $100 account and still trade. Also, Tradingview now has a paper account that you can trade indefinitely. You don’t even need any of your own money to have fun with it. The ads are annoying, though.
Yeah, it’s a common misconception that swing trading is only for the higher TF charts. And there is even more of a misconception that you can only scalp low TFs.
I often swing the 5M and scalp the 1-hour. Nothing illegal about it.
Also, I don’t normally do a top-down approach. It’s best for me to concentrate on the chart in front of me.
Yeah, but aside from the psychology, swing trading limits the daytrader’s opportunities. You just have to take what is offered. And sometimes you have to scratch and claw your way back to profit by scalping.
Thanks, but I haven’t given it up completely. It is still my hobby.
Thanks. Glad it’s having an impact.
I was able to build a little buffer, but it needed to be bigger, for sure.
I agree. And I think you’ve laid out a pretty good plan.
Why is that? Wouldn’t it be the same thing as really good golfer deciding not to go on tour due to family commitments?
I don’t believe I’ve come across a hard & fast rule saying that swinging should “only” be done on HTF but that it’s more practical because it requires gauging the overall trend over a few days/week. It avoids a recency bias and forces one to acknowledge the higher probability of price staying true to the HTF over days.
Swinging on the M5 should be doable with a wide enough SL to account for volatility over a few days and that it generally stays in line with the prevailing HTF trend.
First came across the principal in an Alexander Elder book (The New Trading for a Living) where he uses the MACD and EMAs. He does a really good job explaining the function of each of the timeframes. He calls it the triple screen.
And I’ve seen other traders use other indicators/systems on a similar TF analysis, with the same intentions/principles, like this one on the Ichimoku.
Disclaimer: Not preaching or saying anyone should adopt any of this. I don’t have experience or the knowledge base to dictate certainties like that. At the end of the day what matters is what works for each individual.
Yeah, Elder’s approach is loosely based on the Elliott Wave Theory. And I think he uses stochastic as well.
Thanks for your insight. I’ll check out this vid when I get more time.
That’s awesome. And also makes sense why your post is so organized and with a great thread title!
patiently track and piece together the ideal system that satisfies your accuracy standards. its been done
i wonder how much weakness plays into failures
they should have a website for aspiring nba stars haha
At the end of the day I believe it boils down to two things…perspective and objective and while I respect your point of view I am certain there are people out here who will say the exact opposite…
Me I dont intend to trade into infinity. I just want to amass enough funds to buy a large amount of a certain stock down here in Jamaica and let my funds do all of the heavy lifting.
I always say that one should never leave a full-time secure means of earning for trading. At least not until you start making consistent profits. I don’t think that our trading style (full-time or part-time) has any bearing on the money we make. Infact I’ve seen many part time traders earning more than full time traders.
Moreover, doing something that you love doing can really alleviate your mood and you can approach trading with a free mind.