Hello Hello Hello... Is there anybody out there?

Beginner Questions
1

Hello Everyone,

I’m a 24 year old male from Ohio.

I’m completely new to forex. I haven’t really read much of the school section of this website, But I do plan to read and re-read all of the school here.
As far as I have read in the school section, I have noted that I should practice on a demo account for at least six months before I go live.

After I practice for six months, if I feel ready… I plan to open an account with 5k to 10k (more likely 5k).

I don’t plan on getting rich and I do plan on working and studying hard. I have at least 20 hours a week I can devote to forex.

If I could double my money in a year I would be happy.

I pretty much work for myself as it is. I make anywhere from 20 to 30k a year just doing what I do now.

I really can’t afford to lose 5k but I would not be homeless , foodless or pennyless.

My goal is to make 500 a week with a starting balance of 5k.

I have a couple of questions and would be grateful if any experienced traders could help answer them for me.

Is a weekly 10% return on my money possible? If not what, about 5%? Or even 4% lol

What can I realistically expect if I devote 6 months of my time learning and practicing and then opening an account with a balance of 5k and devoting as much as 40 hours a week indefinitely?

Is there anyone here that started a year ago with a small account balance and is experiencing any kind of success in forex? And if yes, can you please share with me?

I am a much disciplined person. I’m willing to devote as much time as possible learning and applying the skills necessary to become successful in this market.

I consider myself to be sorta smart. I dropped out of school in the sixth grade and have always managed to keep my head above water. I’m self educated; most people I meet assume I have a higher education.

When I was 18 I had an accident that rendered me physically disabled. I refuse to live off of the state and collect disability. I’m just not the type of person to take a hand out, but I also don’t look down on people who can’t see any other choice.

I’m disabled to the point where I can’t do manual labor. I’m sharp enough to do the books for a multimillion dollar business (I do it for a friend), but I don’t have the piece of paper that people know and trust as proof that I’m qualified.

I’m young and the only thing I have to lose is time and a little money. I really could use all of the help and pointers that I can get. And I promise you any time you can give me is not a waste. It is an investment.

Oooohhh I forgot this 10:1 leverage proposal scares me. Should it?

Thanks,
Matt

2

Matt-
I too am also new to the Forex world, and i guarantee the first thing you will be told in response to this thread is to go through the school not once but several times. Many of the things involved in Forex require much practice, it seems that you are willing to put in the time but be ready to go through the school several times to get the basics down. Sorry i couldn’t answer the other questions for you, like i said i to am new. But good luck on your endeavors.

-Kyle

3

Hi Matt and welcome

Like most novice traders you ask about possibilities. All things are possible in forex, are you likely to achieve what you want, no one can answer that. The rules of trading are the rules you set for yourself. If you develope a sound method and strategy, with good mm and rr your goals are achievable. Practice demo trading until you feel ready, some take a month, others 2-3 years. Treat Demo trading as if it were live, small deposit in line with what you are able to invest. Only live trade with money you can afford to lose, start with a smaller account if necessary, many novice traders will lose their accounts !! Higher education does not necessarily make a good trader, discipline is more important. I am sorry to hear about your situation, I understand it well :slight_smile: Take your time now, learn and you could have a very lucrative career for life

best regards
Dave

4

Yea, go through the school until you can remember all of the terminology by heart. Don’t force the learning, i.e. don’t memorize. Just read it once, cement it by trying to recall things in your head or, even better, open up your FX platform and scroll the charts and describe what you see to yourself.

5

I agree with this barb. Just sudy your heart out and most of all enjoy it. If you really love it, everything will eventually fall into place.

All the best,
Davros

6

[B]Thanks everyone for all of the encouragement.

As I stated in my initial post I’m not trying to get rich, I ‘m trying to set the most realistic goal that I can. Last year I earned about 30k.

My lifestyle costs anywhere 15 to 20k a year. Roughly 20% of my income goes to bad habits, takeout food, cigarettes, helping friends that won’t even try to help themselves etc etc and so on and so forth.

What I would like to do is eliminate my bad habits, and harness this extra cash to trade in the forex market. I’ve never really been able to save cash unless I invest it. If I have cash with no cause I burn through it pretty quick. This year I managed to pay all of my bills and have an excess of 17k before taxes.

I don’t plan on making a lot of money in the beginning, but maybe after a year or two I could supplement my current income with another 25-50k.

Right now I’m in the process of opening a restaurant and reestablishing a rundown neighborhood convenience store. I strongly feel that I can incorporate forex trading into my day to day operations.

The only problem with my current situation is I’m working with investors that may have ulterior agendas then what have been presented to me.

Chances are I will never need any extra income if everything goes well for me in the next 6 months. But that does not curb my interest in the forex market. I need a plan B for the long run.
Is there anyone out there that has reached a 500% margin increase in a year or 2?

Can you please summarize your setbacks and successes with me? (Possibly crunch your stats a little for me.)

I’m just so curious.

I swore I was only going to thank you guys for your much appreciated input. Online you don’t have to wait to get a word in. I talk a little too much in person.

I was always told “a closed mouth doesn’t get fed”.

I’m so hungry for pips I can taste them.[/B]

Thanks again,
[I][B]Matt[/B][/I]

7

Matt, you have the desire, but I think you’re too optimist…

I mean, yo want to earn a lot in so little time, that’s the first mistake, although is not impossible, it’s very unlikely for every trader on earth to do it.

On the other hand it seems that you know yourself very well and you seem capable to do it but you need to know forex a lot better and feel the wins and the losses before you take the big step.

So my advise for you is get to know forex very well, trade demo and develop a good strategy according to your performance and type of trading.

Second, when you start trading, choose the right broker, use proper risk and money management as I think this is why most traders fail, and if you want so much return for a week at least start with a 10k account.

Good Luck =)

8

Open a demo account, set the starting amount to $5,000. If you can make $500 three weeks in a row, you will be ready to leave, Grasshopper.

Your next step is to open a live account with $500. If you can make $50 three weeks in a row, then you can add another $500. Then when you can make $100 three weeks in a row, you can add another $1,000.

9

After your 6 months of demoing dont put 5k in at first,go in with a small amount.After each sucessfull month put a little more in.This will protect you from the pitfalls of live trading.Good luck with your knew endeavor!:slight_smile:

10

I really think we should engage in this discussion six months from now if you are ready to trade even by then.

Until then I give a flat no to your questions. You’ll understand why when you get your feet wet.

For starters, 10% per week is getting rich quick.

I appreciate your enthusiasm and eagerness to learn. There is a tough road ahead of you. This forum will be with you for your support. All the best.

11

Is it? What if you risk 1% per trade? You only have to make 2% a day to make 10% a week, right?

12

Your math fits. Just not the reality the market will allow. A lot of new traders fall into the trap that if they only hit small consistent goals they will be successful. The goal should never be a set amount of pips or a set percentage per day/week/month, etc. The goal should be to make good trades period. When you set the types of goals previously mentioned, it forces trades. A wise trader waits for the trade to come to him, not the other way around.

13

Three weeks is not enough. A consistent 10% gain week after week can only come from over trading. That alone is a spell for eventual disaster.

14

Yeah it’s pretty easy to type out some numbers, but then there’s the part of it where you actually have to trade real money. That’s generally when people realize that dreaming about getting rich blows out accounts.