So I have been trading on DEMO since about November. I’ve had 3 accounts, 2 which got blown up by the huge spike in the EUR/AUD back in December 2015 (screenshot/post #post736199). The third I am very proud of and have traded it like I would with real money and not taking crazy chances or depending on any automated trading bot.
The big milestone I just hit today was I doubled my starting balance of $50k, which is now over $100k (100% profit). This has been my goal from the beginning to prove I could do it.
<click chart above to see details of all trades and account information>
Here are some things to note about my trading so it might help you understand how I trade and maybe you can ask questions or help me get better…
[ul]
[li]I trade (until today, found my demo acct password) 100% using my cell phone. FXCM app.[/li][li]I trade while I am at work, on a ladder, walking across a roof, driving, wearing a tool belt, outside, in the heat/cold… essentially I don’t just sit at a desk in quietness while trading.[/li][li]I strictly use technical chart indicators at www.TradingView.com and I trade manually. NO EAs.[/li][li]My lot size will vary, but I have recently stuck with using 10x my balance max. (i.e. $50k balance = 500k total open trade lots maximum)[/li][li]My positions tend to be the max if I am confident or a fraction there of (usually half) if I feel I may need to average out my position later.[/li][li]I have been focusing on one pair only. Most recently… AUD/JPY.[/li][/ul]
So with all that being said… I think I am ready to put some real money into action and for me $5,000 is manageable and not something that will bankrupt me if I were to lose it all. I have made/lost 10x as much as that in my lifetime so not a big deal.
Since I am in the states I like FXCM just because they are the quote retail leader that pops up everywhere. I think I downloaded TradeStation for the first time about 20 years ago thinking I was going to get rich quick. I NEVER could get my demo accounts to stay above the starting balance back then. LOL
[B]So what questions, comments, advice do you have for me?
[/B]Here was yesterday’s trades where I pulled off a 10 winning trade streak. WOOT!
I would start with $1,000— then next Friday, if all is well, add another $500—If all goes well, add another $500, AND SO ON.
Your entering the real battle field, Dont take your entire force with you, you need some to watch your back.
What your essentially doing is building trust in YOURSELF.
The reason I say this, is because You even said this:
[B]My positions tend to be the max [U]if I am confident[/U] or a fraction there of (usually half) if I feel I may need to average out my position later.[/B]
You must be confident each and every trade Equally. No one trade should be special to the next. This is a tell of your Money Management has no special outlined plan.
Im very happy for You to no end, and Hope it works out for you.
But dont throw all your eggs in at once. Test Yourself over the month, just to make sure everything is still clickin as it was in your demo.
Always good advice and I see it posted up often to other people looking to go forward with real money accounts. So, I am in no rush… I will deposit $1,000 and see how a week or two goes using REAL money.
Yes, I will be the first to admit that following my indicators, at this point, is not very strict to where I could code it into an EA. There’s alot of fluff at the moment, but that fluff and my not-so-perfect trading style has gotten me to about a 58% win percentage.
I just need to refine it a bit more to be able to fire and forget my trades …so to speak.
Well I deposited $1,000 into my FXCM REAL Account and will be linking it to MyFXBook.com. Meanwhile I am still trading my DEMO account which has increased by about 13% in the last 24 hours. I will say I am losing out on sleep to trade the way I do so I am definitely looking forward to tweaking my indicators and creating a decently performing EA so I can just let it do its thing when I have my FT job to go do or just want to get away from the computer.
In most cases demo trading is interesting an fun because you can do what ever you want without any serious worries and any emotions involved in it. That’s because you are not trading your own money. I can guaranty you that once you put a real money in the account the emotions will show up and than the whole fun will disappear.
I will suggest you to spend some more time on education about the differences in demo and live trading.
Also, I think that no matter how much money you have, you should start trading with the lowest amount possible because you will lose them any way, like any other beginner.
And yes, I think you should go live definitely. Just be careful, about your expectations and actions you will take. Trading is not something what you can learn overnight, it takes a years before someone can become a consistently profitable.
This is what i am realy afraid of… my goal is also to double my 1000 euro account but still i can not established a solid strategy… i wish one day i’ll set up a strategy that improves itself so i can get in to live trade world like pros…
I really would not take this seriously at all. Its suspect to me. Anyone claiming you can double your account like this will have ulterior motives which probably translates to them doubling THEIR account at your expense.
