@dpaterso That is a superb post: it should be gold-plated and pinned to the top of all forums.
Sadly the fact that there is no single cure for permanent hair loss will not stop lots of people trying anything and wasting good money in the process: so it is with forex trading. In the end, the fact that any reasonably educated person can make a small investment in stocks or shares that requires little time and will keep adding value to that capital makes that proposition more attractive: it seems to me that a lot.of equally educated people fail to trade forex because it is like squaring a circle, that is to say applying reason to something that is completely illogical ON TOP OF having all the usual risks associated with leveraged trading. It is a mountain that never gets easier to climb.
I came into trading because the low-interest environment from banks made the idea of investing any future savings quite unattractive, but I must say that unless you get paid a wage for spending hours in front of a screen then you should think about putting money in the bank or buying some shares and letting the money do the work for you, because unless you are a recluse with no love interest, no friends, and no life, then you would soon find that all that time spent studying forex charts etc. for very little to show for it will soon wear you down and make you realise that you would rather invest that most precious commodity (i.e. your time) into other people, like family and friends, into your fitness, into a more sociable hobby, into anything more worthwhile.
I know some people here and off-site who make various degrees of profit from currency trading but they usually have much greater capital than me or the average retail trader, which means that whatever system they use they can open accounts with more elite brokers who only give access to investors with larger wallets: this means better spreads and low or zero commission costs, which in turn means very low trading overheads and that a trader can really go for 4 to 8 pips as targets and leverage up, because those pips will not be eaten by spread costs etc.
What for? You remembee i had a campaign going on as TURBONero a honorary fx-men, which tried to show people they can not make money with forex. Based with data statistics and proof.
And what did it get me? TURBONero got banned and account deleted. I mean, not that i care.
But lets face one hard fundamental fact of life which is true in any environment;
People dont want to hear the truth if it goes against their dreams/believes.
And this is a forex forum. So if you cant stop them from breaking their accounts over and over again, at least have a good laugh while you watch them braking their accounts.
Profitable traders that I know of on here: @SimonTemplar (using end-of-day candle system): @MrDE , formerly TurboNero, using good old support and resistance; @PipNRoll, though not sure what she uses: @lexys , sadly no longer on these forums, using the Ross Hook system; @eddieb, using the Three Ducks system.
I know that there will be others, e.g. @anon46773462, but I cannot comment specifically - my memory fails me.
Some of the above have TRADING/RISK capital with which they can trade with sufficient leverage and small enough targets to make it possible to live on that. They also have no mortgage to pay on a house, and/or a significant other who does not make a living from trading financials, thus having a fall-back fixed income to lean on when the going gets tough
What this means is that if you go it alone with little money and going for huge bets using capital that you csnnot afford to lose you are setting yourself up to fail.
I have to correct you on myself. U got old datas as we didnt talk quite a time about our activities Not using any specific “system” but fundamentals and then good old finding low risk entries. And since 2018 i live solely of “trading”. Sold my hotels in april 18 and since then do only “trading”.
“Trading” in exclamation marks simply because i dont call it “trading”. Imo and in truth its speculating what im doing. Trading i leave to the people trying to find a no-brainer system to scalp forex markets.
While I was reading them though something else did occur to me:
You actually cannot blame the uninformed (for the most part anyway) for actually believing in their own (albeit misguided) chances of success in the retail spot FOREX market. There is an extremely well funded, well oiled, and effective marketing machine at play. And coming from somebody who not only used to work for a gaming company some many many many years ago (as in a previous lifetime) but was also involved with a gambling addict for a time: I can tell you that it is absolutely frightening the amount of money spent by, and the lengths gone to by, these large gaming companies in order to ensure as far as possible that they retain their punters and keep them gambling. Free lunches and dinners, free weekends, free drinks, free tickets to shows, you name it. Even the air conditioning and ceilings and lighting in these places is designed in such a way so as to all but ensure that the punters lose track of time and end up spending whole days and whole nights just gambling away their money. And all of which have only one purpose and that’s to keep the punter engaged one way or the other. Even resorting to gifting free money or tokens at times and on special occasions. The reason: they know for sure that just about nobody will take a trip to a casino and go and gamble their free money and then leave once they’ve lost that money. They will for sure then use their own funds thereafter simply because they’re already physically there. And it’s all down to marketing. And it’s done in such a way that even somebody with a gambling problem is made to feel good about themselves and that success is possible and that there is no shame in losing. Is is disgusting, shameful, and insidious. And I’ll tell you that if there is another industry that is in dire need of regulation when it comes to the marketing side of things it’s the gaming industry. A worldwide ban on cigarette advertising. But the gaming industry is allowed to continue with impunity. Unbelievable. In my fifty four years: I’ve never head of somebody losing the farm because they smoked!!!
Now for sure I can see a whole bunch of parallels and similarities between the marketing strategies employed by the gaming industry and those employed by the retail spot FOREX industry. Free bonuses. High leverage. Roadshows. Incessant marketing emails and text messages. Brokers actually giving out trading advice in some instances. The list goes on and on and on.
Now before anybody loses their marbles: I’m not stating as fact that the retail spot FOREX market is akin to gambling (although I do have my personal thoughts on this but which I shall keep to myself). But there is no denying that the marketing tactics used are eerily similar. And it’s but one of the reasons why somebody with eleven posts and no trading experience whatsoever feel that they can, with confidence mind you, challenge rational debate and opinions based on years of experience and dare I say misfortune.
Well first of all you’d better edit your post because I edited mine while you were typing. So my quote has some important features missing!!! LOL!!!
But second:
My broker is UK FCA registered and regulated but offers spread betting accounts in addition to everything else. Matter of fact my main account is indeed a spread betting account (mainly because it’s a whole bunch easier to calculate risk across instruments more than anything else). So not sure how that fits into your statement. Not questioning your statement. Just mentioning.
Anyway. Let’s not get bogged down in details here re: different types of accounts and regulation.
My point really is that due to this total marketing onslaught: it’s pretty difficult for the uninformed to make a rational decision or see the wood for the trees.
Not using any specific “system” but fundamentals and then good old finding low risk entries. And since 2018 i live solely of “trading”. Sold my hotels in april 18 and since then do only “trading”.