Pipcrawler's Thoughts on Setting Newbie Expectations

[FringFX]

It's the markets fault, and the government needs to step in to save us. That 50:1 one regulation rule, in Dodd Frank was a start, I imagine if it weren't there, it wouldn't have taken 2 years for me to lose my life savings, but a week.
Either way, the solution is that they decrease the leverage, because I am always tempted to use more
I follow the trend, I trade using trend lines, I trade when the indicators tell me too, I look at the news reports, but I still lose, and that is because the government is not doing enough to protect newer traders.

how can you lose a lot of money if you really 'follow the trend'?
are you sure you know the real trend whenever you place a trade?
if you are tempted to use more leverage, why not restrain yourself? ever heard of trying to impose self-discipline?

you will continue to put blame on others until you learn to realize and face the realities of your actions.

[sman1109]

how can you lose a lot of money if you really 'follow the trend'?
are you sure you know the real trend whenever you place a trade?
if you are tempted to use more leverage, why not restrain yourself? ever heard of trying to impose self-discipline?

you will continue to put blame on others until you learn to realize and face the realities of your actions.

A trend is lower highs and higher highs, or lows and lower lows, but the market does not let one get in at the right time, for those trends.

the government has to manage the market to protect me from further losses, if it had reduced to 10 to 1 leverage I would probably be able to manage and entry into a trend.

when I put on my leverage, it gives me a margin call, before it follows the trend.

[Tassiefx]

No offence to anyone intended, but if a person loses their life savings, then they have not learned the rules they should abide by from the beginning.

Rule 1 - Don't invest money into Forex that you cannot afford to lose. If you do and find a losing streak, desperation will start to rule your decisions, not an unemotional mind - which is what is needed.

Rule 2 - Risk Management. If you have the correct risk management and place stoplosses accordingly, your capital WILL be safe. Do not chase your losses. They will come and must be expected, but follow your plan and you will ride them out. I, for one, decide to risk a % of my capital and adjust lot size accordingly. Never risk more than you are prepared to lose.

Rule 3 - Trade your plan. You need to have worked out a trading plan, and as such, most likely used it on demo for a period to get used to it as well as check its results over an extended period.

Rule 4 - Determine your exit strategy. Yes, you have a stop loss there, but what if you have a decisive signal that the trade is no longer valid?? Get out of it! Cut the losses. Likewise, what is your strategy once you are in profit? My last trade (last Thursday), I took half profit at a pre-determined fib level and moved S/L to breakeven, then went to bed, expecting the trade to continue. It reversed, but I had my protective stop in place and money already in the bank from it. Multiple people here on Babypips took exactly the same trade, but we all differed slightly with our exit strategies - but at least we had a strategy.

Please do not look at a trading plan being the be all and end all of your success or failure in Forex. Two people can take the exact same signals. One can become financially independant while the other can lose everything. The signal, or plan is only one small component of a much bigger puzzle. People make good money with a 70% strike rate. People lose money with a 70% strike rate. I personally know one person financially stable off Forex alone who has a strike rate between 40% and 50%. It is possible, if your money management is correct. He also is very aggressive in getting out of his trades when they reverse and let the winners run. Quite successful.

For someone who thinks Forex is a scam, maybe you need to step back from using real money to start with. Study Babypips and find something that resonates with you. Personally, I am a VSA trader. Others will call it voodoo but it works for me. Find that method that works for you. I'd encourage reading some as well. Have a look at Master the Markets (VSA Basics) and especially Trading in the Zone, which is more on thought process etc.

Don't give up. Keep persisting and learning. It is darkest just before dawn.

Tassie

[Tassiefx]

A trend is lower highs and higher highs, or lows and lower lows, but the market does not let one get in at the right time, for those trends.

the government has to manage the market to protect me from further losses, if it had reduced to 10 to 1 leverage I would probably be able to manage and entry into a trend.

when I put on my leverage, it gives me a margin call, before it follows the trend.

The market will let you get in when you want to get in. The decision and responsibility for executing an order remains with the trader. If in an uptrend, you need to be aware of the cycles and buy the dips, likewise, in a downtrend sell the peaks. Easy said, but I seem to be doing a pretty good job of it.

A big difference that I see is that I try to understand what is happening, which is not signal based. Signals tell you what has happened.

Example for you in my trading environment.
I use Support and resistance (es, I know - simple)
I use Fib ratios, especially 50-61.8 fib areas being support/resistance levels.
I consider Elliot waves as well, looking to trade into the 3rd and 5th waves.
My big simple entry is to buy/sell after a No Demand/No Supply confirmation when the background is in confluence and I am not trading into any levels of support/resistance.

I do not make many trades, but the ones I do trade are quality. That said, I have also recently started to bounce back from my longest losing streak (4 in a row), but money management will protect that.

I don't want to sound disrespectful, but it really does sound like you have not looked too deeply at money management, since you seem to always get margin calls. You should have a stop loss well before then and take the loss on the bad ones. The only person that ca protect you from losses is you. Money management helps that. That is the big difference, in my opinion, between being a "Trader" and a "Gambler".

btw - Governments do not protect people who want to part with their money in a casino, so they would not do that here. Your margin call is not to protect you, it is to protect your broker. Have a good think on that one and I do hope to see you back on that horse, but please try demo for a while.

[sman1109]

You are not following me Tassie, the government sees FOREX as an unregulated casino, for which it is. With actual casinos, everyone knows the odds are against them, with FOREX, people believe the odds are in their favor. This is what makes people lose their life savings trading FOREX, there have been many studies done by the government on the brokers and 90 percent of people lose their money.

They don't study the casino because everyone understands, that the odds are against them, and not fooled by the FOREX market to make "investments' which are actually gambles.

Secondly, concerning my personal trading methods, my point is me and most people who lose in this market are tempted beyond our control to increase the leverage to make more money. They are letting us trading 50:1, and after 2 years of trading, I am not a NEWBIE, as you are falsely assuming, I have many hours and 2 years of experience trading in this market. For those two years I have learned that eventually, no matter what "will power" these other guys have suggested, most traders will act like me and use MORE LEVERAGE, simply because its there.

I have lost my life savings trading in this market, 90 percent of traders according to Government Research have lost their money trading with brokers, unless my speech is banned I will continue to be the one who isn't ashamed to speak out against those who exploit me, and the people like me.

The majority of FOREX retail traders lose money, they will not admit it here out of shame from the things people say here, but that is part of the problem because newer traders get caught in the SCAM. So I will continue to exclaim the truth here, to protect people from losing their life savings, as I have and many others have.

BTW, when the government collects tax monies from the casinos, they use that money to build our countries. When the RICH FOREX traders collect the losses from the FOREX casino, they build their personal mansions and kingdoms, not society.

[yunny1]

Secondly, concerning my personal trading methods, my point is me and most people who lose in this market are tempted beyond our control to increase the leverage to make more money. They are letting us trading 50:1, and after 2 years of trading, I am not a NEWBIE, as you are falsely assuming, I have many hours and 2 years of experience trading in this market. For those two years I have learned that eventually, no matter what "will power" these other guys have suggested, most traders will act like me and use MORE LEVERAGE, simply because its there.

I do not know you but you have all the traits of a NEWBIE... you do NOT understand fully leverage and position value, you were overtrading, and blaming someone else for your silly mistakes.

Why don't you show us some of your trades... I bet we can tell you what REALLy went wrong...

[Tassiefx]

Smam,
You cannot make the government take responsibility for your actions. If you cannot be disciplined in Forex, you WILL lose. I am disciplined in my approach.
Governments may take taxed from casinos, but they do not own them. The casinos owners build their personal mansions and kingdoms.

I feel you did not find an edge that suits you in Forex, along with not having the discipline to "rinse and repeat" your method. That is not a problem for governments, or the big players in Forex. You have got to stand up and say it is your own problem.

Can I ask, and I am not trying to bait you or do/say anything negative, but could you explain the plan you had for trading. What sort of setups/strategies you employed, staking as % of bank and risk management?

If I ever hear of anyone saying that they were going to put their life savings into forex, I would tell them not to and they need to really look at their motivations. Are life savings going in to become rich overnight? With that much at risk, emotion takes over and when a trade goes against you, you tend to let it run a bit more hoping it will reverse. That will kill your account and goes AGAINST everything taught in Forex.

You will sweat if you have 20% exposure to the market. How worried will you get with 2% max risk knowing that even if you did not adjust lot sizes after each trade, you would still need 50 trades to lose in a row to destroy your account.

My own money management is always risk a % of what is currently in my account, so in a scenario where I choose losere forever, my account will go down, but never to zero.

You really need to step back, look at your actions and results, detached from emotion and take responsibility for your own actions.

I do this after every trade, especially the losing ones. I go back on them and if the setup was correct but a loser still, then that is fine. Forex will never be 100%. If I broke one of my rules or the setup wasn't correct, I don't bash myself over it, but I will take learnings from it and become a better trader for it.

[sman1109]

I have been risking 25 percent of my account on every trade, but that is why there is extra leverage, so that I can turn 100 dollars into 1,000 dollars.

I never trade when my color bar reads red, only yellow, green doesn't produce enough profits so I try not to trade in the green.

FOREX tempts you this way, to make good money you HAVE to use leverage, the GOVERNMENT must reduce the leverage or 9 out of 10 traders will continue to lose money, and that's not fair.

I hear the American rules are coming all over the world, Canada has adopted our lower leverage, soon Australia and the rest of the EU. This will help make FOREX fair for everyone.

[yunny1]

Lol you are such a troll.... You are just pretending to be retarded to annoy traders here.

or maybe a retarded, pretending to be a troll

[Tassiefx]

If it is true that you are risking 25%, can I ask what have you been learning/training with the last few years on forex?
There is nothing anywhere that recommends risking that much. If it is true, you were on a road to pain no matter what and "Entire Life Savings" loss was inevietable. I use a solid method, and I had 4 losers in a row in June. Money management and risk management is something you obviously not taken any notice of, and as such will lose everything.

Do not blame the Forex world. Blame yourself buddy.

End of topic for me, only due to the fact that I am not convinced you have done what you say you have done and do not seem genuine. Nobody with training would ever risk 25% of an account

[Banker928]

Delete post

[Tassiefx]

True Banker, and making a genuine newbie think that this is stacked against them, no matter what. Forex is profitable. You have just got to follow the bascs and follow them well. Trade your plan. Have good money management and risk management. Plenty of people here making good money and some fantastic people helping those who want to learn.

[sman1109]

If it is true that you are risking 25%, can I ask what have you been learning/training with the last few years on forex?
There is nothing anywhere that recommends risking that much. If it is true, you were on a road to pain no matter what and "Entire Life Savings" loss was inevietable. I use a solid method, and I had 4 losers in a row in June. Money management and risk management is something you obviously not taken any notice of, and as such will lose everything.

Do not blame the Forex world. Blame yourself buddy.

End of topic for me, only due to the fact that I am not convinced you have done what you say you have done and do not seem genuine. Nobody with training would ever risk 25% of an account

There is no regulated training for FOREX, not even a trade school would certify this Casino.

I have been trading for almost 2 years now, and yes I risk 25 percent of my account on every trade, and have yet to turn a profit.

There is no way to risk less, the pay out is not going to be good. Maybe if the regulations were enforced, for 10 to 1 leverage, then maybe I would take lower risk trades.

But I have lost my life savings due to these horrible temptations, for two years I have been exploited by the rich, and Newbies should not believe what you guys say, you are the ones making money of them.

I am just advising Newbies on what is happening, and that is according to the facts from government studies, if anyone would like this I would gladly link you to them, but 9 out of 10 of you will lose money, and considerable money, in this market.

Don't let the vultures fool you, they feed off you, to pay for their mansions.

[yunny1]

There is no way to risk less, the pay out is not going to be good.

you were greedy as hell... I really hope you don't have family that depends on you

Maybe if the regulations were enforced, for 10 to 1 leverage, then maybe I would take lower risk trades.

Then you would have taken 10 years to throw away your life savings

[Tassiefx]

Sman,
You will never get anywhere in life if you cannot accept responsibility for your own actions.
What do you expect forex to be?? Do you expect to go to the bank, loan a million or two, throw it into forex for a week and double it??
You are stating exactly what YOUR problems are, but you cannot see it.

Whether you have 10:1 leverage or 400:1 leverage, if you risk 25% of your account and lose, guess what, you lose that 25%. You fail to understand what leverage is and how to manage it with correct risk and trade management.

With what you have said, and what you continue to say, I can see that you are doing nothing but trolling. You are not listening to anyone at all. You take no responsibility for 25% risk when no forum, book or anything would recommend risking yourself that much. If what you said is true, then you were guaranteed to lose it all.

I am sure any newbies that read all of this can see your mistakes as clear as water.

If I am wrong, and you are genuine with what you have said, then I have this for you to ponder.

In order to be successful, do you try to do it alone, or do you find someone successful who trades how you want to trade and learn from them. I have three mentors who are all here on Babypips and they have all helped me so much.

Just take some responsibility for your own actions Sman. Do you blame everyone else if you were at fault in a car accident, or blame the manafacturer for not having a crash avoidance system in the car???

[sman1109]

Tassie, you are trolling for more victims or newbies, to help you profit in this market. The rules of this FOREX game, are not fair still, 50:1 leverage is when I started trading, it has been in effect for almost 2 years now, but it is still too much for NEWBIE traders to start in.

After 2 years, I am still a NEWBIE trader, and I would like younger newbies to heed my advice, and not get into this market with the fantasies that you and the majority of people here tell us.

It plays into the lies, and temptations, that make 90 percent of traders lose, and you guys are financially exploiting us.

Until the leverage is lowered, it does not make sense for ANY newbie to go into this market, and you want facts?

SURE

The average individual foreign-exchange-trading victim loses about $15,000, according to CFTC records

In a "Fair Game" (one with no information advantages) between two players that continues until one trader goes bankrupt, the player with the lower amount of capital has a higher probability of going bankrupt first. Since the retail speculator is effectively playing against the market as a whole - which has vastly more capital - they will almost certainly go bankrupt. The retail trader always pays the bid/ask spread which makes his odds of winning less than those of a fair game. Additional costs may include margin interest, or if a spot position is kept open for more than one day the trade may be "resettled" each day, each time costing the full bid/ask spread.

[piptronix]

Bets are open.
How many days, will it take for the mods to ban Sman?
I say he'll be gone by tomorrow.

[Tassiefx]

Yup,
Done talking. Happy to discuss with a reasonable person though, with reasonable expectations and especially with some sort of trading discipline. I for one don't need to explain my knowledge or actions. I am on the right path and am happy for knowing that

Best off ignoring Sman and helping people who want to learn, and are willing to listen and take responsibility themselves. Seeya Sman - hope you come around one day. I feel you will stay a bitter person though.

[FringFX]

A trend is lower highs and higher highs, or lows and lower lows, but the market does not let one get in at the right time, for those trends.
when I put on my leverage, it gives me a margin call, before it follows the trend.

it does let you in at the right time. based on your post, you obviously do not know this. the question are, will you be able to identify the opportunity and if you will be able to put on a trade.
you are either too early or too late when you open your positions. you need to tweak it.

[sman1109]

it does let you in at the right time. based on your post, you obviously do not know this. the question are, will you be able to identify the opportunity and if you will be able to put on a trade.
you are either too early or too late when you open your positions. you need to tweak it.

No it doesn't it breaks trend lines, or starts new trends without giving me a good time. Like the EUR USD just broke, reversal, and when I sold, it shot up 50-100 pips and I got margin called and lost what was left of my life savings.

This game is rigged for the rich, only they can withstand those cushions