At first, trading can feel like a side project. For a lot of beginners, it’s a way to pass time, try “a new challenge,” or just satisfy their curiosity. But there comes a moment when it stops feeling like a hobby and starts feeling like a career in the making.
Maybe it was the first time you treated risk seriously, or the moment you realized your decisions were impacting real money. Maybe it was when you started keeping a journal, tracking progress, or feeling a responsibility to improve every day.
When did you realize trading wasn’t just a hobby for you anymore?
In the beginning, I had heard lots of stories about how people got started with trading. But I hadn’t heard about how anyone felt. I hadn’t heard any personal stories. Sometimes, on social media, you don’t know what’s real and what’s not.
But there was a trader on the forums here, and I sent him a message. I asked him what his personal story was; did he experience any emotional challenges?
He told me his story and how he felt horrible during his first year, but his trading improved after that.
That’s when trading became real for me. A real person told me how he struggled and how he felt. It made me realize that I’m not the only one, and that it’s possible to succeed in forex.
Also, there was a time (before switching to demo) that I had several trades open and my paper profits were up 30%.
Well, I goofed it all up and lost most of it, but IF I had closed those positions that money would’ve been mine. That showed me that there is money to be had in the market.
All these things helped me see that success in forex trading is real, and that it was gonna be more than just a hobby for me.
It was probably when I started treating risk management as my goal, rather than making a profit every day. That was when my results greatly improved.
I think “Did I stick totally to my trading plan today?” is a much more important question than “Did I win or lose today?”
(That’s assuming that your trading plan is based on a real edge, of course. And that depends in turn on knowing how to tell whether it is. But without that knowledge and ability to start with, you have no chance anyway, so it’s a well justified assumption.)
For me, it was when I was learned that you simply must cut losses short.
I found this really hard to learn and it took me too long.
I’d seen lots of apparently reliable sources telling me, but somehow I didn’t believe it applied to me.
I could’ve saved a lot of time and losses if I’d just accepted that nobody who lets the occasional trade run into real losses because they “know” it’ll eventually turn round ever trades profitably in the long run. It is actually true, but it’s terribly hard for some people to accept and I was one of them.
Seeing that “King of Forex” idiot on Youtube eventually losing so many of his subscribers’ accounts (again!) was the turning point for me. The turning point into safety and gradual profit.
Consecutive double digit profitable months. Hitting a +30% month once. It’s not consistent right now, but I’ve experienced those events, so I know it’s possible.
Aww. Thanks for sharing this Dushimes! I’m sure that person would be amazed at how far you’ve come ever since that convo. If you don’t mind, are you guys still in touch with each other?
OOOH. This one hits close to home! But tbh, I’m still on the side of “Did I win or lose today?” It’s still kinda challenging for me to track my progress otherwise. What do you do during those moments you find yourself deviating from your trading plan?
For me, the shift happened the moment I stopped chasing excitement and started respecting the process.
It wasn’t one big win it was the first time I treated every position like a business decision, not a bet.
When I began journaling my trades, refining my setups, analysing my mistakes, and protecting capital with intention, that’s when I realised it wasn’t a hobby anymore.
It became a discipline.
And once discipline entered the picture, trading turned from “something I do” into “something I’m building.”
For me, it was when I found myself trading even after losing over and over again. Hmm. In the past, I get bored or tired easily, but I found myself looking forward to the challenge of forex. Of course the profits help too! But of course I can’t say I’m already on the same level as the others here.
To be honest I haven’t really decided yet that it’s more than a hobby. But I’m aware of the possibility and I recognize that it is for some people. I have a way to go, though.
Nice forum, and I hope it’s ok to make my first post in this thread.
Thanks for sharing this Dushimes! 
But tbh, I’m still on the side of “Did I win or lose today?” It’s still kinda challenging for me to track my progress otherwise. 
What do you do during those moments you find yourself deviating from your trading plan? 