How to trade successfully

There are many traders in the markets, but only few are achieving consistent profits. To join the ranks of successful traders you need to jump two hurdles: You need a structured trading system, and you need a trader’s mindset to implement this system.

Don’t be fooled by the seemingly unimportant “trader’s mindset”! The best trading system is not worth much if your fear or other emotions are stopping you from following it exactly.

What is a structured trading system

This is your first hurdle in your journey to becoming a successful trader. You need a structured well-designed trading system. Your trading approach starts with trade discovery, has a defined entry point, a methodology of trade management, and an exit point which has been defined prior to entering the trade.

So a trading system in a nutshell is a combination of structured and detailed rules which take all the guesswork and emotional reactions out of your trading and replace those with indisputable decisions. Trading with a system means finding, managing and exiting each trade with a set of clear guidelines which have all been defined prior to entering the trade, as explained in How to design a successful trading strategy.

Trading psychology: The trading mindset

This is what I call the second hurdle in trading, and it is a big one! You need to have the psychological makeup to follow the rules of your trading system no matter what. This point is the least understood and appreciated aspect of trading and goes well beyond trading system development. Ultimately it is not the trading system itself but the ability of the trader to implement the system successfully, with discipline and without emotions.

So you need to emotionally detach yourself from your trading. Your emotions, family circumstances, world news and other things may not influence your trading decisions, or even the best trading system will achieve poor trading results. You may not have this trading mindset, but it can be learned! You will will basically get there with experience – and I mean experience gained over time.

Trade successfully sooner!

There is a way to become a successful trader sooner. You can speed up the process of creating your own trading system by attending seminars and learning all you can about other traders’ methodologies. But be careful that they are actually teaching you a complete “system” of trading, rather than an unconnected series of strategies and other bits of trading jargon, with the intention of up-selling you multiple times along the way.

To fast-track the development of your trading mindset we recommend to spend at least three months with a trading coach or mentor who will not only teach you a good trading system, but also coach you in your approach to applying this system to your trading. Together your mentor’s guidance you should soon be able to implement all stages of your trading system without emotions clouding your decisions. See the Options21 Options Mentoring pages…

When you decide on further education we urge you to “google” the mentor or business in consideration and to use the term “scam”, “warnings” or “review” in your searches! You want to be sure they deliver what they promise.