FXstreet.com: Education: Trading Strategies

Conventional Technical Analysis Strategies, A Flawed School of Thought

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:34:36 GMT

Conventional technical analysis strategies have been around a long time. Some say this school of thought dates back more than one hundred years. While it is popular with traders and its rules and beliefs fill entire sections at all major book stores, I would argue that this school of thought really offers little to no edge in the world of market speculation when it comes to strategies. I have written on this topic before and each time, I receive some not so happy e-mails from those who

When Trading Becomes Gambling...

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:24:45 GMT

Can we class trading as gambling? Are these two activities more similar than we think and is profitable trading simply down to a run of luck? This is a question I have been asked on numerous occasions by newcomers and naysayers. "You are just a glorified gambler," is a comment which I have often had thrown my way and to someone who does not fully understand the structure and specifics of the money markets, I would agree that this could be taken as a fair statement. However, after structured

Right Time, Right Market

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 11:52:57 GMT

Indicators have both their advantages and their disadvantages. When most new traders are introduced to them, they get pretty excited as they believe that they have found the magic tools to solve all of their trading needs. They think that all that is needed to be consistently profitable in the Forex markets is to follow the signals of when to buy and sell when the indicator gives them, and then the rest will just work itself out. Ask any veteran trader if they do things like this, however, and

Properly Thinking the Forex Market

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 12:39:40 GMT

One of the main problems new traders have when they begin their journey down the education path to self empowerment is that they skip the most important first step: How to properly "think" money and markets. Many of my articles deal with thinking the trading side of the equation; everything from the mechanics of when to buy and sell, to understanding the psychology issues for you and the person on the other side of your trade. Today, let's take a walk through the history of one of the best

A Little Something to Take the Emotion Out

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:41:09 GMT

Without the right set of rules and more importantly the right attitude, attaining a successful trading career can and will be an uphill struggle from the very start. The facts don't lie and anyone interested in gaining a profitable experience in Forex trading needs to accept the facts from the moment they begin their journey. Statistics suggest that around 90% of traders in the market today lose, with just a margin of 10% attaining key success on a consistent basis. Various factors influence

The Avocado

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:28:53 GMT

I have been in the business of trading and trading education for many years. The most fascinating part of money and markets for me is witnessing how the masses around the world "think" the markets. I guess a more accurate way to describe it would be to say "miss-think" the markets. What the average person who gets involved in trading or investing does not understand is that for the most part, they already know how to properly buy into markets before ever opening an account or reading a book on

Start as You Mean to Go On

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:29:43 GMT

One of the most rewarding aspects of instructing for Online Trading Academy is getting to work with new students. As well as teaching in the ongoing XLT program with various graduates of Online Trading Academy, I also have the pleasure of welcoming new students to the world of Forex trading when I teach in the classroom from time to time. This has been one of those weeks in London where I have been teaching the Forex Trader course and as usual, my students arrived on the very first day, each

Market Traps, Novice Traders Beware

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 11:35:29 GMT

There is a hand signal we use on the trading floor. The signal is to put your hand to your throat like your choking yourself. The name for this signal is "hung." Not a pretty visual I know but its meaning is just as uncomfortable. A trader will do this when they are stuck in a very bad losing position. Most often, it was someone buying right into supply (resistance) right before price collapsed, or selling short right into demand (support), right before a strong rally. Whether the action was a

Like Minds, Individual Approach

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 10:17:42 GMT

This has been a great week. At the time of writing this article, I am currently sitting in the Online Trading Academy Headquarters in California, after spending a productive few days at the company's International Conference. I had the chance to spend some time hanging out with my fellow instructors in the ongoing XLT programs, share ideas and chat about our trading styles. I talked with Sam Seiden, Michelle Volmering, Steve Misic, Brandon Wendell and Eric Ochotnicki and it struck me once

Important Resources for Futures Traders

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 10:09:43 GMT

One of the fastest growing and most popular asset classes in the world is Futures. There are a few reasons why this asset class is so attractive to both retail and professional market speculators. Some Benefits of the Futures Markets: No $25,000 minimum requirement like you have in Equities Plenty of leverage, low margin requirements Most of the major Futures markets that we want to trade have close to 24 hour trading Only set of markets in the world where you have real non-correlated /

Forex Fundamentals & News: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 10:59:06 GMT

There is a lot of information on trading and I mean a lot. As traders we can use various tools such as charts, news, Fundamentals and Technical Indicators to name just a few. But what are the best ones to use? In a world full of opinion and hypothesis, it can often be difficult to decide on what route to take when speculating in the Forex markets. As I have stated many times in the past, the key to consistent results in the market is being comfortable with the set of rules that you as an

A Smart Trading Group, Getting Smarter

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 13:24:51 GMT

I can always tell how much someone knows about trading and markets and how well they are doing by listening to their questions. With each new year, questions, in general, have become more and more intelligent which means the competition is getting stronger. Recently, some important questions have been sent to me by Online Trading Academy students. For your benefit, I thought I would share them and the answers with you in this piece. Good Morning Sam, This AM I took 2 trades a minute into the

Sun, Sea, Sangria and Hedging

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 11:28:28 GMT

I like to do things differently, that's a fact. One of the first "light bulb" moments I had during the start of my trading career was the sharp realization that if one is to be consistently successful in the Forex markets, their actions need to differentiate from the majority. The first time a new Online Trading Academy student walks into my classroom or joins us in the ongoing XLT - Forex Trading program, I say to them, "Remember, nobody cares about your money more than you do." The reaction

Foolsville, Part 2

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 11:24:45 GMT

Typically, I write these articles from the comforts of my home, when things are nice and quiet, and after plenty of thought. Not this time... As I am writing, I am on an airplane cruising at 34,000 feet on my way home from Foolsville. This trip was such an experience, I could not wait to start writing and sharing it with you. I was there two days and really made the most of my time. In the end, I finally figured out something I have been wondering about for a long time. I will go over that in

It's All in Your Head Part 2: The Fear of Loss

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 13:45:02 GMT

A couple of weeks ago I wrote an article called "It's All in Your Head." I would like to thank everyone for their feedback on that particular article, as it seemed to hit home with quite a few of you out there and I enjoyed writing it very much. The last thing I was planning on doing, however, was writing a follow-up, yet much like trading for a living, unexpected events occur and you have to learn to evolve, so here I am revisiting this subject once more. As a writer and instructor for Online

Questions and Answers – Things You May Want To Know

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 13:18:18 GMT

It's been a busy few weeks but I do have a little break in my schedule. I am going to use this time wisely and take that trip to Foolsville. I was able to reschedule my meeting with the Foolsville Mayor and the finance board so I will get some questions answered and report all this to you soon. When I called to make my travel arrangements, they suggested an airline I never heard of before. When I checked prices, I realized that this was the most expensive way to get to Foolsville. I quickly

When It's Time to Take a Break from a Great Relationship...

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 12:14:28 GMT

Forex trading has many benefits, including great leverage, 24Hr markets and more transparent Fundamentals. In the ongoing XLT - Forex Trading sessions, I regularly talk about these benefits and each and every student in the class makes the most of these advantages on a day to day basis. We go through the importance of having a detailed understanding of Supply and Demand, managing trades unemotionally and scouting the markets for only the Lowest Risk, High Probability opportunities on offer.

Losing To Win, It's All In Your Perception

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 12:09:26 GMT

I am winner My whole life, I have been very involved in sports. Ice hockey, soccer, golf, and tennis are the sports I love to compete in. Playing hockey at such a high level, I learned how to win, consistently. There were always teams in the league that would win consistently and others that would lose. When we would play a team that had a bad record, sometimes they would be leading the game for a while but I never worried. It was almost like we could be down by a few goals and we knew we were

It's All In Your Head...

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 11:16:48 GMT

The world of Forex trading is by far one of the most interesting I have ever encountered. Here we have an environment where someone can work from literally anywhere in the world, call their own working hours and be their own boss. Even if we don't include the potential financial rewards, being a full-time trader has plenty of attractive benefits! I guess this is why many individuals around the world give trading a shot and dream of making a consistent income from it. However, as we all know,

Motion Into Mass

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 11:19:29 GMT

I wonder if Isaac Newton realized when drafting his laws of motion and mass that these principles also precisely defined the movement in price in any and all markets? Newton first described the relationship of forces acting on a body and the motion of that body in his work, Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica, Latin for, "Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy." Below are Newton's first and second laws in Latin from the original 1687 edition of Principia Mathematica. Does

Great Expectations

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 11:15:56 GMT

This week, I will focus on a simple, yet fundamental aspect of each and every trade: Expectation. In both the Online Trading Academy classroom and the XLT - Forex Trading, I like to constantly remind students of the market, that they need to be disciplined risk managers at all times, with a robust application of a sound trading plan. Consistency in trading comes from a solid combination of understanding Price Action, identifying the highest probability, low risk turning points and most

Foolsville, Part 1

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 11:39:40 GMT

Growing up, I tried to do what I was told to do much of the time, whether I agreed with it or not. After all, what did I know, I was just a kid. In school, I was taught what everyone else was taught and therefore, learned what everyone else learned. To be honest, this never really felt right to me. At the time, I didn't know why it felt uncomfortable but something didn't sit right with me about how I was learning. I ended up spending as much time in school as I needed to in order to keep those

FX Trading as a Business or Hobby…You Decide

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 10:41:39 GMT

As a member of Online Trading Academy's teaching roster, I have the privilege of working regularly with our growing community of graduates, some of whom I taught in one of their first classes. A high number of these students go on to enroll in the Extended Learning Track (XLT) program, where I watch their trading skills evolve with the markets on a daily basis. I find it easy to relate to the experiences my students have, as I can clearly remember the ups and downs I faced during my own

Where Most People Get It Wrong

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 10:26:58 GMT

The world of market speculating is made up of everyone from the active day trader to the longer term investor, speculating in all kinds of markets and asset classes. People all around the globe pushing buy and sell buttons each day in hopes of achieving income and wealth. Never in history has there been so many books written on how to speculate in markets. Each weekend in many cities around the world, there are educational seminars given on how to "get rich" from trading. With so much

Breakout Entries

editor@traders-journal.com (The Trader's Journal) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 15:07:26 GMT

This article is taken from the Trader's Journal magazine (August 2009 issue) The author, Sam Seiden , brings over 15 years experience of equities, Forex, options, and futures trading that began when he was on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. He has traded equities, futures, interest rate markets, Forex and options for his personal interests for years and has educated hundreds of traders and investors through seminars and daily advisory services both domestically and

What to Do If a Breakout Fails

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 10:41:46 GMT

One of the features of the Extended Learning Track (XLT) program is the trading and analysis session. The XLT - Forex Trading has this trading session at different times on different days in order to take advantage of the volatility spikes caused by the release of economic data from different parts of the world. Short term trading and analysis sessions can be very exciting at times. The week of August 21, 2009 was one of those weeks. On Sunday, August 16, 2009, China's main stock index fell

Why the Astute Market Speculator Loves Social Media

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 10:32:55 GMT

I am so grateful that I had the privilege of starting my career in the financial markets on the trading floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. The most important lesson I learned was how money is REALLY transferred from one trader's account to another. Every day, retail trader accounts would be transferred into institution accounts, market maker accounts, and so on. When markets would decline to price levels where the institutions had their buy orders (real demand), retail traders and

Beware of the Ponzi Trap in Forex

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 11:09:21 GMT

While scanning the Forex news recently, I noticed quite a few disturbing headlines. June 10, 2009 SEC Pulls Plug On Alleged $80M Forex Ponzi Scheme The Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday charged two California men and two companies they control for conducting an $80 million Ponzi scheme that targeted Korean-American investors with promises of extraordinary returns from currency trading. July 9, 2009 GA Man Charged With Running $15 Million Forex Ponzi Scheme -CFTC A Georgia man was

Same Tools, Different Thoughts

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 10:21:35 GMT

I have made my mark in trading and trading education by thinking differently. One of the things I am always fascinated with is how we are taught to do certain things and how we learn, specifically when it comes to anything that has to do with competing. In the United States for example, we compete for jobs, money, better this, and better that… Have you ever realized that in the biggest democracy in history, our school systems don't teach classes on how to compete? In capitalism, there is

The Death of the Buy-and-Hold Investor

editor@YTEmagazine.com (YourTradingEdge) — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 09:48:38 GMT

This article is taken from the YourTradingEdge magazine (MAY/JUNE 2009 issue) The author, Kel Butcher , is a full time futures, equities and derivatives trader. He is the author of ‘A Step-by-Step Guide to Buying and Selling Shares Online’. He also acts as a mentor and coach to other traders. The rout experienced by all the world’s equity markets during 2008 will be etched in the memories of share traders and investors for many, many years. Tales will be told, long after the bear market has

Playing the Field When the Trend's Not Your Friend

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 10:28:55 GMT

By Sam Evans, Extended Learning Track Instructor - Sam is filling in for Steve this week. Enjoy his article! It's not been an easy few months for Forex traders. Over the last nine weeks, a majority of currency pairs have been stuck in a truly indecisive range, fooling many novice traders into anticipating the next big breakout. I have heard constant remarks about the difficulty of these conditions and indeed such price action can be a little testing. However, over time, a trader learns to be

The Straight Answers to the Most Frequently Asked Questions

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 10:21:38 GMT

I thought I would use this week's piece to answer some important questions that many people likely share. Getting the right answers in an industry that is fraught with misleading information can be a daunting task for the new market speculator so I will do my best to give you the straight answer to some of the most frequently asked questions. Question: How long will it take me to become a successful market speculator? This is a frequently asked question. After being in the business for

Plan, execute, and then go do something more important than trading

editor@traders-journal.com (The Trader's Journal) — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 10:36:40 GMT

This article is taken from the Trader's Journal magazine (June 2009 issue) The author, Sam Seiden , brings over 15 years experience of equities, Forex, options, and futures trading that began when he was on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. He has traded equities, futures, interest rate markets, Forex and options for his personal interests for years and has educated hundreds of traders and investors through seminars and daily advisory services both domestically and internationally.

Does size matter?

editor@traders-journal.com (The Trader's Journal) — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 10:47:42 GMT

This article is taken from the Trader's Journal magazine (June 2009 issue) The author, Don Dawson , is the Online Trading Academy Commodity Futures Instructor. Futures trading attracts people thinking it will be easy to turn a small account into a large account. Reality is quite different – this is very difficult. Don Dawson discusses the traps of trading a small account and how to successfully trade a small account.

New US-Specific Forex Regulations To Be Aware Of

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 14:35:01 GMT

This week's article will review some of the new regulations affecting retail Forex traders with accounts in the US that are scheduled to take effect in August, 2009. The approval of Compliance Rule 2-43(b) became effective in November, 2008, but parts of the ruling are still being implemented over time to allow for changes to Forex trading platform software. This piece of the new regulation is designed to protect the US retail Forex trader from practices that the NFA (National Futures

Pro-Active Financial Management

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 10:15:02 GMT

Before I dive into this topic, let me start by saying that money does not buy happiness and yes, the best things in life are free. I am, however, old enough to realize that if I want to live in a nice neighborhood, have access to really good healthcare, travel and see the world, retire at some point, and provide some financial security for my family; I need money and buying power, and lots of it. To get right down to what is most important, it's all about having choices in life and

Strategies For Identifying Potential Breakouts in Low Volatility Forex Markets

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 12:34:20 GMT

There are many strategies for trading volatile markets. During periods of high volatility in the Forex markets, price often moves large distances without resting or retracing. Many times these moves happen in different time zones as reactions to economic data or global headlines cause changes in trader’s sentiment. This means that on certain days, the entire daily move might happen in the Asian session or in the European session while the US Forex trader is asleep. In order to participate in

Breakout Entries

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 12:23:28 GMT

I have been in the trading business for over 15 years as a trader, fund manager, and trainer, beginning on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. While I feel like I have seen it all, the one thing that still surprises me is how most traders handle breakouts. Most traders seem to let emotion complicate what can really be a simple, rule based, and very profitable strategy. Trading breakouts can be high risk, high stress, low reward, and low probability or this strategy can be low risk,

Three ways to manage risk

editor@traders-journal.com (The Trader's Journal) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 10:39:10 GMT

This article is taken from the Trader's Journal magazine (April 2009 issue) The author, Sam Seiden , brings over 15 years experience of equities, Forex, options, and futures trading that began when he was on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. He has traded equities, futures, interest rate markets, Forex, options, and commodities for his personal interests for years and has educated hundreds of traders and investors through seminars and daily advisory services both domestically and

Tracking Correlations Between Equities, Commodities, and Currencies

contact@tradingacademy.com (Online Trading Academy) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 11:00:14 GMT

In the Forex markets, prices move for many reasons. When US companies build factories overseas, the payroll of those workers must be paid in local currency which means the US Dollar is exchanged for units of the local currency. When the goods that are manufactured in this factory are sold in foreign countries, the conversion of those currencies back into US Dollars eventually takes place. US companies that extend credit to overseas customers often need to hedge against the risk that the