How “SIMPLE” it is to Trade for a LivingWe just reached +1K followers here so This article/post is a thank you for each and every one of you.
Short answer: not easy but doable if done the proper way (my story at the end)
Long answer: trading for a living is a fantasy every trader has. however, to be accomplished it requires a strong mindset, a proven record with an objective well-defined trading plan, a trading journal to learn from your mistakes and keep improving, financial stability, consistency…
Forget about these gurus taking pictures driving a Ferrari and partying all year, traveling the world, and trading on the beach. (these so-called gurus use it as a marketing plan to attract people on their pages)
Before I tell how you can trade for a living, let us consider these two aspects:
Psychological Aspect: you shouldn’t depend on your forex account as your main income (to pay your monthly bills) as you will get emotional, make irrational mistakes, and you will end up not following your trading plan objectively. consequently, you will be afraid that you won’t profit this week/month, thus won’t be able to pay your bills.
Technical Aspect: you shouldn’t withdraw from your account frequently (every month/year for example). Let’s say your account is 10 000$ and you managed to make a 100% growth by end of the year. so your account is now 20 000$.
Because you need to pay bills, you will have to withdraw the profits, so you are left with 10 000$ once again. To make another 100% next year to pay your bills again. so you are not getting any further and still stuck in the rat race.
The right way is to keep your profits for your account to grow exponentially. For example, if you have 10 000$ and you make a 100% return this year, your account is now 20 000$, you keep the profits, and your 1% per trade is now 200$ instead of 100$, by end of the second year you also make 100%, now you have 40 000$ and so on…
As per the above two aspects, you shouldn’t withdraw from your account frequently ☝️
how to treat forex then? and how to be able to trade for a living? 👇
You have two options:
1- Have another source of income: like a job or a business that you depend on to pay your monthly bills. This way you won’t get emotional in trading and you won’t withdraw from your account for it to grow exponentially
2- Savings / my story: I quit my job on July 5th, 2018 to trade for a living. My plan was to save an amount of money, enough for me to live the same lifestyle I am used to for 2 years from now, without the need to withdraw from my account.
For example, if my usual monthly expenses are 1000$, then I need to save 24 000$ before I quit my job. this way, I can survive for two years without withdrawing from my account or depending on it.
In conclusion, trading as a career is doable but it requires a lot of dedication and planning in order for it to be successful. The most important aspect you need to focus on is being emotionally stable at all times in order to follow your trading plan in an objective manner.
All strategies are good; if managed properly!
~Rich
