Is there a psychologist in the house?

[Kymaccin]

Hi all,

Ive been messing around with spread trading for a few years, mostly demo a/cs but also with live a/c's but with little or no definite strategy, obviously the results were less then impressive.
Last year I decided to practice on demo a/c's but sticking close to a plan I laid out and also tried out a lot of different strategies before settling on a couple that seemed to work (for me anyway). I started getting consistently better results and after a few months of this decided to try the same plan/strategy with a live a/c. Problem is, as soon as I start using the live a/c, all self-discipline seems to vaporise, along with any strategy/plan (and my money).
I know Ill get this under control in time(for the most part anyway) but am not sure if my funds will last that long😱 Im not talking huge amounts but enjoy trading with demo a/cs and it would be nice to make a little extra cash from this.

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers,
Ky

 

[Ambrose Ackroyd]

It may help to read this.

 

[BeginnerJoe]

Trade the minimal bet, and see your loss as education fee, then sooner or later you will come out winning, assuming of course you are a good student. The first rule of the game: patience.

 

[Kymaccin]

Hi,

Thanks for the advice guys, Im going to try both.
The minimal bet idea is definitely a good idea, I could live with a certain amount of small losses as long as I can see improvement. I guess its the best way to find out for sure.
Now all I need is patience!

Thanks again,
Ky

 

[Ambrose Ackroyd]

Now all I need is patience!

Patience is key !!!

 

[bbmac]

Re the Mark Douglas author mentioned above, you are in what he calls The Profit Gap...ie the area between successful demo and successful live trading, and as you are/have experienced executing a plan and sticking to that plan in a live environment is mostly always psychological. You ahve developed your Trading edge/plan - you know it works in theory/demo and now you have to develop your own psychological framework so that you can execute it profitably in a live a/c. This will involve all of those attributes commonly referred to; patience, discipline, ability to stick to the plan, control of fear and greed, no over/off plan trading, no reverenge trades etc... It may take you a while to develop these skills so that they are 2nd nature to you. It may also be that you never do for this particular trading edge in a live a/c and that you have to find a different trading edge that suits you better in a live a/c. Whatever you do, there is no substitute for time.

G/L

 

[forefit]

Try spread betting on gekko global markets which is 10p per pip at least if you stick to the plan and bet the minimum you won't go bust.