I got an email asking I get a lot: can the small guy really become a successful trader. Here's what I wrote him in reply:

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Yes, I think you can be a profitable trader. No hype. I think where most traders go wrong is that they’ve gotten bad advice. I can tell you one thing that will immediately help you become a better trader: take profits!

Now I know on the surface that sounds borderline stupid, but the fact is that most traders don’t take profit when they have it, and instead try to swing for the fences on every trade. You know what the big traders do? Do you know how they make their fortunes? Yep, they take profit when they have it. In fact, there’s a young woman in England who makes over $10 million a year trading her own money. You know what her profit target is? One tick. Unbelievable, isn’t it?

Now you and I can’t trade the volume to make it big on one tick per trade, but the principle remains the same. Take small profits off consistent signals and then add punch with trading multiple contracts. I still remember busting my first account on $300 - 500 losses, but it wasn’t until AFTER I lost all my money that I realized I could have made all the money I lost ($10k) if I only took $300 - 500 profit when I had it... and there were plenty of times I had it and didn’t take it!

And that’s just one thing. Like I said, I think the biggest problem the small trader has is that all the advice out there is for big traders, and from people who don’t really trade. Do you golf? If you golf you’ve probably hit a slice or two. Have you ever noticed that all the advice in golf magazines for curing slices doesn’t work? You want to know why? Because golf magazines write for pro’s. If you have a pro’s abilities then their advice will cure your slice; otherwise, in many cases, their advice will only make your slice worse. In fact, to cure your slice you want to do the exact opposite of what most of the articles are telling you! This is similar to the problem small traders have.

If you decide to join the membership I want you to know that I’m here to help you. Ask any question you like. If there’s something you don’t understand I’ll clarify. I want you to be a successful trader and I’ll do everything I can to get you there. Honest.

Erich
erich@tradershelpingtraders.com