Trading the Forex Market ain’t easy. But what is it really like? Is it like what you see on Instagram?
Many of you already know me, but to those who don’t, my name is Andrew Lockwood. A husband to a lovely wife, a dad to two beautiful daughters and a cute pup named, Oliver. Among many things, I am also a professional Forex day-trader. This is my full-time job, this is how I make a living. To give you a bit of a background, I started trading in the pits of London 30 years ago. I was young, ambitious, and quite adventurous when I started. The chaos of the pits was infectious and made me feel alive. I particularly enjoyed outwitting my fellow traders and siphoning out their money!
But like anything golden, it must come to an end. While there, I saw how lucrative the foreign exchange market could be, and so I decided to jump in, never regret it for a second! What more can I ask for? I get to be with my family while earning money and enjoy the things I love the most.
But what does it take to become a professional trader? How can someone like me shift from a full-time career to working from home? For those of you aspiring to do the same, let me give you an insight into how my day a s a forex trader goes. Here’s a rundown of all the things I do daily that are worth sharing.
A Trader’s Daily Routine
Every day trader needs to have a daily routine. It is an effective method for your success in your forex trading journey as a trader. Here’s my daily routine, a day in the life of a forex trader, from start to the end:
1. Early Morning Start
I start my day at 6:30 AM, London time. I know it’s early, but it’s a good time of the day to focus and go through everything while it’s quiet. The first thing I do is check how the foreign exchange markets have performed overnight. I check how my open trades have faired, and do the necessary adjustments if necessary.
I do it on my desktop trading station as I am more comfortable using it than my mobile phone.
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2. Keeping Track of My Forex Trading Journal
By the time I am done with these, which usually takes a good hour, I then update my Trading Journal and check my trading account. Keeping a journal is very important when you’re trading the forex market. Through this, you get historical data of the winning and losing trades and you can effectively manage your trading risk. It helps you grow and learn. It helps you identify your weak points, as well as the things that needed tweaking. And although many traders of you will think otherwise, a losing trade should never be considered as lost money but rather as a means for you to earn more.
3. Keeping Up With The World
Next, I abreast myself of the things that are happening globally. With a quick search on Google and my favorite sites, I update myself on fundamental news that happened overnight. I am not much of a fundamental trader myself, but knowing how the world goes and the market conditions give me an edge as a forex trader in the markets.
I then check for trading opportunities, and I do this through the Momentum Meter. I scan individual currencies to check which ones are performing and which aren’t and if there’s one currency that is expected to be volatile in the upcoming trading day. I also draw my technical analysis support and resistance levels and lastly, I check the potential trading opportunities on my trading station.
By 11 AM London Time, I prepare myself for my daily stream inside the Trade Room. I hop on to discuss my thoughts about the markets. I update my followers on how my trades are going and update everyone on my earlier technical analysis insights.
4. Taking a Break
This is one of the highlights of my day. Taking breaks is vital to our mind and body and I suggest that you do this regularly to decrease the likelihood of emotional trading.
Often, Oliver and I will go on walks in the woods. I would eat lunch. Have a chat with my family. Leaving the screens is important as it’s an opportunity for you to clear your mind.
5. Afternoon Sessions
I return to the screens after the break to prepare for the afternoon sessions. This is the busiest time of the day as the US markets open at 8 AM NY time, the time of the day when the markets are most volatile and many traders join the markets.
I also often get involved in the Trade Room chatroom at this time. I go about answering questions, helping other traders correct their trading strategies, and assisting should they have technical difficulties.
6. Wrapping Things Up
By the end of the day, I finish it with my second stream to wrap things up, and once I am off my screens, I am done for the day.
But before that, I check my daily performance on my forex trading account, the price action of the instruments I usually trade, and the trading opportunities for the next day.
The Bottom Line – A Day in the Life of a Forex Trader
See, there is really nothing fancy with what I do. If there is one takeaway in this, it’s that learning is vital and developing a daily routine is one of the most basic trading skills you need to have as a forex trader. It’s what helped me grow into the Forex trader that I am today and eventually make more money in my forex trading career. It helps me fortify what I already know, and it is what’s keeping me grounded.
How about you, how does your day go as a Forex trader?
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