It's possible to trade profitably on the Forex, the nearly $2 trillion worldwide currency exchange market. But the odds are against you, even more so if you don't prepare and plan your trades. According to a 2014 Bloomberg report, several analyses of retail Forex trading, including one by the National Futures Association (NFA), the industry's regulatory body, concluded that more than two out of three Forex traders lose money.
This suggests that self-education and caution are recommended. Here are some approaches that may improve your odds of taking a profit.
Prepare Before You Begin Trading
Because the Forex market is highly leveraged -- as much as 50 to 1 -- it can have the same appeal as buying a lottery ticket: some small chance of making a killing. This, however, isn't trading; it's gambling, with the odds long against you.
A better way of entering the Forex market is to carefully prepare. Beginning with a practice account is helpful and risk-free. While you're trading in your practice account, read the most frequently recommended Forex trading books, among them
Currency Forecasting: A Guide to Fundamental and Technical Models of Exchange Rate Determination, by Michael R. Rosenberg is short, not too sweet and highly admired introduction to the Forex market.
Forex Strategies: Best Forex Strategies for High Profits and Reduced Risk, by Matthew Maybury is an excellent introduction to Forex trading.
The Little Book of Currency Trading: How to Make Big Profits in the World of Forex, by Kathy Lien is another concise introduction that has stood the test of time.
All three are available on Amazon. Rosenberg's book, unfortunately, is pricey, but it's widely available in public libraries. "Trading in the Zone: Master the Market with Confidence, Discipline and a Winning Attitude," by Mark Douglas is another good book that's available on Amazon, and, again, somewhat pricey, although the Kindle edition is not.
Use the information gained from your reading to plan your trades before plunging in. The more you change your plan, the more you end up in trouble and the less likely that elusive forex profit will end up in your pocket.
Diversify and Limit Your Risks
Two strategies that belong in every trader's arsenal are:
Diversification: Traders who execute many small traders, particularly in different markets where the correlation between markets is low, have a better chance of making a profit. Putting all your money in one big trade is always a bad idea.
Familiarize yourself with ways guaranteeing a profit on an already profitable order, such as a trailing stop, and of limiting losses using stop and limit orders. These strategies and more are covered in the recommended books. Novice traders often make the mistake of concentrating on how to win; it's even more important to understand how to limit your losses.
Be Patient
Forex traders, particularly beginners, are prone to getting nervous if a trade does not go their way immediately, or if the trade goes into a little profit they get itchy to pull the plug and walk away with a small profit that could have been a significant profit with little downside risk using appropriate risk reduction strategies.
In "On Any Given Sunday," Al Pacino reminds us that "football is a game of inches." That's a winning attitude in the Forex market as well. Remember that you are going to win some trades and lose others. Take satisfaction in the accumulation of a few more wins than losses. Over time, that could make you rich!
Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Muffins
If banana and chocolate are your thing, then you are going to love our Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Muffins. They are deliciously soft and moist, with chewy golden brown tops, and full of chocolaty goodness!
Bake in a preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the tops of the muffins are golden brown, slightly cracked and firm, but still a little soft in the center. Check out my toothpick tip, it’s really helpful for checking cakes, muffins and quick breads, and it’s a little different than you may think.
Cool muffins for 5 minutes, then remove from tin and cool on a rack.
Our Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Muffins are deliciously soft and moist, with chewy golden brown tops, and full of chocolaty goodness!
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter, slightly melted
- 1 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 ripe bananas, mashed
- 2¼ cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips, reserve a few for the tops
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line a muffin tin with papers.
- In a large mixing bowl cream the butter and brown sugar. Then add the eggs and vanilla extract and beat an additional minute.
- Add the mashed bananas (or frozen and thawed bananas) and mix until blended. See link below for tips on using frozen bananas.
- In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Then add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and blend on low, just until the flour disappears.
- Stir in the mini chocolate chips, except for the few chips for the tops.
- Use a large (3 oz) cookie scooper to easily place the batter into the prepared muffin tins lined with papers. Then sprinkle the tops with a few chocolate chips.
- Bake in a preheated oven for 20-25 minutes, or until the tops of the muffins are golden brown, slightly cracked and firm, but still a little soft in the center.
- Cool muffins for 5 minutes, then remove from tin and cool on a rack.
Notes
The muffins should come out easily using a nonstick muffin pan, but if they do stick a little, run a knife around the edges and gently remove.
If you're using frozen and thawed bananas you won't need to mash them, because they will come out of the peels very soft and mushy and will blend into the batter nicely.
Use my toothpick tip (link below) to make sure the muffins are done but not over-baked.
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