The Dow was moving lower and you can see the resistance line I drew in. The market was bouncing to this line before heading lower. However, at the blue arrow, the market broke the resistance line and I was looking at a possible long entry at 10532. Luckily for me this did happen as the market tanked. I wasn’t flexible enough to short at this stage here so I watched it go lower, below the low of the day and then some more. I finally went short at the main pivot point and snatched 12 points.

I’m still 8 points down for the day but hey, it was better than before!! What I’ve learnt about trading is that you can’t be too hung up with losses. Yes, they are annoying when you have made a mistake or not followed the system but we are human… unfortunately, us humans are flawed and we don’t always do the right things especially when it comes to trading. A successful trader actually has to suppress his or her natural urges towards becoming a winning trader…

I made a trade, long USDCHF at 1.0556 and got out at 1.0594 for a 38 pip profit with a 50 pip stoploss. Not really a good trade overall as my pip count should be at least equal to my anticipated stoploss to have any chance of long term success at this. Anyway, I will probably be more careful and trade in the New Year!

I got in at 158.66 and got out at 157.96.. all in a matter of 15 minutes or so.

I don’t want to speak to soon but lately my trading has been going quite well, I am far more picky with my trades and very careful when putting them on. The initial trade was with a 50 point stop and 100 point target.. however, in the market you need to be flexible where you can get out if you see momentum going the other way.

Anyway, back home and played a quick scalp last lasting less than a minute..  the market had fallen from a double top and hit 10760. I noticed stochastics had bottomed out and so I waited to see if it would turn up and cross.. it did and I entered long. I closed out at the spike at 10800 or nearabouts for +16. The market since has got as high at 10850 but everything is so volatile, it’s best not to trade it right now.

However, I did short the Dow for a quick scalp trade when it broke the support level at around 11112. I got in at 11099 and got out quickly at 11084… I feel very anxious generally trading the Dow Jones as it tends to be rather volatile and I usually lose more money than make it with this one. However, as I write, the market has gone lower to 11040 so I missed out on almost +50. I generally do not like to trade the Dow due to it’s rather unpredictable nature so +16 is not bad.

The market however, fell further and is currently at 11583… trust my luck!! The hardest thing I think about trading is knowing when to get out..  I think it’s much more difficult than entering.

The other day, I gave up over 120 points on the GBPJPY forex pair which was also disappointing.

As I write, the Dow Jones has fallen further.. it’s now at 11577

Early on in ones trading career, education going to be costly as you’re buying books, buying systems, seminars etc.

Then, once you feel you’re ready, you’ll be putting money in the markets and that’s going to be even more expensive as more likely, you’ll lose money.

I am a big fan of seminars as they are shortcuts to your trading education and you will learn about new products, services etc.

For those in the UK, the Information Exchange hold regular trading shows. You can get free tickets if you register early at:

http://www.theinformationexchange.com/Registrations/IX08_June_Booking_Form.aspx 

THe list of free seminars are as follows:

IX Investor 08, 20th June 2008

Platinum Room 1 

10.45 to 11.30: Short Term Trading Using Pure Price Action – The Money Machine

This exciting session should not be missed! Join Christopher Terry as he shows you step-by-step exactly how to successfully select high probability trades in each and every market session. These are the exact same techniques that he and his partner, New Market Wizard Linda Raschke, employ every day in their live trading room. Chris’s lectures are often standing room only, so be sure to arrive early!

Chris Terry, LBR Group.com

12.00 to 12.45pm: SwingTrade Like a Market Maker:

Learn how to exploit the order flow from the active trader community just as market makers do each and every day. Join Bo Yoder as he presents an analysis of the market makers edge.

Bo Yoder, 5 Minute Investor.com

1.30 to 2.30pm: IX Investor Question Time

Chaired by Philip Hayton, Active private investor and former BBC News broadcaster.  Your opportunity to quiz the experts and find out what’s really moving the markets and what you should be doing to profit from the credit crunch.

• Tony Craze, Dawntraders.co.uk

• John O’Donnell, CEO, Online Trading Academy

• Greg Smith, MD Fat Prophets UK

Submit your question in advance to the panel - Click here

2.45 to 3.15pm: Strategizing Your Strategy – Choosing the Right Trading Strategy

Position, Swing, Scalping… The list goes on.  It is often a daunting task for an individual market participant to determine which style of trading is best suited for their own personality. Join veteran trader Toni Hansen in this enlightening session as she explores the ins and outs of trading on different time frames. Her expertise can guide you to select a style to fit you perfectly. There is no better opportunity than this to learn some of the tricks to successful trading that are unique to each level of market participation, as well as how to employ these strategies for maximum profit!

Toni Hansen, Tonihansen.com

3.45 – 4.15pm: GFT Global Markets UK Ltd

4.30 – 5.15pm: Tbc

5.30 to 6.30pm US Trading Night

Witness live trading in the US markets from two professional traders and find out the best techniques for sourcing information and dealing.

Hosted by John O’Donnell III, Chief Knowledge Officer, Online Trading Academy

Platinum Room 2

10.30 to 11.00: optionsXpress Power Tools

This may be the best 75 minutes that you could spend to learn more about the power suite of tools offered at optionsXpress. Whether it’s a tool to decipher a strategy or to screen for potential trading candidates, we will cover it all.

Joe Cusick, Senior Vice President of Education, optionsXpress

11.15 to 11.45am: Trading Myths and Realities for Globalization 3.0 Era of Credit Crisis Cycles

OTA chief knowledge officer, John O’Donnell, explains the differences we are all facing in the new economic world of globalization 3.0. Why do asset bubbles form, and why do they burst? Tune in to learn how to hedge the coming global debt bubble in the coming economic crisis. Join John and see how the world economy really works–not just the perception of others’ beliefs. Specific buy/sell strategies will be revealed in these sessions in UK.John offers more than sound insight on what to specifically do to protect you, your family, and your financial stability in the turbulent times ahead.

John O’Donnell III, Chief Knowledge Officer, Online Trading Academy

12.00 to 12.30: Introduction to trading global markets using Spread Betting

Financial markets have started off 2008 in the same way that they ended last year – lots of volatility.  Gold, oil and the Euro have all hit new highs, and January saw the worst falls in the FTSE since 2001. These sort of markets present an extreme mix of risk and reward for traders and investors – join our Chief Market Strategist David Jones as he demonstrates different strategies that can be applied across all of these markets using spread betting.

David Jones, Chief Market Strategist, IG Index

12.45 to 1.15pm: Institutional Trading: Tools and Techniques Used by Banks and Other Big Players

It’s no secret that bank traders move the markets. And in order to beat them at their own game, you need to be able to think like they do, and have an understanding of the tools and strategies they use. In this seminar fund manager and trading coach Andrei Pehar will give you a rare glimpse into the world of institutional players and market insiders.   Learn 3 simple patterns which have yielded a powerful 77% win ratio over the past 2 years.  He will also cover important topics such as trading psychology, position sizing, risk-to-reward ratios, and system expectancy – subjects often overlooked by trading “systems” which only emphasize signals for entries and exits.

Andrei Pehar, fxKinght.com

1.30 to 2.00pm:  Investing in ETFs

With more ETF products adding to the market every month it seems, we examine why ETF’s have become so critical to private (and institutional investors) to reach into markets and asset classes previously considered too risky or too difficult to track effectively by the small investor.  Trading ETF’s can provide you with plenty of upside potential while secure in the knowledge that the professionals are behind your investments. 

2.45 to 3.15pm: How to find trading opportunities in today’s markets

The market volatility seen so far this year has presented some great trading opportunities across all sorts of markets – but the big moves correspondingly increase risk.  Our Chief Market Strategist David Jones will take you through some simple trading approaches that can be applied across all markets to try and identify opportunities – and arguably more importantly, help you to manage the risk and figure out where to set stop-losses.

David Jones, Chief Market Strategist, IG Index

3.30 – 4.00pm: Introduction to Equity Options

Join us for a 75-minute introduction to listed options. This class will define calls and puts plus view profit and loss graphs for these derivative instruments. We will also explain the overall risks and benefits of trading options.

Mike Tosaw, Director of Education, optionsXpress

4.15 to 5.00pm: Advanced Option Strategies

In this session, we will talk about options strategies for the more sophisticated investors.  We will cover such topics as volatility trading, taking advantage of different aspects of option pricing, as well as delta and gamma neutral trades.

Joe Cusick, Senior Vice President of Education, optionsXpress

5.15 – 5.45pm: tbc

Platinum Room 5

10.30am – GFT Global Markets UK Ltd

11.15am – Trading in todays markets.

Which way for the UK market now?  How to spot swing trade moves 48hours before anyone else.  New types of UK swing trading set ups.  A demonstration of charts that change colour at the best times to enter and exit the trade.  A brief outline of US level 2 direct access trading.

Alan Rich, ClicktheMarkets.com

12.30pm – Support, Resistance and Trend Lines

With the volatility in today’s markets it can be difficult to decide whether to trade from the long side or the short side. Using some simple rules around Support and Resistance and Trend line analysis we can identify potential trading opportunities by using these tried and trusted tools on ordinary bar or candlestick charts. We can use these tools to identify potential buying and selling opportunities as well as working out where to place stops.

Michael Hewson, Market Analyst. Digital Look.

2.30 – 3.00pm: Volatility Based Swing Trading

The majority of traders use indicators and tactics based on price and volume to generate their edge. In recent months, trading strategies based on volatility have been outperforming. In this session, join Bo Yoder for a discussion on volatility based trading tactics.Choosing the Right Trading Strategy

Bo Yoder, 5 Minute Investor.com

3.30pm – CMC Markets

4.30pm – Winning the spread betting game

What winners do that losers don’t

Malcolm Pryor

Once again, for free registration:

http://www.theinformationexchange.com/Registrations/IX08_June_Booking_Form.aspx