Many novice forex traders start their careers by jumping into the markets head first and attempting to learn by trial and error. However, in many cases this is not the best thing to do. While it may be good practice to learn all you can about forex, it can be more profitable to leave the actual trading to just 30 minutes each day. Indeed, 30 minutes is enough time to scan the markets, enter your trade and then leave the market to it. You can then forget about the markets and get back to your day job. Trading in this way instantly cures traders of one of the biggest mistakes beginners make – overtrading.
Get a strategy and scan the charts
Trading for just half an hour can actually be more profitable than
being glued to your screen all day trying to predict the smallest
fluctuations in your chosen currency pair.
The first step is to come up with a strategy that you are going to use; you should use a method that will lend itself well to 4 hour or daily charts and choose a time of the day to put it into action. It’s a good idea to pick a time when markets are quiet such as just after the close.
Next, scan a handful of forex pairs and look for trading setups that conform to your trading strategy. It should take no longer than 15-20 minutes to find a killer trading setup that you want to trade.
Place your order and stop and then go away
Now you have found a trading setup you like you can place an order to
enter the market. You might want to enter using a limit order so you
can trade at the price level you want.
Once you’ve placed your order, remember to set up a stop loss and a take profit order. Your strategy and the market conditions should dictate where you will place both. Once they’re in you can turn off the quote machine and go about your day. The chances are that when you come back to the market you will have either made a nice profit or stopped out for a loss. Either way, you will have placed a trade according to your rules and not had to face any emotional stress.
The strategy
Clearly, to trade successfully for just 30 minutes a day requires a strategy that works well over slightly longer term timeframes. However, there are so many options for forex traders these days that there are decent trading opportunities all the time. What that means is, trading for just 30 minutes is actually not limiting at all. It’s essentially all you need in order to garner a good amount of profit from the markets each day and means you won’t get caught up in the roller-coaster that is forex. Aim for an average of 30 pips a day and you can make a very good income over time.
