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Hey Team!

Click here to hear a recent interview I did with Interviews with Prosperity on the importance of Forex Education.

Happy Trading!!

This picture is a chart of GJ where you can see my entry, SL and TP. It was taken right after I enter the market. I opened 2 post there.



This picture was taken this morning after the price has moved. Its a beautiful picture and it works most of the time.



This is a daily statement of yesterday trade. You can see that I have closed the 2 GJ post earlier than my TP target. Anyway yesterday was a good day to trade. As for today GJ continue to go uptrend with a correction coming soon. Wait for that correction and enter if the strength holds.

Close to 95% of all Forex traders will lose money. We're not just talking about novices, either. Whether you trade Forex for a living, as a hobby or just for fun, odds are against your success. That's a simply astonishing fact. However, the remaining 5% of Forex traders somehow manage to break even and there are those lucky few that actually make money in the currency market – consistently!

Like the TV show says … “How’d they do that, anyway?”

That's the million dollar questions, isn’t it? Countless books, seminars and expos have been hosted to answer this very question. That sad fact is that thousands of books have been written and countless seminars and interviews have been conducted in an attempt to answer the magic questions. The reality of the situation is that there is no magic formula; no one single Holy Grail of Forex trading.

So what do the successful traders do that the rest of us have simple not comprehended. They have mastered a process of winning where they combine and customize several factor to produce consistent results. They have mastered the Process of Trading.

The Process of Trading is:

Strategy > Money Management > Self-Mastery

Here are some simple Forex Education tips to help you master the process of forex trading:

Forex Success Tip #1 – You’ve Got To Have a Plan

You must have a written business plan that will detail all aspects of your trading. When are you going to trade, how much to risk, strategies for entries and exits are just o name a few. To become a consistent (profitable) Forex trader you have to plan your trade sand trade your plan.

Simplicity rules! Don’t make this plan too complicated. One sheet of paper for you mission statement and another for your trading plan should suffice. Anything more is probably too complicated.

Forex Success Tip #2 – Focus on Your Personal Psychology

Knowing yourself will allow you to master the discipline necessary to execute high quality trades with solid money management techniques. Lack of discipline is fatal in Forex trading. Go on a personal journey to identify you attitudes towards risk and money. Get intimate with your strengths and weaknesses as a trader and build in to your trading plan strategies to minimize those weaknesses and maximize your strengths.

Different personalities lend to different trading styles. Get familiar with all the different styles and over time you will begin to gravitate towards one particular style. Don’t fight the urge like I did. I insisted I was a day trader, but had only limited results. I found my winning percentages were much higher when I entered swing trades. Guess what’s my bread and butter strategy now!

Forex Success Tip #3 – Be Realistic About Your Expectations

This is a hard one, I know! I am on the internet every day and the amount of advertising is staggering. Brokers are offering free education (fox in the hen house if you ask me), forums of all different trading styles and points of view. Gurus pushing their system as “the one” that will make you the big bucks. How do you get through all that noise?

Let me tell you loud and clear right now – everyone is right and everyone is wrong. You have to make a personal commitment to become a successful trader, find a trading style that works for you and expect a slow and steady approach to wealth building through Forex.

What works for me may not work for you. Expect to go through an exploratory period where you are learning and at the same time exploring yourself as a trader. Keep an open mind and don’t pay attention to all the noise out there.

Forex Success Tip #4 – Be Patient

Rome was not built in a day and neither will your trading account. In fact, I tell all of my students that while they are studying to become successful Forex traders they should not look solely at their account balance as an indication of success or failure.

By tracking and increasing your percentage of high quality trades you execute is a far better barometer of your progress than your account balance. Cause and effect rule here. Over time when you increase your probabilities through the execution of high quality trades your account balance will respond accordingly.

Keep the focus on the process and with time your results will blow your mind.

Success Tip #5 - Money Management Is Top Priority

I would rather have a shaky strategy and excellent money management techniques than the other way around. This topic warrants its own blog post to do it justice. Limited your exposure (read “risk”) allows for you to stay in the game and allow the laws of probability to work.

Let’s take a casino for an example. They need gamblers to frequent their slot machines to make money. Why? They have a game that has a greater than 50% chance of making money for the house. The more people that play the slots, the greater the casino’s profits.

The casino controls risk by payout tables (always favoring the house!) and increases their probabilities by keeping gamblers at the slot machines (read “free drinks”). As a trader you must limit your risk by committing only 1% - 3% of available capital to a single trade. When you execute enough trades with a high probability strategy you too can clean up like the casinos – but only by staying in the game long term.

In conclusion, Forex trading is not easy. It’s hard work and will test the limits of your patience and perseverance. If anyone tells you otherwise .., buyers beware! It can be a very rewarding and profitable venture if done correctly. In the end it is a profession that requires a learning curve and practical experience, no different than an airline pilot or engineer. Understanding how to approach and learn this game will allow you to reap all the benefits advertised. It is your Forex Education that you will master the Process of Forex Trading.

Happy Trading!!

WHAT IS?

Bollinger Bands are a technical analysis tool invented by John Bollinger in the 1980s. Having evolved from the concept of trading bands, Bollinger Bands can be used to measure the highness or lowness of the price relative to previous trades.

Bollinger Bands consist of:

1. A middle band being a N-period simple moving average
2. An upper band at K times a N-period standard deviation above the middle band
3. A lower band at K times a N-period standard deviation below the middle band

Typical values for N and K are 20 and 2, respectively.

The bands cannot, as some have supposed, be used to make reliable statements regarding what fraction of an equity's prices will lie within a certain distance of the mean value. This is because an individual equity's price does not obey known distribution functions (see stochastic process). For example, if the bands for plus or minus two standard deviations (2SD) are computed, it is wrong to suppose that ~95% of an equity's closing prices will, on average, lie within the Bollinger bands. That would require, among other things, that the prices be normally distributed, which they are generally not. It would further require that the true standard deviation be known. The standard deviation calculated as above, however, is only an uncertain estimate of the true standard deviation. Furthermore, it should be realized that the "standard deviations" of stock prices for finite time periods are not fixed parameters as required to apply classical statistical theory, but instead are variables in constant flux depending on price volatility. The bands give a visual picture of a stock's price volatility. Nevertheless, the bands can be useful in the technical analysis of prices or returns and by Chebyshev's inequality contain at least 75% of prices. These occurrences should be considered in relation to other factors before making investment decisions.

It is of interest to note that faulty interpretation of a price touching or breaching a band based on incorrect statistical assumptions has become so widespread that some traders now use these events alone as trading signals and by so doing may have unwittingly injected significance into these band-touching events that should otherwise be absent. Nevertheless, anyone can observe over time, that for a diversified group of mutual funds, say, the proportion of daily adjusted close prices that breach their 1-month 2SD Bollinger bands varies between 5% and 15% of days, with each fund having a fairly constant, characteristic long-term breach probability descriptive of its long-term, relative volatility.

When the bands lie close together a period of low volatility in stock price is indicated. When they are far apart a period of high volatility in price is indicated. When the bands have only a slight slope and lie approximately parallel for an extended time the price of a stock will be found to oscillate up and down between the bands as though in a channel.

The use of Bollinger Bands varies wildly among traders. Some traders buy when price touches the lower Bollinger Band and exit when price touches the moving average in the center of the bands. Other traders buy when price breaks above the upper Bollinger Band or sell when price falls below the lower Bollinger Band. Moreover, the use of Bollinger Bands is not confined to stock traders; options traders, most notably implied volatility traders, often sell options when Bollinger Bands are historically far apart or buy options when the Bollinger Bands are historically close together, in both instances, expecting volatility to revert back towards the average historical volatility level for the stock.

HOW I USE IT

I use 2 Bollinger Bands with the same value on my technical charts. These 2 BB are for:

1. Trend Reversal Detection
2. Exit Target
3. Entry Point

Before we go on any further, a visual display is needed since we human learn faster through our visual.



As you can see in the graph, there are 2 BB with RSI. There are 5 set of circle indicating when the price cut thru Bollinger Bands. I will try to explain here according to numbers in the chart.

1. Price cut the upper BB at the same time RSI only cut thru middle band. Indicating the price is over bought while RSI is showing weakness. That is your point to short.

2. Price cut thru the lower BB and RSI is doing exactly the same. This showing that the price is according to strength. Exit at will. This also indicates a new trend has started. Take only short position from now on.

3. Same as no.2, this is your exit position. RSI agrees with the price. Continue to trade short.

4. Price cut thru the lower Bands but RSI is in the upper part of the Bands. This is a sign to start thinking of reversal. Lowest price at that point was 1.0550. Normally I would give out signals based on that lowest price.

5. Price makes a new low of 1.0530 and RSI still disagree with it. This is due to last minute trend traders who are pushing the price even lower thinking the trend is still there. I must agree, the trend is still there but the strength is gone long ago.

If I were to trade this pair, I would give out a signal to long @ 1.0550. The price hit bottom at 1.0530. Meaning there was a -20 pip position hold. Now the position is +30 and guess what. Its breaking the middle bands. Once the middle bands is broken and it cut thru upper bands and RSI agrees with it, we have ourself an uptrend. Meaning that I have trade the pair much earlier than most traders do because they are trading on trend.

At the time of writing I am holding ucad long with SL at breakeven. The worse thing that could happen is ucad reverse making a new low leaving me with nothing. If all goes well, I would like to see that upper band and make my exit there.

Of course there is no certainty in forex. In this article I am only showing the possibilities of using only BB and RSI to trade forex. Currently I am using 4 indicators to my technical analysis. Maybe some of you out there can do much better and come up with a better system.

Update:

As you can see in the picture, those circle are my entry and exit point. At the time of writing, I have already closed 2 position with +97 pip and holding 1 position with SL at +8 pip. Thats brings a confirmed total of +105 pip for ucad alone.

Looking at the chart, Ucad is still a long trade but there is not much follow thru. This maybe to the fundamental effect saying usd dollar has been so weak all this while making trader unwilling to enter on usd side.

I have remove some advertising. In the beginning, they are there because they are flasy, full of colours with attractive animation. Someone decided to comment that my blogs is full of advertising.

Ok, it is remove. Now I see my blog as empty. Its dark with just text. Any idea to improve the looks of my blog?

Let me just give you a quick tip about setting stop losses.

I once took a class where I was instructucted to place my stop loss 30 pips below my entry. Why 30 pips I asked? I was told it was an "acceptable" risk. Based on what? I see a lot ot traders basing their risk management strategy on some pre-defined pip value risk without any consideration for support and resistance.

Don't do this!

Like I say - trading Forex is a process and setting your stops is a key component. Your stop should be placed near support and/or resistance based on the charts and not some pre-defined pip value. Caution: stay away from the herd!

Simply:

1. Locate support and/or resistance for your stop
2. Calculate your target to determine a reward-to-risk ratio
3. Determine whether you can afford the trade
4. If all systems are a go then pull the trigger

Setting a pre-defined stop makes no sense if all you can guarantee is to get stop out of your trade and have it eventually go in your direction. Let the market tell you where to protect your trade and when to take profits. This is why 2 traders can look at the same charts, establish the same trade and one trader pull the trigger an the other traders pass.

Follow YOUR trading plan and begin to take your trading to new heights. Your Forex Education is the path to true Forex profits!

Happy Trading!!

Last week was a busy week + I have a bad flu. I only manage to trade on Friday last week and got out with a lot of pip. Thank god.

As for next week, opening of next week will be tricky. Last friday we saw a jump on GU, EU, GJ and EJ. That last jump really upset the downtrend. It would be very difficult to trade those pairs now.

Last hope is to use a breakout system. Hopefully next week we can see a clear direction of trade. May many pip be with you.

I am scanning the internet looking for information about how I can be a better trader just like most people out there. I am on a quest looking for each and every golden nugget of information out there on the web. I have alerts set up so Google can email every keyword topic of choice.
I have been getting fired up recently about the amount of just plain bad Forex advice slewed across the web. It is definitely a “buyers beware” market and every word of advice (including mine) should be taken with a grain of salt. Why? Because everything I say and write is based entirely on my own experiences.

One of the topics gaining some momentum is the fact that everyone pitching a Forex product is not a trader, but a marketer and if they were a trader they would be trading and not trying to sell you something.

What a bunch of BS!

Yes, I do believe all the information that one needs to trade the Forex profitably is available free on the internet. I challenge anyone new to Forex to assemble the information, study and execute without any assistance. I would imagine every trader out there has gathered free information and put it to use, but the truly valuable information often is not free!

Example – I read Steve Nison’s books and DVD’s (highly recommended by the way) to gain the necessary insight into candlestick charting. I also paid a couple of hundred of dollars to attend a live seminar. During that seminar Steve Nison made one comment that allowed all of my previous work in candlesticks to click and take my trading to the next level! Was it worth it? Hell yah! That one comment was the only peice of new information I gathered, however it has paid for the seminar 100 times over. Not only that, the opportunity to network with other traders introduced new ideas and approaches that I hadn't thought of previously.

In the end it's a personal decision. After all it's your money. Trading is a profession just being a pilot, a doctor or an engineer. Each requires dedicated training, personal development and instruction to gain proficiency. You would never go to a dentist that learned how to fill cavities on the internet (this information is available there too!), so treat your Forex account the same way.

I am calling all you freebie seekers out! Stop being cheap. Your Forex Education is an investment and not a cost. Cutting corners will only cost you more money in the long run.

Happy Trading!!

Have you ever been in a situation where you have evaluated the market, saw your strategy set-up perfectly and then just couldn’t pull the trigger? You become paralyzed, unable to move even though you know your high probability set-up has just triggered.

This fear is very real for many traders and very detrimental to your account. Fear is a powerful emotion, distorting fact from fiction and often creating an emotional response. Many experts tell you to trade without emotion, but is that really practical? We are indeed human. Remember the basis for the reaction is real, but the fear usually is not.

Fear blocks your ability to execute high probability trades and we must find strategies to manage our fear. With time comes experience and for traders it is the ultimate super hero for fear.

In the meantime, if you are struggling with fear-based execution challenges here are some simple tips to get you over the hump.

Embrace the Emotion

Acknowledge your emotions. If you find yourself analyzing a trade to the point of paralysis don’t try to ignore the emotions. Separate yourself from this river of negativity. Visualize yourself on the river bank as these torrents of emotions are flowing by. You will gain great awareness to the triggers and learn a lot about who you are as a trader.


Separate Fear from Fact

If you fear pulling the trigger because of loss (what if I am wrong?), that will stop you from enjoying the profits the market may make available to you at any given time. Don’t avoid the action that might cause the loss, but re-frame the problem as fear itself. You have evaluated the market, figured out your reward –to-risk ration and accepted your potential for loss through your stop-loss and money management plan. At this point loss is not the obstacle – fear is. There is no such thing as failure, only feedback and that will guide you to consistent and profitable trading.


Re-Think the Consequences

If your mind is off to the races with all sorts of possibilities what’s the worst that can happen if Murphy’s Law gets enacted during your trade? You have already addressed this in your trading plan. Plan your trade and trade your plan. Again fear is trumped and the only way it can be realized is if you didn’t follow your plan. Sticking to your plan is the clearest way to distinguish between a losing trade, which is just a part of business, and a bad trade which is a career killer!

Act in Spite of Fear

Feel the fear and do it anyway. Return to your mission statement or your “why?” statement. The reasons you trading should be big enough to overcome any possible obstacle your fear emotion can conjure up. Acknowledge the fear and do it anyway. You may not have a winning trade, but you will have executed your plan and over time probability will pay you back.

What is all comes down to is the intangibles of trading. Why do I and so many others drive home discipline-based Forex Education and Training approaches. You will never get rid of fear, but with practice you can turn it into a manageable obstacle and deploy it to your advantage.

Happy Trading!!

This is a screenshot of EW on daily EU and GU. What do you think?

This means rejecting thinking that doesn’t support your current trading objectives, including rejecting non-trading related mental chatter (what’s for dinner, balancing your check book, who’s on American Idol tonight, whatever). Your goal is simple -- to zero in on the trading task in front of you. Enter your personal trading zone. Deny all incoming calls. Don’t check your email and please do not even think about logging into your Instant Messenger account. You’ve got to be in a place and time where you can trade without being disturbed.

Ask yourself – Where Am I? The answer is - Here

Ask yourself – What Time Is it? The answer is – Now

When you become fully present on the task of trading, you are able to achieve peak performance and gain an edge on the other traders in the market at that moment. How many times have you often have you been trading, felt in rhythm with the market, and then you become distracted, surfed the web (OK, you busted me!), checked your email and all of a sudden, your trade fell apart because you overlooked an indicator or failed to see what economic releases where due out during your trading session.

Trading in the here and now is not only powerful, it is extremely profitable! When you can direct your focus on your trading task without distractions you become invigorated and infused with the energy that comes from requiring yourself to be fully present when trading, you’ll find that your trading all of a sudden becomes a little easier and enjoyable. When you reach this state, stop briefly to observe it and how you feel so that you can summon this mental state more easily in the future. And journal it so you can recall all the factors that contributed to your success. That way you’ll be able to set yourself up in a repeatable, successful trading environment. Your journal will become the greatest trading tool you'll ever own!

To not become fully present when trading is to short-change your Forex Education AND you’re your account balance … it’s like not accepting the greatness within your at the time the market provides you with your pip rewards.

Which mental time zones do you what to be in for your trading? There are only three: past (FEAR), future (ANXIETY) and HERE. It’s been said that most traders spend only 1% of their time in the present. Could you imagine what kind of profits your mind can produce when you become fully present when trading?

Carpe Diem and Happy Trading!!

For the past 2 weeks, forex has enter the ranging mode. Ive been busy with work since I have a day time job. Merdeka celebration is coming and I am going to be extra busy. Next week I am going to KL.

As for forex, this week is not so good for me. All my technical is correct just that being unlucky sometimes. My position of long GU and GJ both hit SL on the last dip. I can never imagine it can go down that much. Thanks for EG, I manage to cover my lost and made a little profit.

Back to technical analysis, GJ has made it top at 244.06 and there is a reversal sign. GU it seems has not reached it top. There is some room to go before a reversal can be considered. Look for formation of double top and watch out for its strength. Im not going to give signal since I do not have time to trade. If I do enter the market it would be touch and go or thru stop order with sl (which is very difficult to judge).

Happy trading, may profit be with you always.

Well, as I return to my desk from a break to welcome the new addition to my family I was pleasantly surprised to received notification that Forex Journey has been ranked as the #1 Forex Blog by CurrencyTrading.Net on their “Top 25 Forex Bloggers.

Check it out ==> http://www.currencytrading.net/2007/top-25-forex-bloggers

Thanks everyone for inspiring me to follow my passion!

Happy Trading!!

GbpUsd/EurUsd
Last week GbpUsd/EurUsd made a last minute break. Next week we should see GbpUsd/EurUsd continue its uptrend. Take long position from now on.

GbpJpy/EurJpy
GJ and EJ didn't break it last week. Eventhough it is going down now, we should see 238.40 and 162.00 level are hard to break. If those level break, be prepared for a long downtrend.

Last week is not a good week to trade, there is no real trend as the market is swinging and ranging everwhere. Hopefully next week we should see a real trend and trend traders will make it a good trade.