Commitment
Most people underestimate the commitment that is involved with investing and trading the financial markets. Successful trading and investing takes focus and application in order to see results over the longer term. Trading is a full time activity that requires your full commitment. If you currently hold down a regular job then trading could almost be viewed as having a second job. However, if you currently do not have a regular job then trading would be viewed as your main employment activity.
There are so many get rich quick schemes advertised and a majority of people will undertake these programs and if they do not see any immediate results they say "this is just not working for me" and they give up.
Long term objectives and goals
You need to identify your long term objectives and goals because successful investing and trading to attain financial freedom takes time and you must have an objective. You must understand why you want to invest and trade and what is your desired outcome.
Education
The majority of people underestimate the education and knowledge that is required in order to successfully invest and trade the financial markets. This process is ongoing and continues throughout your investing and trading career because financial markets are continually changing and evolving. You cannot successfully make money or build wealth using financial markets without changing your strategies to suit those evolving markets.
A mentor
Tiger Woods has more than one coach. Each coach provides Tiger Woods with constructive feedback on a regular basis to ensure that he keeps on top of his game so he produces peak performance on a consistent basis.
High performing individuals tend to hire a coach to overcome two overriding beliefs. Firstly, we cannot see our own mistakes and secondly, if we are not getting better we are getting worse.
You can read all the books in the world but only a mentor who has the requisite experience can show you how to turn theory into practice. In addition, a mentor will keep you accountable and ensure that you consistently stay on top of your game.
Trading Insights can provide you with a mentor who has this experience and who actively manages investments and money as part of their profession.
A computer with internet access and a telephone
A computer with internet access and a telephone will form part of your essential toolbox. It is impossible to trade or invest without these because developments in technology and the Internet means that investors can make better and more informed decisions quicker. Technology has opened the world of investing to everyone.
A trading account, software and platform
You will require an account to trade through in much the same way you have a bank account to pay money into so as you can pay your bills. Most brokers such as TradeStation Securities provide their customers with their award winning platform.
In addition, particular software is available to assist you in screening stocks to identify potential targets, for example, an award winning stock screener for U.S. markets is Worden Brothers Telechart.
For more information about a trading account, see the section ‘Choosing a trading account’.
For more information about trading software and platforms, see the section ‘Choosing trading software and a platform’.
Do not underestimate the amount of time and effort you need to invest in your education. In addition, your learning will continue throughout your investing and trading career as no two markets are the same. The financial markets are a fast changing environment and you must learn to adapt to the changes in the market conditions.
From a practical standpoint, you need to experience at least two years of real time markets, because the market moves in cycles and every market is different. You can view it in the same way a trainee pilot requires 1,500 hours of flight time to obtain a pilot’s license to fly a commercial airliner.
As part of your education with Trading Insights, we recommend that you paper trade until you master self discipline. We can suggest an online platform that allows you to trade with paper money.
You can trade as often as you like, however, it does depend upon a number of factors including your knowledge and experience, the amount of capital you have, the financial products and instruments you trade.
At Trading Insights we first focus on educating you how to invest successfully before moving you onto trading, because if you cannot invest successfully you will not be able trade successfully.
Investing traditionally refers to the buying or selling of a financial product or instrument over a longer period of time such as years.
Conversely, trading relates to the buying and selling of a financial product or instrument over a shorter period of time such as months, days, hours and minutes.
Through investment in your education with Trading Insights we can show you how you can proactively make money work for you using a variety of investments including:
The amount of capital you require to start trading depends upon which financial products and instruments you decide to invest and trade. Some investments require less capital than others.
However, for investing in financial products and instruments we recommend a minimum of US$5,000. We do suggest to our clients that it is beneficial to undertake the education first and build the necessary knowledge. As your knowledge grows you are able to put aside capital for the day that you are ready to start testing yourself against the market.
There are a variety of techniques you can adopt within the methodologies of technical, fundamental and quantitative you can use to invest. We at Trading Insights take you through a variety of techniques using technical and fundamental methodologies that will provide you with different strategies that will work in different market conditions.
There is no one methodology or technique that will work in every market condition. You must tailor and realign your techniques to what the market is offering.
For legal reasons we do not specify what returns you can make on your investments. However, in all market conditions we can provide you with the necessary expertise which, properly applied, means you could outperform the general market. Ultimately, the returns you derive will depend upon your commitment, discipline, education, knowledge, objectives, execution and experience.
No. Investing and trading is all about probabilities. What we as investors and traders are attempting to do is take low risk, high probability investment opportunities and profit from them.
Before choosing a broker and trading account you must consider the following questions:
You can choose from an online account or an over the telephone account or both. In addition, you can choose the one of following types of account:
These options depend upon what your chosen broker has to offer. More details will be available from your chosen broker. A majority of investors will require an individual account, however, it depends upon your personal situation.
Important: Please note that if you are investing in another country you may be required to complete a form outlining your tax situation. For example, a UK investor investing in the U.S. markets would be required to complete a W8-BEN form. Your broker will be able to provide you with more information.
Having a "cash account" means you may place trades for investments using ONLY the money in your account.
A "margin account" involves a line of credit from your brokerage firm to buy stock or other securities, such as options. You should note that options are complicated and only appropriate for experienced investors of substantial means.
Your initial deposit can be made through an automatic transfer from your bank account (most brokerage firms offer this service during working hours), or by sending a cheque to the firm to be deposited. You also can open an account with existing stock or bond certificates, transferring holdings from an account at another brokerage firm, mutual fund or bank.
Be aware of the fact that most brokerage firms have minimum deposit requirements for the opening of a new account.
Your brokerage firm needs to know a good deal of personal information about you. The information is needed for account handling, tax tracking and other purposes. In the U.S., congress passed the USA Patriot Act which requires brokers to collect and verify certain personal information. Investors are always required to provide accurate personal information about themselves.
Important note: Online brokerage firms have policies regarding your privacy and how this information is handled. Make sure you take the time to familiarise yourself with the brokerage firm’s rules for the handling of your personal information
If you are a registered representative of a brokerage firm or a 10 percent or more shareholder in a company then you may have special disclosure obligations. You are now at what is one of the most important steps in the account sign-up process. Brokerage firms must comply with what are known as "know your customer" or "suitability" rules.
This means that the brokerage firm has to determine each investor's ability to handle investment risk.
During your application process, the brokerage firm will ask you questions designed to figure out how much investment experience you have. It is important that you are 100 percent honest about your experience. Incorrect information could result in your being exposed to more risk than you can handle and the loss of funds greater than what you can afford.
Before choosing a trading software and platform you must consider the following questions:
Choosing trading software and your platform depends which geographical region you want to invest in. For example, it would be pointless attempting to use LloydsTSB stockbrokers who offer UK market trading if you want to invest in the U.S. markets. In this situation it would be ideal to use a platform such as TradeStation.
There are a number of financial products that you can invest in from stocks and shares to bonds and foreign exchange, plus many more. Through your education with Trading Insights you will identify your risk tolerances and establish a style of trading that best suits you. It is your risk tolerance and your style of trading that will influence which products and instruments you will ultimately invest in and trade.
There are three main methodologies an investor can use to trade the financial markets. At Trading Insights we teach a combination of technical and fundamental analyses. We like to describe this as the 'right hand helping the left'.
However, many platforms that are available have a variety of tools that are either technically or fundamentally focused. There are platforms such as TradeStation that provide a technical platform and Reuters fundamental platform within the overall platform.
The type of platform is dependant upon your ‘style’ of investing.
As the old adage goes “You get what you pay for.” Industry standard platforms and software can be quite expensive running into the tens of thousands of Great Britain Pounds per year, whereas something such as Worden Brothers Telechart can start from as little as $29.99 per month.
In addition, trading platforms such as TradeStation may have a monthly fee however, this is offset against the commission charges. In other words some brokers may not charge you a platform fee however; the commissions may be significantly higher. Where TradeStation Securities charge a monthly platform fee, their commission charges start at US$1.00 per trade.
This follows on from the previous point, “How much do you want to spend per month or per annum on a platform?” You must decide which platform is best for you and your style of trading. Through your education with Trading Insights you will identify your risk tolerances and discover the style of trading that best suits you. The choice of platform and software will be influenced by your style of trading and the products and instruments you wish to invest in and trade.
Our educational material predominantly focuses on the U.S. markets and as screening software we recommend award winning stock screener Worden Brothers Telechart.
For active investors in the U.S. markets we recommend the professional award winning TradeStation platform. For less frequent investors we suggest E*Trade and Charles Schwab brokerage platforms.
Trading Insights has secured preferential offers with Worden Brothers and TradeStation Securities, If you wish to avail of these special offers please click here for Worden Brothers Telechart or click here for TradeStation Securities.
For further details and any additional questions please contact us at info@tradinginsights.co.uk.
There are a vast number of different software and platforms available. With some investigation and identifying your specific requirements you will be able to find the software and platform that will meet your needs. Should you require further assistance in choosing a platform a consultant can offer unbiased advice via our technical support number. In addition, details of other software and platforms can be found in our exclusive members only knowledge center.
Before spending money on a seminar or a course consider reading “Secrets to Profiting in Bull and Bear Markets” by Stan Weinstein. In addition, subscribe to Trading Insights twice monthly free ‘Marketcast’.
If you are just starting out or are a beginner we ensure that you will have the foundations to be successful.
Or if you are an intermediate level investor we are committed to taking your education to the advanced levels.
If you are an advanced level investor we are able to take your education to the level of professional money manager and if you desire to run your own fund we have the resources available to take you to the top.
The training that Trading Insights offers covers all areas of the International Federation of Technical Analysts (IFTA), Certified Financial Technician (CFTe) programs for both level I and II with the exception of; Elliott wave theory, Gann theory and Ichimoku charts.
However, Trading Insights training programs do cover additional areas not covered in the IFTA CFTe programs including; practical trading methods and strategies, fundamental analysis, risk management techniques, asset allocation and diversification and portfolio and money management techniques.
Coupled with the practical application, the wider range of material, Trading Insights programs are conveniently available and for an affordable investment.
Can you answer the following questions:
Then contact us at Trading Insights to take you and your investing to the next level. At Trading Insights, we have real life investment managers that can show you how they, as professionals, successfully invest in the markets on a day to day basis.
Make your financial freedom a non-negotiable goal. Take immediate steps to find out how and contact us now.
Are there any educational materials such as books that are more UK specific as much of what I have looked at is focused on the U.S. markets?
It does not matter whether the material is U.S. markets based focused, the techniques and strategies that are mentioned in the material is transferable across all markets and products. For example, the same technical analysis that you use for stocks and shares can also, be used for foreign exchange trading.
The U.S. has the largest economy in the world and the U.S. financial markets are the largest and most liquid financial markets in the world. As a result the U.S. financial markets are the most influential markets in the world. In addition, the U.S. financial markets provide investors’ with the greatest choice and diversity of products and instruments than any other single market. These are just some of the reasons why there is a multitude of foreign investors that flock to invest in the U.S. markets.
Yes, more or less. However, it depends upon your chosen software, platform and broker.
We do teach methodologies for spread betting, contract for difference (CFD) and leveraged products trading. However, due to the high risk nature of these products we only teach these techniques to seasoned investors and traders who have demonstrated their understanding of technical and fundamental analysis and have provided evidence of their track record.