There is a proverb that says that, “The one who asks questions doesn’t lose his way”
This saying also applies to the field of trading. Whether you are a beginner, intermediate or advanced trader, asking the right questions will go a long way in helping you make the right decisions.
Like I always say, mentorship in Forex is the fast track to success. It is important you build a good relationship with your mentor and you can do this by asking questions.
Here’s a list of some questions I have been asked which you can learn one or two from. You can also ask your trading coach to help you understand them better.
1. How long have you been trading?
I’ve been trading the markets for about 8 years now but I became more actively involved about 5 years ago.
When you look up to some one as your trading mentor, it is important that you are sure enough that they have good trading exposure and experience. Those who have been actively involved for a longer period of time, tend to have more understanding of the markets condition and movement.
It’s advisable to have a mentor who has a good understanding of the markets than when he/she is completely new to the markets.
2. What strategy do you use to trade the markets?
Because trading is dynamic, I am very open minded about how I approach the market. I use a combination of the retail pattern and the institutional trading styles to trade.
There’s a detailed explanation about it in the Forexlyfe Hybrid course to help you understand both trading systems much better.
You can have a glimpse into how I trade from the youtube channel where I also share trade ideas and opportunities.
If you are looking out for a mentor, pay attention to their trading style to enable you understand whether it suits your personality or not.
3. How many positions do you open per day/week?
If you follow me on Instagram @fx.professor, you would notice I talk a lot about being patient and waiting for quality trading setups. This is because it is not always about the quantity of trade that you take but more about quality.
I can take about 5-8 trades in a whole month and make good profits. Beginner traders are usually more concerned about the money and so they want to jump on every trade they see. This will cause you to over trade and you will most likely not come out profitable. Let your focus be on quality rather than on quantity.
4. How do you manage winning streaks?
Whenever I have back to back winning trades, I ensure that I remain calm because I have come to understand that if one is not careful, series of winning streaks in a row can cause you to become overconfident and it is at this point that you could loose guard and start increasing your trade positions and exposing more of your risks to the market. So I try to humble myself more and not get carried away. If you do not humble yourself as a trader, the market will humble you sooner than later, lol.
5. How do you manage losing streaks?
Losses are inevitable in this market. When losses come in a row, I withdraw into reserve mode. Meaning that I reduce my risk exposure. For instance, let’s say my normal risk exposure on a trade is 2% and I lose 3 trades in a row, I reduce my risk to 1% and I stay on that 1% until I am able to recover all the losses.
Most beginner traders will rather become frustrated after series of losses and attempt to revenge trade by increasing their trade positions. Revenge trading will cause more harm than good to your trading account.
6. How do I combine forex trading with my job or school runs?
Read through this to get full details on how to combine trading with a job
7. What is the best timeframe to enter a trade?
Because trading is dynamic and market conditions change from time to time, there is no ‘best‘ time frame to take an entry. Entries are usually based on the trading pattern or strategy being used. Swing traders for instance could be looking at 4hr and daily charts for entries, intra day traders could be looking at the 1hr or 30min time frame while scalpers could decide to use the 1min or 5 min chart for entry. Entries vary. Your job as a trader is to know your trading style and personality to enable you determine how and when to take your entries.
8. Is flipping of account a good way to grow your account?
Forex trading is a business and you need to treat it as such. A good business needs to be sustained. Account flipping in Forex is not sustainable in the long term. It is a careless way of trading and it is more like gambling. You should trade as a trader not a gambler.
Instead of flipping account, compound your profits little by little and you will be able to grow and sustain your trading account.
9. How much profit can I make once I fund my forex trading account?
Beginner traders ask this question a lot and I clearly understand it because people want to be sure that the business they plan to venture into will be worth their time and effort.
Making 50% -100% of your trading capital from the Forex market is possible but it is not realistic.
I am not one of those mentors who would teach you how to flip your account because I know that it is the wrong route to go.
There is no shortcut to success. Go through the appropriate route of first investing in getting good education about Forex before you start thinking of how much profit you can potentially make.
10. What are your biggest strengths as a trader?
My biggest strength is my ability to manage risk properly. I learned the importance of risk management quite early and it has saved me from ruining my account right from the very beginning till tomorrow.
11. Do I need to know everything in Forex as a whole?
Trading is broad. Some people think that the more knowledge they acquire, the less losses they take. This is not necessarily the case. You do not need to know every thing. Your job is to learn how to trade the right way, focus on one or two patterns that work for you, master it and stick with it.
12. What is your secret to successful trading?
I am contented with what I make from the market at every point in time. I am disciplined. I am patient to wait for the right trading opportunity. I am confident in myself and my trading style. I manage my risk and trade very effectively.
13. Apart from risk management? What’s your number 1 advice to be profitable in trading?
A trader whose goal is to become consistently profitable must be ready to be patient, consistent in showing up everyday even when he is not making profit yet and also persist against all odds.
14. How many hours do you spend on the chart daily?
These days, I spend less than an 1hr analyzing the chart. When I started I spent about 2-3 hours after work daily to study.
15. Why did you choose to become a trader?
I have always loved the idea of living life on my own terms and condition without being restricted by anyone. So when I got introduced to Forex, I knew it was the right business to go into that would give me the time I wanted to take care of myself and spend quality time on other things that are important like family and creating a healthy and profitable community of Forex traders.
16. How much time should I as a beginner spend on the Forex chart daily?
That is relative to you as a trader. Your work, school or other business apart from trading could determine the amount of time you spend on the chart.
When I first started trading, I would spend 2-3 hrs daily after work to study. There were times I slept off on my trading desk learning. But now, I spend not more than an hour analyzing the markets. As a beginner, you would need to put in more time to study on a daily basis.
17. How can one become so confident in their entries and strategy?
First you must have learned how your trading pattern works. Then you become confident as you execute regardless of the outcome.
18. What day of the week is the best trading day?
From experience I have come to realize that every day of the week is good. It is possible to see a good trading set up that fits into your plan on a Monday morning or even on a Friday. Most traders exclude trading on some days of the week for other reasons, not necessarily because that day of the week is not a good day to trade.
There is no law that states that certain days of the week are the best days to trade.
It is just advisable to trade when there’s liquidity in the market. And because market conditions are not static, you cannot tell exactly when there will be liquidity. So it’s better to keep an open mind when trading and not restrict yourself unnecessarily.
19. Is it advisable for a beginner to start trading a live account immediately?
The reason there is a demo account is so that you can back test your strategy to know if it is profitable before you put your hard earned money on the line. The only disadvantage is that there are no emotions attached to demo trading. I started trading with real money from the start and I was very disciplined with my risk and that helped me not to blow the account.
We do not have the same personality. You may blow up your trading capital due to poor risk management when you start. So it’s better you start with a demo account. If you want to start with real money, ensure that it is an amount you can afford to lose.
20. How can I grow my small trading account?
I have written an article on this one. Please read the full details on how to grow your trading capital
If you have further questions, please ask in the comment section below.
