text: I'm new, need help please? | Trade2Win
  I'm new, need help please?
  Thread starter MeNewTrader
  MeNewTrader
  I'm new, need help please??
  I've always been interested in trading and sent for some info which I received recently. I've read some of the literature - Ok, I'm sure your wondering what info I've received! It was from Vince Stanzione - wished I've have found this discussion board before I ordered it as I'm just after reading some reviews about him here ( Anyhow that would just be my luck, paying out almost £300!! Ok, I'll give over (lol)
  I'm a little unsure of some things. I'm thinking of opening an account with IGIndex after I paper trade. I have a switch card/bank account with quite a bit of savings, should I use this account or what is the best way to start off??
  Finally, is the key really to study charts etc and to place a stop/loss controlled risk bet? How long should charts be studied for?
  I hope I make sense and hope someone will be able to help me. Many thanks for reading this and any other info would be much appreciated in getting me started!!
  MNTrader,
  I should get yourself a personal plan first, so u know what style of trading u would like to get involved in i.e time scale, part time/full time, Future's/stock's etc.
  trading is a big 'can of worms', if that is a good description, there are lots of differing styles, methods etc. Decide how u want to get involved, if u dont already know, then it will be easier to track down the relevant information that will be pertinent to your goals.
  Get Elder's book 'come into my trading room' to develop a complete plan. Although you will need to experiment to find what suits you best but the book will be a great help in considering a complete plan.
  Also get a charting book one that covers the basics in most areas is by Murphy ' Technical analysis of the financial markets'. Then practise on free sites. Try trading through a simulated programme to test your style and then trade as low as you can go until you feel you have found your edge then trade at 1 - 2% risk of your total capital on any deal. If your capital increases overtime then you have made it.
  But it is not easy so do get the books rushing in without being prepared you will just lose money and time.
  You say you have a sufficiency of savings - you do not mention whether you are in a job or wish to trade full time eventually. Either way be prepared to spend quite a long time familarising yourself with the various types of instrument you can trade, the risk levels you will tolerate and the timescale you wish to trade in.
  Read as much as you can - there is a lot of free stuff on the web. This includes information on trading methods, technical and fundamental analysis and and a number of sites providing free and basic charting facilities for a wide range of instruments. The various exchanges around the world have very helpful sites. A book or two is an economical way of appreciating the necessity of planning and discipline - I have found Trade your way to financial freedom by Van K Tharp and Tradingfor a living by Alex Elder very helpful. Try to be as systematic and disciplined as you can and record your increasing knowledge as you go along. There is an enormous amount of helpful information available on this site and many members are generous with their expertise.You will probably wish to tap into this and it is well worth doing so
  Thanks to everyone for your helpful replies. I am currently unemployed so have plenty of time to familarise myself with trading. I would eventually hope to trade full time. kevin546 can you tell me a few free sites where I can practice on??
  I really have alot to learn yet and so far finding these boards a great help! Thanks again
  http://www.capitalspreads.com/frontend/capital/public/home.aspx
  and open a free demo account
  Hi MeNewTrader
  Have a read through this thread Basics of Trading It's a very basic introduction to trading, but it deals with stop-loss and money management - which most will agree is the key to trading
  With regards free websites to practise on - if your trading UK shares then the T2W competition is the most realistic simulator I have seen. Before trading with real money, spend a bit of time paper trading to get a feel for the markets. There's no point putting money at risk to find out you don't like a certain way of trading.
  City Index have a trading simulator..
  U can try www.tradindex.com simulator too , very basic but good for beginners' discipline cos u won't be able to amend ur stop loss as soon as u enter a trade............. and continue paper trading for as long as u need , wait till u r very comfortable with the concept of trading b4 dabbling into it................as a relative novice , myself, i can assure u that this a very good site so don't feel embarrased to ask any question, no matter how silly u think it is.
  A Prayer book might come in handy !
  Re: I'm new, need help please??
  MeNewTrader said:
  My suggestions would be buy one or two books or beg/steal/borrow them from anyone you know with similar interests. Save your money for trading because unless you're extrememly lucky, that money will be spent "educating" yourself in the best possible way : By placing losing trades. You will rapidly learn when to buy/sell and when not to!
  As regards stoplosses, they are essential, whether you are trading futures/stocks/indices via direct access or spreadbet/cfd's.
  And yes, the best way is to sit down, immerse your head in books/charts and practice real-time trades on simulators like the other members have mentioned.
  Oh, and there are better brokers than IG imo. Probably finspreads : tighter spreads, and its possible to play with tiny amounts of money for the first few weeks. Make sure you have a deposit account, DO NOT open a credit account.
  Edit: some other useful websites for learning the basics:
  http://www.incrediblecharts.com/technical/trading_basics.htm
  http://www.dacharts.com/articles.php
  http://www.dacharts.com/systems.php ( I recommend the 2 X system
  http://www.enthios.com/primer.htm
  timcatapult
  MN Trader.
  You have a lot to absorb me thinks before you even start paper trading.
  A suggestion start with products, try and understand theory and practise of buying shares, then move on to Spread Betting, then CFDS and futures. Then perhaps look again at those from a fundamental and technical aspect. During this time you will begin to understand your own character and personality and what products might suit you and your funds/cash management. When you have started to understand the advantages/disadvantages of the products start paper trading.
  One of the big problems you will find is there is just too much information available and you will need to FOCUS.
  Remember 'a fool and his money are soon separated' to many opportunities to buy so called education.
  Read this site regularly - to my mind 'a fountain of information'
  What ever you do make sure when you trade with real money it is MONEY YOU CAN AFFORD TO LOSE. The money I put in any of my dealing accounts is dead as far as I am concerned.Never use money you need to live on! If you do you will be too emotionally involved to make rational decisions.
  You need to do an great amount of research and to find out a bit about yourself, which will become apparent when you eventually start to trade. When you have understood what you want to trade, the method you chose to adopt and the time frame you wish to trade from then you can consider taking the plunge.
  The free sites I mentioned related to practising your charting progress (they are not real time and to begin with I would learn the daily time frame). www.bigcharts.com, www.advfn.co.uk, www.iii.co.uk can be used you may need to register but there is no cost. These are ideal for basic charting especially if you are not looking to daytrade from a real time chart. You can still view the intraday charts at the end of the day fr a comparison.
  There are a number of delayed real time US charts but I am not up to date on these as I concentrate on the FTSE index.