If you can't keep your emotions in check when trading, you will lose money. Lots of it. Pipsychology was created to help minimize this from happening to you. The most significant action that you can do to improve trading profits is to work on yourself. Really knowing yourself and how you think can give you an edge that others in the market don't have. My goal is to share practical advice to Forget that Perfect Trade
When you're risking your own money, do you feel the need to find that secret information that nobody yet knows or find the perfect trade setup?
Some traders are so obsessed with trying to find the perfect trade that they end up not trading enough to come out profitable. Forex is not the line of work you want to be if you're a perfectionist. You can plan a trade systematically only to end up losing money because an unforeseen event invalidates the trade setup you so thought was sooo perfect and your trade slaps you in the face and goes against you.
While you don't want to become a careless and impulsive trader, you don't want to be an extreme perfectionist either. Remember there's no such thing as a guaranteed profit.
Instead of being perfect, try being average. For all the "A" students out there, I know this sounds blasphemous since I'm basically suggesting you strive for a "C" grade. But give it a try.
Rather than look for the "perfect" setup, just find a profitable setup. Yes, you might make less profit per trade, but you'll feel better. Compare how it feels to strive for perfect standards versus average standards. You may find that you prefer average standards since you're more relaxed. Since you'll be putting on more trades, your profits will improve.
Trading is all about probabilities. You must make many trades to get the law of averages to work in your favor. As long as the setups are solid, and you're using sound money management and risk control, you'll make enough trades to come out ahead. You'll be able to get the losing trades "off your back" and focus on winning trades.
If you're an uptight perfectionist, you'll always be on edge and will hardly be able to execute any trades. This will be your downfall because you won't be able to pull the trigger on trades that are "less than perfect" but are profitable.
Dare to be average and see what happens. A student who makes straight "A's" may be smarter but the "C" student sitting behind him just might be richer.
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Forex Blog: Pipsychology
I'm going to have to strongly agree to disagree. I think what is most important other than risk management and sound money management, which is what one should possess a great deal of skill in before even trading with real accounts, is consistency and longevity.
If your a true perfectionist, you strive for consistency, and I'd rather work towards making a thousand $100 profits, than to just sink the boat on one "perfect" idea. An idea in trading doesn't becomes anywhere near "perfect" until it has been mastered and traded profitably consistently over many years.
However being someone who is "uptight" and "hesitant" to act efficiently on trades to minimize risk and maximize gains, shouldn't be trading real accounts anyway. Regardless if they are a "perfectionist" or not. This is just uneducated clouded judgment.
True perfectionism has absolutely nothing to do with hindering ones abilities during a live trade. It's the passion to strive and be the best at what you do. Corporate Lawyers and Brain Surgeons spend the first decade of their careers learning, and they continue to learn until they retire, and even after they retire. As a potentially successful trader, you need perfectionism and proven consistency to sustain large capital profits over a long period of time.
If your obsessive perfectionism gets in the way of your trade, I don't know why it would, I study the market for hours before I place trades, by the time I place a trade, I am very comfortable with it. And I am a perfectionist to the bone. If your "uptight" or "hesitant" playing with Market/Entry Orders and SL & Limit Triggers and during this time your trade is moving, you shouldn't be trading.
Always strive for perfection, the money isn't enough, one needs strong passion, time, and willingness to learn the ways to trade the markets profitably, and the willingness to take losses.
True perfectionists take small steps too. And a Straight A student most likely has loud volumes of focus over a C student. A is Average. Strive.
The title says it all. Forget the perfect trade, you have no control over the market, all you can do is stack the odds in your favour and trade according to your plan. After that the market will do what its going to do.
You have to use your edge over time to get account growth.
I really enjoyed reading this post, long time reader first time writer here. I would say I am a perfectionist.
I can trade and be happy with 60 to 80% of the profit from a trade that could have been 100% profit for a certain swing if only I had entered it few hours earlier or waited to exit half an hour after. But one night I got thinking what if I try to make a perfect entry or multiple entries if needed to extract the maximum amount of pips out of a trade. Just for satisfaction purposes only, because to me profit is profit 3 pips or 700 pips at the end of the day. I do these trades from time to time just for the challenge of them and to see if it is possible to jump in and out of the market with that perfect setup. So far I have only been able to do it once and I think it was still few pips off but it gave me the confidence to do know that it was possible. It’s a good way to kill a day or two by sitting in front of the computer and looking at price action and indicators and wait for the stars and the moons to do what you want it to do.
But I agree with the original post. If waiting for perfect setups are killing your profits you should enter the market little late and be happy with small profits and let them add up to give you more positive outlook at the end of the day. I don’t care what anyone else says you cannot see the future, so make the best of the present and your education/experience.