In my last blog post I asked you "What Are You Biggest Trading Challenges?"

We received a lot of emails and blog comments and here are the results:

• 51% of traders said "Creating a solid trading plan and having the discipline to follow this plan" 
• 13% said "Identifying the direction of the market and spotting when a trend is over" 
• 13% said "Explain more trading strategies" and 
• 23% had various answers, e.g. "explaining different order types", "explaining other indicators" etc.

It seems that many traders are struggling with the psychological aspect of trading. And that's why we dedicate one of the six modules in our Day Trading Home Study Course to "Trading Psychology."

Below is one of the 56 videos of our Day Trading Home Study Course. In this video I explain "The Six Mistakes Why Traders Lose Money"

Does any of these mistakes sounds familiar? - Leave a comment!

PS: For those of you who need more help learning how to identify the direction of the market, different order types
or other indicators:

You might want to check out my Day Trading Home Study Course, in which I explain in detail how to read charts using technical analysis and popular indicators and how they work.

And if you are looking for a detailed explanation of my other day trading strategies, check out the Day Trading Strategies DVD Course.

Comment (16)

Hi there,

In my latest blog posts and videos I showed you what indicators I use and how I use them. You have seen how I use Bollinger Bands, MACD and RSI to identify a trend, gauge the strength of a trend, determine when the trend is over and what trading strategy to use.

And the response was amazing. In the past four weeks these blog posts have been viewed 38,197 times! In addition I received hundreds of comments, ratings and emails with great feedback - THANK YOU!

I really enjoyed making these videos for you, and as you know I want to help you to become the trader you want to be.

So what's next?

Leave a comment and tell me about your challenges:

• What's the biggest problem in your trading?
• What's keeping you from achieving your trading goals?
• Why aren't you where you want to be?
• "Markus, I would make money with trading, if I only could..." - What?

I'm looking forward to reading your comments and making more videos for you!

Talk soon,

Markus

Comment (43)

This video is the last video in this four-part series in which I explain what indicators I use, what settings I use and HOW I use these indicators.

In the first video you learned what indicators are, the advantages and disadvantages of using indicators as well as why and how I use indicators.

In the second video we talked about Bollinger Bands, and how I use this amazing indicator to determine the direction of the market, and to decide what trading strategy I will use.

In the third video we talked about the MACD. You did not only learn how I use the MACD, but also how I use this indicators to color my charts.

So today, in the last video of this series, I show you how I use the Relative Strength Index (RSI).

Click on the video below to start watching it. Enjoy!

And as always, leave your comments and let me know if this video was helpful.

Comment (38)

This video is the third of four videos in which I explain what indicators I use, what settings I use and HOW I use these indicators. In the first video you learned what indicators are, the advantages and disadvantages of using indicators as well as why and how I use indicators.

In the second video we talked about Bollinger Bands, and how I use this amazing indicator to determine the direction of the market, and to decide what trading strategy I will use.

In this video I will show you how I use the MACD. You will not only learn about the settings I use, but also how I use MACD to color my bars.

Click on the video below to start watching it. Enjoy!

By the way: If you would like to know more about my trading strategies and see my trading plan, check out this Day Trading Workshop:
https://www.rockwelltrading.com/Public/day-trading-workshop-recording

And as always, leave your comments and let me know if this video was helpful.

Comment (45)

This video is the second of four videos in which I explain what indicators I use, what settings I use and HOW I use these indicators. In the last video you learned what indicators are, the advantages and disadvantages of using indicators as well as why and how I use indicators.

In this video I will show you how I use Bollinger Bands. Bollinger Bands are a great indicator with many advantages, but unfortunately a lot of traders don't know how to use this amazing indicator.

Click on the video below to start watching it. Enjoy!

More videos are coming shortly. Stay tuned.

Are YOU using Bollinger Bands in your trading? If so, how do YOU use them?  - Leave a comment below!

Comment (47)

There are hundreds of indicators out there. And the question is: "Which ones are the best to use?"

I asked myself this question many, many years ago: I went to a local bookstore in Germany and picked up a big book. It's called "Das Grosse Buch der Technischen Indikatoren", which translates into "The Big Book Of Technical Indicators." This book was published in 1993, has 616 pages and explains 120 technical indicators. And I read through the whole book, learned about every single indicator and plotted it on the chart. And after reviewing all these indicators, I discovered that all I needed for my trading are three indicators.

In upcoming blog posts I want to show you these indicators, explain the settings and how I use them in my trading.

So today we start with the first of four videos. Enjoy:

More videos are coming shortly. Stay tuned.

I'm curious: What are YOUR favorite indicators? - Leave a comment below!

Comment (47)

You know that as a trader you need a solid trading plan. A solid trading plan is the cornerstone of your trading business. Unfortunately many traders think that all they need is a trading strategy. This is NOT the case! Let me explain the difference between a trading strategy and a trading plan:

A trading strategy tells you when to enter and when to exit trades. A trading plan is more comprehensive than a trading strategy. A trading plan covers at least seven elements:

1. The market(s) you want to trade.
2. The timeframes you want to trade, e.g. 5 min, 10 min, tick or range bars.
3. A brief description of the strategies you want to trade and when to use what strategy.
4. The entry rules of the strategies.
5. The exit rules of the strategies.
6. Other important rules, e.g. when to trade and when not to trade.
7. The money management approach you are using.

If you would like to see an example of a trading plan, click here to download my trading plan.

You will notice that I approach the markets with multiple trading strategies. Every professional trader uses more than one trading strategy for a very simple reason: Typically trading strategies are either trend-following or trend-fading. Trend-following strategies work well in trending markets, but they do not perform well in sideways markets. You can't trade ONE strategy all the time! When the markets are trending, you use a trend-following strategy, and when they are going sideways, you use a trend-fading strategy.

Here's the hierarchy in which I use my trading strategies:

1. Whenever I can, I use the Simple Strategy, which is a trend-following strategy. When the markets are trending, THIS is the trading strategy of my choice, since I can use a larger profit target than stop loss. Typically trend-following strategies are more rewarding than trend-fading or scalping strategies, and that's why THIS strategy is my first choice.
2. When the markets are moving sideways, I use the Ping Pong Strategy, since this strategy is perfect for sideways markets.
3. If I missed an early entry into a trend, I use the Boomerang Strategy to catch the tail-end of a trend. Typically you will see that a market starts to trend, then retraces and after a short pause it continues the move in the direction of the trend, even if it is just for a few points. The Boomerang Strategy takes advantage of these situations.
4. In the beginning of the trading day and during "transitions" I like to use the Seahawk Strategy. This strategy is a scalping strategy and as such the average profit per trade is rather low, but I love trading this strategy when I can't use any of the other strategies. As an example, the markets often try to find a direction in the first 5-10 min of trading. During this time it is hard to tell if the markets will trend or go sideways, so I use Seahawk and try to get a couple of quick trades while the markets make up their mind. And I like to use it at the end of the trend: Often I see that the trend loses steam and might be over, but the it takes 2-3 more bars or candles before I can tell for sure that the market is moving sideways and therefore use the Ping Pong strategy. I could sit on my hands or trade Seahawk while I am waiting for a clear entry signal according to Ping Pong. 

In last week's workshop I explained in detail, when I use what strategy. The traders that attended could see how I changed from Seahawk to Simple Strategy, back to Seahawk and then took Ping Pong trades. My head coach Mark Hodge shared how he uses the Bollinger Bands and "2-bar retracements" to determine what strategy to trade. Our Trading Room moderator Brian Larson demonstrated how he uses trend lines and Fibonacci levels to determine when to take Ping Pong trades. 

Every trader is different. Even here at Rockwell Trading we are using the same trading strategies, but everybody has his own set of rules when to use what strategy. Brian, Mark, Rollie, Greaven, Dave ... they all use the same four strategies but they are using it in a way that THEY are comfortable with.

And that's the main purpose of a trading plan: Defining what trading strategies you trade and when. Take a look at my trading plan to get some ideas. And then start writing your own trading plan. A trading plan is something very personal; it's something that fits YOUR trading personality and style. Something that YOU are comfortable with, since YOU will trade it every day.

It's Step 7 of the 10 Steps To Become a Trader, and you don't want to skip it. And make no mistake: The Seahawk Strategy should NOT be the only strategy you trade. If you want, you can make it part of your trading plan, but it is not your trading plan. Never rely on only ONE trading strategy.

Take the time to write a solid trading plan that you can then test on a simulated account.

And let me know if you have any questions. Just post a comment below.

Comment (27)

This morning I received THIS email:

Why am I showing you this message? Is THIS supposed to be proof that the strategy works? Is this my way of saying "told you so!"

No, not at all.

Here's what I absolutely LOVE about John's email:

• John has been trading for 5 years, so one could say that he is an experienced trader. But he wasn't consistent. So he decided to download the Day Trading Starter Package and "started using it as if I had never traded before." John knew that he had to try something new to turn his trading around, and he wasn't too proud to request a "Starter Package."
  .
• John had a daily goal of $100 - $200 per contract. At first he thought that the idea of making only $50 per day per contract is ridiculous (well, being polite John said that he found this idea "unexciting at best"). But he had an open mind and gave it a shot. In his words: "Guess what happened.  I started hitting the $50 goal every day and usually within the first half hour."
  .
• John is not claiming that he wins all the time! In fact, he says that one day he did have a drawdown, but he used my Ping-Pong Strategy to quickly trade his way out of the drawdown. Seems that John has already heard my webinar on "winning streaks and losing streaks" and when to stop trading for the day.
  .
• John never gave up! Like many other traders he spent a lot of time and money on trading, but he hasn't achieved the results he wanted yet. He tried to make $100 - $200 per day and it didn't work for him. Now he has lowered his goal to $50, and feels MUCH more comfortable. In fact, he says that he likes it so much that he might not ever increase it.
  .
• John discovered the Power Of Money Management and plans to use it to work his way up to 10 contracts so that he can make $500 per day, hopefully in a couple of hours.

As John said in his email, "I know I haven't been doing this very long but such positive results are very exciting to me." John sees the light at the end of the tunnel! John, I am rooting for you and hope that everything goes according to plan and that you will achieve your goals!

So what are the important learning points?

1. Never be afraid to try something new.
   .
2. Challenge your beliefs and open your mind!
   John had a lot of trading experience, and based on his beliefs a daily goal of $50 sounded ridiculous. And at first the win/loss ratio of the Seahawk Strategy sounds counter-intuitive. But these beliefs didn't stop John from trying my approach. And thus far it works for him.
   .
3. Slow down!
   If you try to make $500 per day right now, but don't achieve this goal, try $50 first. Once you achieve this goal consistently, you can start raising it. Try $75 per day. Then $100 per day. If you see that you struggle to achieve the new goal, drop back to $75 and aim for consistency. Once you make consistent profits, use Money Management to grow your account.
   .
4. Just do it!
   Have you already watched the video explaining the Seahawk Strategy? Did you watch the video on Money Management? Did you install the software and practiced the strategy? Or did you just request the Day Trading Starter Package and archived our emails in a folder, hoping that one of these days you'll have some time to try it? Stop collecting and start doing!
   "Action is the foundational key to all success." - Pablo Picasso

Does THIS inspire you to take action NOW?

What do YOU think about John's email? Do you have similar experiences?

Leave a comment.

Comment (16)

Did you know that you could double a trading account in less than a year making only $100 per week per contract?

What do YOU think? Is it possible? - Watch this video and leave a comment!

Comment (50)

Wow, you really kept me up last night! In my last blog post I talked about a special "Day Trading Starter Package" that I want to put together for you,and I asked for your feedback.

And I did get feedback: There are more than 500 comments on my blog, and I received several dozen emails. I went through all the feedback, and I think the comments could be summarized as following:

• Sounds great, but what are you trying to sell?
• What's the performance of the strategy you are giving away?
• What about Money Management?
• Please make it simple!

So this morning I decided to create a short 15 min video explaining "The 10 Steps To Become A Day Trader" and how the Day Trading Starter Package fits into this big picture.

Check it out:

And as always, please leave a comment and let you know if this helps.

Talk to you soon,

Markus

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