Forex Boredom

A lot of people ask me how many hours do you trade the forex? and my answer is that I generally trade every trading day from the start of the London Open until the end of the New York session and occasionally beyond. At the weekend I usually carry out various forex studies and I read various publications from other prominent traders. I do think that it is important to explain that although I am trading for a lot of hours, this does not mean that I am in an active trade for all of that time, in fact I am on average in an active trade for very little of that time. Many new and inexperienced traders seem to have the idea that trading is about placing trades, and that the watching and waiting is very boring. I suppose that this is quite a natural assumption, but it is an assumption that is quite incorrect. The biggest part of trading and the hardest part for many is spent studying, planning, watching and waiting for high probability trades. I am often asked if I get bored just sitting in front of the PC watching and waiting. Do I ever get bored with forex? No, not bored - Sometimes, however, I just am not in the mood for forex, so at those rare times when I just do not want to think about the forex I do something else. I don t agonise about it, I just accept that there is no point in trying to think forex when I am not in the mood to do so. I love everything about forex trading. If I didn t, I would do something else to earn a living, but I do not just sit facing the PC screen, motionless, watching and waiting. I study the charts, I look at what has happened, I look at what is happening, I try to foresee what will happen and why, I look at the inter- relationship between the different currency pairs. I study the fundamental side of the market a great deal. I like to know why things happen. I use all of the information that I study to make sure that I am constantly aware of the ever changing facets of the forex market and to ensure that my trading system is as up to date as possible. If you find that the only part of trading that you enjoy is being in a trade or closing a trade in profit , you may well be in the wrong business. To become highly successful in any field of endeavour, it is essential to have a passion for the subject. Does this mean that you will never be bored? No, but being bored should be a rarity not the usual way you feel about it. The more that you love the whole subject of forex, the more successful you will become. Martin Bottomley is a full time professional forex trader, acknowledged author, forex tutor and co-developer of forex trading software including The Amazing Stealth Forex Trading system. You will find more information at: stealthforex.com