People often choose to buy unnecessary things just because they can or because they saw them on YouTube tutorials and it makes them feel more comfortable, more confident in taking on their new ventures. For example, if you decided to adopt a healthy lifestyle at the beginning of the year, you can find yourself buying at least seven brands of protein shake, which you do not even like.
This happens all too often in forex trading. There are a lot of newbie traders who end up buying new computers, a bajillion monitors, and fancy software and EAs because they think it will help them get pips.
You don’t need any of these things to be become successful in trading. Here are three tips you should consider when setting up your trading station:
Stick to the essentials
A good laptop or PC and a solid internet connection is a good start. Next step will be to choose a good trading platform and install it on your unit.
Do not use mobile devices if you want to check the news, your charts, your trading journals, and your trades simultaneously. You don’t need multiple monitors either (at least at the very beginning).
Invest where it counts
You should invest in the best tools available to maximize your trading skills: choose good charting software and trading platform that could help you identify setups easier and backtest trading systems and execute orders faster.
You can also subscribe to reputable forex-related journals and newsletters which could give you economic insights and the edge that other traders don’t have.
Minimize distractions
Don’t look at your cat. Or your dog. TikTok and Twitter are also banned.
Trading is a business and it requires focus, discipline, and consistency in order to make money from it.
First, place your trading station at a corner where there’s the least amount of distraction.
Second, use your TV only to catch the news and avoid bringing non-trading-related stuff into your station. No distractions until you’re done!
Remember that forex trading is not just a hobby and unless you’re in it for the pretty charts or the thrill of risking real money (in which case you’re a gambler, not a trader), then you should treat trading like a business.
