17 Expert Forex Trading Tips from the World's Top Traders Everyone loves a good tip, right?

Whether you’re an expert trader or just a beginner, a good tip can have measurable impact on your bottom line.

 

A few of the world’s most successful forex traders we're asked to reveal the top three tips, tricks and tactics that help them trade profitably.

 

And here’s what they delivered: 17 insanely actionable forex trading tips to help you become a better trader.

1. Have a Trading Plan

 

As the old saying goes in this industry: "Fail to plan and you plan to fail." 

 

Any successful trader will tell you that if you don’t follow a plan systematically, you’re bound to be unsuccessful.

Kathy Lien

"You have no business trading without a trading plan."

Kathy Lien

2. Follow a Forex Trading Strategy

 

While the idea of successfully trading on whims and hunches might sound good, the reality for most traders is far from that.

 

Develop a forex strategy. Test it thoroughly. Make adjustments. Then repeat.

Mario Singh

"A trader can use one or a combination of strategies in his trading portfolio, depending on his personality. There is no "one" strategy that is better than the other."

Mario Singh

3. Manage Your Risk

 

Practical capital management is integral to your success a forex signals trader - you won’t last long in the market without it.

 

Every trade you take inherently has some element of risk. Managing these risks in a sensible way will certainly help to keep you in the game longer.

Vladimir Ribakov

"Never trade money that you can't afford to lose because then the pressure of losing it won't allow you to have the patience to profit."

Vladimir Ribakov

4. Keep a Clear Mind

 

Your trading failure or success will largely be determined by your mindset. To put it another way, if your trading psychology isn’t what it should be, you have no hope of turning a profit.

 

Sadly, most traders disregard this fundamental truth or aren’t aware of how crucial having the appropriate mindset is when it comes to successful forex trading.

Chris Capre

"For the last 14 years, before I do anything in my day, I practice yoga/meditation. So before I traded each day, I always made sure my mindset and brain were in an optimal state."

Chris Capre

5. Exercise Discipline

 

As a trader, you have to be disciplined. This is one of the most important aspects of trading wisdom we regularly hear.

 

Why? Because it’s correct.

 

A lack of discipline will result in trading errors. And if you make to many errors... Game over.

Jamie Saettele

"You must exercise the discipline to follow the process and do the work required..."

Jamie Saettele

6. Do Your Research

 

Prior to the opening of the market, ask yourself what is happening in the world? Are foreign markets up or down? When are earnings or economic data due?

 

Determine whether you want to trade prior to the release of an economic report, or after.

 

For many traders, it is prudent to wait until the report is issued before taking taking the trade. Professionals don’t gamble.

Rual Lopez

"Every morning, before I start looking for trade opportunities I do my own analysis and try to choose the currency pairs that have the clearest conditions of them all."

Raul Lopez

7. Keep a Trading Journal

 

Smart traders are also meticulous record keepers. If they place a winning trade, they want to know specifically how and why. More importantly, they want to know the same details upon losing, in order to avoid an unnecessary repeat.

 

Take note of details i.e. the exit and entry conditions of each trade, targets, resistance and support levels, the time, market close and open for the day, and the daily opening range.

 

Document observations about why you made the trade, as well any lessons you’ve learned from doing so.

Yohay Elam

"Analyse also the successful trades to see if it worked as planned or if you were merely lucky."

Yohay Elam

8. Study Price Action

 

“Price Action” describes the characteristics of a symbols price movements.

 

In layman’s terms, price action allows a trader to assess the market and make intuitive decisions based on current and definite price movements, as opposed to relying only on technical indicators.

50Pips

"Filter out noise, focus on price, stay small."

@50pips

9. Be a Patient Trader

 

It’s a virtue… Especially with forex trading.

 

Developing your currency trading plan will take time. Developing skills will take time.

 

Waiting for the right trading opportunities to appear requires patience. Entering and exiting a trade at the right moment requires patience.

 

Basically, forex trading equals patience.

Chris Capre

"I never had the attitude of 'when will I become successful.' My mentality was 'however long it takes is however long it takes'."

Chris Capre

10. Learn to Accept Losses

 

There's a reason it's called forex trading and not forex 'winning'.

 

Unfortunately, losses are an inevitable part of forex trading and you cannot improve your trades or become a consistently profitable trader if you can’t accept that.

 

There is no point in obsessing over a high winning percentage; instead you need to focus on cultivating your trading skills and seeing the bigger picture.

Joel Kruger

"You have to know that taking a loss is part of the game and you need to embrace it. If you can't take a loss and accept you were wrong, you will never be a successful trader."

Joel Kruger

11. Develop a Strong Work Ethic

 

A robust work ethic means taking essential actions to move forward and get better, regardless of whether you want to or not.

 

It involves being prepared for each forex trading day or week with proper research.

 

If you’re an automated or mechanical trader, it involves back-testing systems, continuously attempting new strategies, and adjusting settings as the environment fluctuates.

Andrew Barnett

"As a trader you are paid as a direct recognition of your talent."

Andrew Barnett

12. Don't Overtrade

 

Over-trading in the forex market can be indicative of either two things, (1) you might be trading too frequently in a short window of time, or (2) you might be risking too much money at any one time.

 

Sometimes, you might do both at once.

 

Regardless, both examples of over-trading have the potential to be extraordinarily harmful to your trading account.

Johnathon Fox

"Biggest problem for aspiring traders by far: overtrade."

Johnathon Fox

13. Implement a Prudent Money Management System

 

How much of your portfolio is worth risking on an individual trade?

 

On any given trading day, that number can range from as little as 1% to as much as 5% of your portfolio. This figure will be determined on your risk tolerance and trading style. If in doubt, risk less and live to fight another day.

Mario Singh

"Prudent money management rules should be observed by ALL traders at ALL times for ALL trades."

Mario Singh

14. Follow Experienced Traders

 

Learn from those who are more experienced than you and surround yourself with talent. By keeping an eye on how veteran traders invest, you'll begin to understand how they think and make crucial trading decisions.

 

Following other traders in real time gives every trader - beginner or advanced - the ability to learn with a ‘hands on’ approach - eliminating time spent learning theory.

Navin Prithyani

"Keep track on what the big players are doing."

Navin Prithyani

15. Find a Trading Buddy

 

The journey to becoming a professional and profitable trader can be a long and lonely road. Invest time upfront in finding a trading partner for whom you can be accountable to.

Kathy Lien

"I trade with my business partner and the ability to discuss and swap ideas is invaluable."

Kathy Lien

16. Be Consistent in Your Execution

 

Becoming a successful trader involves sticking to your proven edge. And that means being consistent.

Rimantas Petrauskas

I was not consistent with my trading rules and that was a big mistake.

Rimantas Petrauskas

17. Be Self Aware

 

Sound trading decisions are the product of continual self-awareness. You must be conscious of your own thought processes in order to evaluate (1) how they affect your view of the financial markets, and (2) how potential bias weight your decisions.