FXstreet.com

Name: Phil Newton

Position: Developer of Trading Strategies

Company: Trading Strategies.info

Phil Newton was key speaker at the FXstreet.com International Traders Conference in October 2008 - Barcelona.

I'm a self taught trader and managed to start my trading career with a high degree of success, but this doesn't mean to say I don't have my fair share of loosing trades. I have always been interested in trading from a very early age and started reading what I could about technical analysis when I was about 16. I started hand drawing charts of the FST100 and some stocks at about the same time. Using all my savings I made my first trade when I was 18 in a UK stock called Waterfall purchasing 920 shares at 54 pence and sold out a little over 8 months later for 108 pence. Since then I was hooked. The following 3 trades I made were in mining stocks and closed them all pretty quickly as they simply weren't making any money (a good choice with hindsight but there was nothing clever about it) and took a small loss with the transaction costs taken into account.

I soon realised that this wasn't as easy as all the glossy adverts made it out to be and due to my lack of funding I decided that I needed to focus on other things like my education and get a job. I spent the next several years finishing my education, working and dreaming of making a living from trading. I was lucky enough to get a start on the trading ladder working for a software developer that had developed a black box to trade the futures market. This is where I really learned what not to do in trading as they pretty much did everything you shouldn't do when trading.

My brief time here allowed me to see real time data unfold in front of me and practice my new art and try to put what I had spent a long time reading about into practice. I would constantly think I can do better, but something (as always, fear of failure) held me back. It was at this time I was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease. It is actually a very nasty progressive illness and I mention it only because it was the catalyst for many life changing decisions.

I spent 8 weeks in hospital 4 of which in a critical care unit, and the following 8 months recovering at home. I came very close to death in this time and it made me think of many things in my life, my career being one of them. I basically decided on all the changes I wanted in my life and follow several dreams I've had and never taken action to make them happen.

I thought (from a career perspective) that I want to be a trader and make my living in this way. "Better to have tried and failed than to never have tried at all." Near the end of my recuperation I took £1000 off my credit card and started trading Ibex futures. Since that Day I have never looked back and never regretted any of my life choices as they are mine and mine alone. In that time I have learned a great deal about myself and trading. I have traded Futures, NASDAQ stocks and Forex. I have continued to do so and now make my living in this way.

Blog: Trade Setups