Our biggest trading mistakes - Learn how to avoid them

Summer trading is different. As traders are headed to the beach, or elsewhere they choose to disconnect and get some rest, markets slow down, lose volume and become a bit more unpredictable.

That does not mean summer trading is worthless, but as Blake Morrow, founder of ForexAnalytix, says, with “trading ranges shrinking about a 1/3 of what you would normally expect, little spurts of volatility often can catch you off guard chasing a move or breakout, only to watch it fail or reverse”. Morrow proposes trying scalping or practicing “target trading” in smaller amounts as a way to get through the lack of liquidity of markets during these months minimizing the risk of an undesired drawdown.

If you rather have a more laid back time, summers are also good for reading and reflecting on the good, the bad and the ugly. The latter two are what we are focusing on in these series of articles, having put together some interesting tales and lessons learned from our best contributors during their lengthy careers. Nobody can excel at any kind of activity, and less so in the trading world, without first busting a couple of times.

This is what our most dedicated contributors learned in the process:

Trading psychology: Don’t let your emotions dictate your trading - This is a classic topic of trading educational articles. And it’s like that for actual solid reasons. Read how to surf the emotional wave of trading without drowning.

Wrong forex strategies: Don’t average down losing trades - Trying to correct a losing trade by doubling down with a lower entry price is another popular mistake. Everybody knows it but it is hard to avoid going down that way when losing on a trade you judged well.

Follow your forex plan: Don’t engage in reckless trading - Setting up some internal rules for your trading looks like a must first-step before setting up your account and getting into your platform. There are some nasty outcomes for those who ignore their own trading plan.

Day trading mistakes: Tales of how big trades went wrong - One way to learn from your past mistakes is having to go through the painful and challenging experience of explaining them. Another way is to hear from others who might have lived through some disgruntling trades.

Trading psychology: Don’t underestimate the risk - Assessing the risk of a trade is one of the biggest challenges any trader faces when planning the operations. It’s much easier to focus on the potential profits of a big trading opportunity spotted than calculating the potential losses one wrong turn can trigger.