Hubert Senters has been day trading for a living since 1997. Hubert Senters will discuss:
What you need to learn to do day trading for a living
Who should be interested in day trading for a living
Should you be day trading for a living
lifestyle you can achieve by day trading for a living.
Day trading for a living? It's about the preparation
If you are day trading for a living, the most important thing that you can do for each trading day is to simply be prepared. When the markets open, it will be far too late to prepare for the chaos and volatility that a typical trading day can bring. While preparations for the trading day will be different for each trader, below is a short list that is common areas to focus on.
Look for any significant news that happened overnight.
One of the most important things to be aware of at the start of the trading session is whether or not anything important happened the night before. For example, an American stock trader will want to know if there were any major announcements overnight, whether or not Asian markets fared well, or if there were any economic numbers of places like Germany or China that could possibly give hints to the future economic direction of the world economy. Keeping abreast of this type of information, can keep you from getting burnt at the opening bell.
Scan your charts.
Being prepared at the opening bell means knowing which stocks or at least which sectors you are interested in. The prudent trader will scan the charts the night before, or least early that morning for possible technical setups that may be present in the marketplace. Once the opening bell has rung, you already be too late to make clear, concise, and emotionless decisions.
Check the calendar.
Before the trading day starts, you should check financial calendars to see if there are any economic announcements coming out during the trading day. The last thing you want to do, is enter a position in the morning only to find out that there is an important economic announcement coming out two hours later. This is one of the most basic yet common mistakes the traders make time and time again. A sudden unexpected economic announcement result can play havoc on any open positions that you happen that.
Get the peripherals together before the bell rings.
While it is not often thought of, the prudent trader will have everything together before the trading day starts, including anything along the lines of snacks, drinks, and anything else that you may want or need during your trading day. As market opportunities can come and go in the space of moments, you will need to be able to focus on the markets for the length of the trading day. Few things are more frustrating than seeing a set up appear and trigger a buy signal, after the fact as you were downstairs getting something to drink. It is your job to focus on the markets, and the markets only.
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