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Pagoda · 11-11-2006, 02:24 AM

Toasterwater,

you need to do your own thing when it comes to trading. That doesn't mean you shouldn't read and learn as much as you can. It just means what works for some people may not work for you.

From what you have said, it sounds like you are willing to take some serious hits to your $4,000 in cash just to jump in and start trading. There is nothing wrong with that as long as you know this up front. And if you really do feel this way, then forget divesification. Your trading costs are going to kill you when your 45 days are up. Sell all those stocks and get down to only 1 stock in your portfolio before then.

Now, based on your trading style, your limited capital and where you live, I would consider trading Forex, instead of stocks. Forex trades 24/7 so you can monitor your "daytrades" better. Forex can be traded using just technical analysis and an awareness of when major news events are going to occur (you don't seem the fundamental analysis type anyway.) Forex doesn't require a lot of capital (but there are considerable trading costs - don't let the "no commissions" ads fool you.) Pick one currency pair and become an expert in that trade.

If you are not interested in Forex, and want to stay with stocks, than here is some advice that will really get these message board screaming. Trade Options. Options are a completely different animal than stocks, but if I had to choose between trading 500 shares of some no name $1 stock or a single at the money contract GE, than I would choose options every time. Options have the advantage of requiring very little capital to make money. And if you really have this urge to trade with only $4,000 dollars, than options give you a chance of making real money that won't be eaten up by trading costs. optionsXpress will also let you virtual trade for a while to learn a bit too.

11-11-2006, 02:24 AM	#46 (permalink)
Pagoda Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 66	Toasterwater, you need to do your own thing when it comes to trading. That doesn't mean you shouldn't read and learn as much as you can. It just means what works for some people may not work for you. From what you have said, it sounds like you are willing to take some serious hits to your $4,000 in cash just to jump in and start trading. There is nothing wrong with that as long as you know this up front. And if you really do feel this way, then forget divesification. Your trading costs are going to kill you when your 45 days are up. Sell all those stocks and get down to only 1 stock in your portfolio before then. Now, based on your trading style, your limited capital and where you live, I would consider trading Forex, instead of stocks. Forex trades 24/7 so you can monitor your "daytrades" better. Forex can be traded using just technical analysis and an awareness of when major news events are going to occur (you don't seem the fundamental analysis type anyway.) Forex doesn't require a lot of capital (but there are considerable trading costs - don't let the "no commissions" ads fool you.) Pick one currency pair and become an expert in that trade. If you are not interested in Forex, and want to stay with stocks, than here is some advice that will really get these message board screaming. Trade Options. Options are a completely different animal than stocks, but if I had to choose between trading 500 shares of some no name $1 stock or a single at the money contract GE, than I would choose options every time. Options have the advantage of requiring very little capital to make money. And if you really have this urge to trade with only $4,000 dollars, than options give you a chance of making real money that won't be eaten up by trading costs. optionsXpress will also let you virtual trade for a while to learn a bit too.