The Biggest Trading Lessons I Learned the Hard Way

When I first got acquainted with the notion of trading, I wondered whether this could be the most convenient way of earning money without having to heat in the hot Nigerian sun. I noticed that online people were sharing screenshots of their profits, were traveling with beautiful countries, and were purchasing fancy cars. I said to myself, this is my dream life. I believed that trading was just about pushing the buttons to buy and sell after which my money would multiply. Nevertheless, things were not like that. The reality is, that I got some of the largest and toughest lessons of my life in trading.

At first, I trusted each and every advertisement that advertised fast wealth. I read such claims as, Make $500 Monday to Friday with your phone and I believed that nothing much is required to earn a lot of money. I used some of the savings and opened a forex account and started trading without any type of training. It was a lucky winning streak to start off my trade. I started to earn little money and due to my confidence, which developed at such an accelerating pace, I was the unstoppable person.

One bad trade however changed things. It netted out all my profits as well as capital. This is when I learnt that trading is not a get rich quick scheme. The market does not give an ear to your eagerness or vision; it does not understand your enthusiasm nor does it pay any attention to dreams with which you can count pigeons and can spin fantasies. Unless you know how to do it, the market will pocket your money without saying a single word about it.

Another evil that I needed to overcome was greed. I had once led by $100 already in profit. As opposed to shutting the trade and getting my money back, I thought to myself, I will just wait and it can grow to $200. In a few minutes the market turned and I lost all the money (not only the gain, but also a sum of the capital). As I learned that day, it is a good idea to have small consistent rewards rather than big risky ambitions. In the trader business it is often better to preserve yourself than to pursue even more.

I did not have a well drawn plan during those early days. I would pull out my trading app and look at the charts and either make decisions to buy or sell based on guesses. I did not predetermine any entry and exit points and I also did not employ a stop loss. This was in essence gambling. That unpreparedness cost me in the market. I understood that without a plan you are donating to the market. Being planned-out is the distinction amid trading and gambling.

I also learned that it is more of an emotion management trade rather than chart reading. I used to believe that it is all about the figures and the analysis, but it turned out that such feelings as fear, greed, and frustration can be the destruction of everything. Days I went bust and even before my loss was cleared jumped into another trade to feel that I won some money back. That is termed as revenge trading and can be the quickest way to blow the account. Another reason is the way fear would hold me back sometimes as I would not take a good trade after I had recently lost. The market does not give a hoot about how you feel-and trading is the best way of learning this. When you give in to emotions you are making poor choices.

The other hard lesson was patience. When I was a youngster I would have loved to engage in the market in every single market movement. I thought that unless I was in trading I was missing out. However, I later found out that I was overtrading and most of my losses were as a result of this. The most suitable option at other times is to remain out of the market until the opportune moment is met. Trading Trading is similar to fishing, you do not simply cast your net anyhow, but wait until the opportune moment and the favorable location.

The problem of risk management turned out to be my salvation. I have had days when I have had virtually all my account on the line in one trade as I was, er, sure how it was going to turn out. Naturally, the market was right and I lost all. I realize now that I should put minimal percentages of my invested capital at risk on each trade. So, at least it is possible that even in case of defeat, I will have a second day. You do not trade to see how big your account can get, you trade to be able to keep your account repaired over time.

Believing that I had mastered the game after experiencing a couple of victories was one of the wrong things that I have done. I got overconfident and I stopped learning. That is when I learned a lesson of losses by the market. I realized that the market is dynamic and one has to keep developing their competence. Even those who are already advanced traders learn and adjust day after day.

My level of discipline was also put to the test in the area of trading in a manner that I had never anticipated. I told myself I would not take more than two trades a day--but, having lost them, would take five more out of exasperation. Discipline does not mean adherence to your plan when all is going superb- it means the dominance of self when things are going haywire.

Among my most agonising errors was the breaking of the rule of trading with borrowed money. I felt I could multiply it and pay it back right away but that fear of knowing it was not mine and desperation got the best of me. Any loss was just more weighty and that fear even led me to worse decisions. I later lost the money and I struggled to repay it. I never will trade on borrowed money any more.

Social media was also involved in my struggles at an early age. I was a follower of several so called gurus of trade that only shared the winner trades and glamorous lifestyles. I put myself as a comparison with them and I felt that I was failing. They went to the extent of selling me solutions which were not effective. Later I came to the realization that not all trading as it is depicted by social media is glamorous. You must concentrate on your personal development and turn off the static.

Later I realized that trading is not a game, but a business. It means strategizing, self-control, documentation and lifelong education. Start making it your hobby or a money ATM to get treated by the market as an amateur and lose your cash.

In retrospect, the market has been one of my most important teachers. I have lost money and even cried in frustration and even considered giving up. All losses were lessons though, which strengthened me. Knowing that success in trade is not as much related to any special moments, stellar techniques and approaches but to the right mind frame and discipline, as well as patience, this is by far the largest lesson I have obtained. The market is forever, but once you lose your money or your ego you may never get back.

Today, I approach trading with caution and respect. I no longer chase quick money. I take small, consistent profits. I protect my capital. I wait patiently for the right opportunities. And most importantly, I keep learning. Trading is not easy, but with the right approach, it can be rewarding in the long run. The hard way taught me the best way and for that, I am truly grateful.