Sunday, January 31, 2010

I Love the Sound of Coping…

Skateboarders love the feel and sound of a grind on cement coping.  A focused grind is loud and proud, slightly on the edge and always controlled.  The trading world is not much different; one must be focused, confident and willing to take risks.  Success in both endeavors requires the credo of never give up.  A common mistake that we often make is to bail early on a trade or give up on our method.  Usually, stepping away to regroup before trying again solves a losing streak or a bailed trick.  It would seem that the technique is as mechanical as it is mental.  I’ve had the experience that having the mental edge breeds sustained success.

January has been a good month here at Grinder Trader.  I think it has been in large part due to success early in the month that bred focus and confidence.  My modest monthly goal of 200 pips for the month was both challenging and reachable.  Once I reached the goal, I placed a stop on the amount but continued trading.  At month end I doubled the goal ending the month + 405 pips.  Here the lesson was to go with the flow while the momentum continued.  It certainly helped that I was riding what seems like a change in direction for the EURUSD pair from a year ago.  The 200-day SMA was a magnet; we shall see how the level reacts overhead.

So ends the first month of then year.   The trick now is how I transfer to February with confidence in place, but with a clean slate for the month ahead.  Past results are no guarantee of future success they always say, yet success must breed sustained achievement.  The skater in me certainly knows the path to the next successful trick is paved by the success of earlier work. 

Lance Mountain knows how to make the transfer, check it out…


Friday, January 22, 2010

Sorry for the Inconvenience

On my way to Washington this morning and was truly amazed at the reaction of those around me to increased security.  Inconveniences it appeared is something that should be fine for everyone but the individual.  Case in point, a man directly in front of me was visibly and loudly put out because there was not a separate line for First or Business Class passengers.  After all there had been one prior to Detroit and he was flying First Class.  He stated loudly "why do you think I fly First Class?"  I guess he doesn't realize the bad guys fly premium class too!

So, sorry for the inconvenience to all you out there who want it all, but don't want to give up anything in return.  The credo of personal sacrifice appears to be for everyone else.

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Politics and Profits

Woke up this morning to the news that the Mass Senate race has gone to the Republicans.  I saw considerable speculation in the blogs I read that this impacted the overnight markets.  At Slope of Hope, the Avatars have taken over and at Evil Speculator some commentators see the EURUSD as having been broken.  Certainly the action in the lighter Asian session has pushed the pair under the 200 Simple Moving Average.  This is a big deal in classical FX trading.

I was short two lots late in the day yesterday, anticipating a bounce off of resistance at 1.4290 on the shorter term charts.  I was looking for a move down to the bottom of a channel bounded around 1.4260. The results in the Senate race helped push the pair lower than expected, so I rode it past my original profit point to the 1.4200 level.  I tightened my mental stop at that point and hit buy to close out the two lots for 75 pips!  My monthly target of 200 has been exceeded by more than 100!

Grind on!

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Take profits or let them run?

Take profits or let them run?

Posted using ShareThis

Please take a look at this fine post on FxMadness, remember pigs get rich and hogs get slaughtered.

Oink!

Monday, January 18, 2010

I Don’t Like Mondays, Then Again…

Trading foreign currencies is a shredders game.  Seduced we are by a wild, free market with few rules and a pitch that the market is open nearly all the time.  And it’s true – sort of.  I suppose for me, the seeds to fool around with this market were planted when I first began traveling abroad in the late 80’s.  I filled my pockets with Irish Pounds and Italian Lira.  Drinking Guinness in Dublin and pounding espresso in Milan took plenty.  Of course, I was shredded by the moneychanger’s game each time I cashed in a travelers check.  Paying the spread to my Forex Broker is no different.

Like most newcomers to the game I tried to trade all the time at first.  Asian session, European session, and New York session – you name it.  Monday and Friday were great days to lose my money since it never occurred to me that traders needed to warm up on Monday and were ready to go home early on Friday.  I guess folks wait to make a move on Monday and take profits to buy martinis on Friday.  Once I laid back and chose my sessions wisely, rarely taking trades on Monday and never on Friday afternoon (New York time), my FX trading has improved.

Unlike most people here in Germany, I had a day off to celebrate MLK day in the States today.   This presented a good opportunity for me to watch the Asian close and European action knowing that the overlap with New York (best time for me to trade) would be sleepy.  I saw the EURUSD bouncing between 1.4390 and 1.4340, so I took a trade when the pair bounced off the 1.4390 resistance area and gained 13 quick points on the sell side. 

I enjoyed the bounce today while the EURUSD grapples with where to go next.  The grind goes on.


Sunday, January 17, 2010

First a Bail, Then a Stand-up Grind

My trading week started with a bail when an overly tight stop of 30 pips was hit on my first trade of the week.  I was looking for the Euro to rebound a bit on Monday, considering the greenback had spent time in December gaining strength.  This seemed to me based on traders closing profitable trades at year-end to close out their books.  After all, the dollar fell for most of the year.    The daily moves hit my profit target at one point after hitting the electronic stop.  I truly have had better results using mental stops based on a read of the charts, together with a feel for the market action. 

I guess it’s a bit like learning a new trick on a skateboard.  The electronic stop works like the fear of falling.  If you are afraid of falling you almost always bail without success.  The electronic stop is the fear factor that prevents you from making the trick or grinding out profit.  It’s a mental game, so I’m using mental stops more often.  Of course, I have to be there to monitor the action. 

The remainder of the week I tried to practice the idea.  I put on my kneepads determined to focus on making the trick.  Follow-on trades on Tuesday yielded 25 pips as I just scratched the edge of the market.   I ended the week with confidence in grinds that were controlled and smooth.  First a backside rip that was worth 33 points.  I ended the week’s session with a full stand-up grind that brought home 53 additional pips.

Back to back grinds feel pretty good, but I’m looking for carving grinds now!



Tuesday, January 12, 2010

A Token Claim

 With a frontside grind, Grinder Trader posts the following technorati claim token:

2KE8WQVASEAM

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

The Daily Grind

If I mention the daily grind most people immediately think of a cup of Starbucks coffee, however that is not what this blog is about.  The idea is a slow, smooth and stylish method to grind out profits from the forex and equity markets.  I'm a life long skateboarder who idolized the Dogtown style and envies the skateboarders of today.  This is the inspiration behind Grinder Trader.

I wrote a few days ago that I would likely not take any forex trades until after the Non Farm Payroll announcement this Friday.  However, an opportunity arose and I took a small tester position by selling one lot of EURUSD.  I quickly bailed with a small profit.  Later on I dropped in two lots with another sell order that closed when it hit my admittedly tight stop.  Net result was a 68 pip profit.  On the way to a 200 pip monthly goal.

We're grinding it!


Monday, January 4, 2010

The Clean Slate

It snowed in Frankfurt yesterday.  Unusually, it was more than a dusting leaving the ground completely covered.  It was incredibly clean, sauber as they say here in German.  I consider it a good starting point for the trading year.  My slate is clean, no trades entered, no losses and no gains.  I'll likely place no forex trades until after the Non Farm Payrolls (NFP) on Friday.  The market is adjusting to the return of the big boys.  Patience is best here.

Let it snow, let it snow!