Canadian author Lucy Maud Montgomery, once said: “Isn't it nice to think that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet?”
Since mistakes costs us money, the “yet” part is something that got us itching.
As such, let’s not get complacent and take a good look at 5 pesky mistakes which are stopping many traders out there from becoming more profitable:
1 Trading multiple correlated instruments
By now you’ve probably noticed how companies operating within the same industries and sectors will often move together, and the same goes for certain forex pairs.
This causes a problem as many novice traders who buy correlated instruments seem to be under the impression that they are diversifying and reducing their risk when in fact they are actually increasing it.
Positively correlated instruments will increase your risk in trading given that they will often move in sync.
2 Focusing on too many markets
The flipside to our previous point was this common mistake.
Just because your broker offers you access to trade in all available markets that doesn’t mean you should.
Many traders will become tired, confused, and frustrated simply due to trying to keep track of too many markets when what they should probably be doing is trying to become a market specialist or, at the very list, scaling it back.
3 Failing to understand Leverage
If there’s ever a double-edged sword in trading, that’s leverage . It can dazzle new investors with a potential massive boost in returns, or much like in a computer game, it can be “game over” due to how it exacerbates their losses.
To become successful at trading it is essential that one understands the benefits and pitfalls of trading with leverage so that he or she can start working with just the right amount.
4 Buying into the rumor
We’ve all done this before.
Someone you know, a TV pundit, or some random guy on a webpage/social network you use has a hot tip. Suddenly, everyone seems to forget about doing their own homework and hop on the bandwagon.
Unfounded tips are easy to find online these days but more often than not, they’ll turn into a mistake for those who blindly follow them.
If you are buying into something you better know both your trade and what you're buying inside out.
5 Changing it up too much
When it comes to trading, there are winning streaks which feel amazing, and there are losing streaks which try to bring you down.
However, one shouldn’t give up on a perfectly valid strategy based upon the first signs of adversity. 2 or 3 losses shouldn’t be making you rethink your whole formula, especially if you are doing some long-term thinking, so do not give up on your strategy on its early stages.
Wrapping up
Traders often remember and occasionally record their good trades, the ones in which they made massive profit, but then there are some days in which everything seems to go about the wrong way.
This list features 5 common mistakes traders make weather in the stock market , in forex, or when dealing with cryptocurrency.
If you recognize any of them, be sure to address it properly.
Afterall, and to paraphrase Confucius, if you make a mistake and fail to correct it, then that is surely a mistake.