Study Guide for The New Trading for a Living

Experienced traders seem to glide through the markets, swinging into and out of trades. Their trading appears effortless, like downhill skiing on TV. The illusion of ease vanishes when you clamp on a pair of skis and discover the bumps on the slope. If you want to improve your trading skills, you have to work, study, and do your homework. I created this Study Guide to help you grow and succeed as a trader. It is based on my years of experience as a trader and teacher of traders. The more you study the markets and your reactions to them, the more likely you are to succeed. You need to learn more about yourself as well as the markets—good traders always learn. Each question in this Guide is linked to a specific chapter in The New Trading for a Living—psychology, risk management, indicators, and so on. Write down your answers and compare them with those in the book. When answering chart-related questions, cover each chart with a sheet of paper and move it slowly from left to right to imitate the unfolding of market action. Practice dealing with the uncertainty of the markets while working with this Guide. This Guide asks questions and provides answers—but reasonable people may disagree with some of them. Trading is partly a science and partly an art—partly objective and partly subjective. Let this Guide challenge you to think deeper about the markets and your reactions to them. I am grateful to Henry Abelman and Jeff Parker, both repeat winners of SpikeTrade’s Eagle Eye award, for reviewing all questions and answers. Carol Keegan Kayne did the final check for clarity and precision.