How to begin trading without allowing fear to control you

[Faisal2202]

Sometimes you need to talk to him  .

But the whole point of this thread is for future or margin trading since he mentioned SL, TP, and entry. However, you talk about spot trading, where you can hold your coins and do buy only and never sell.

The trading style we will do in the future is totally different when you trade with spot because trading futures and holding the position for too long will wreck you by funding rates.
The holding style you're doing won't work there.

My head is spinning because of this confusion, because you are saying that he mentioned SL, TP, and entry, while he did not, and that's what he clarified in that post. Instead, you mentioned these terms in your post and I was replying back to you, but instead I wrote his name in that post, that's where I made the mistake. Anyway, you are the one who mentioned SL, TP, and entry, not me.

Now about spot trading, yeah, that's something I agreed on with bitmover, and we should wait and watch, we should not let things completely depend on SL or TP. To be honest, I used them for some time and I lost more money, so I left them. I am only into spot though, because futures can't give me profit if I am holding like you said. Also, I don't like it, I lost some funds in it and it puts a lot of pressure on me, that's why.

[HyperCodexV]

Everyone likes trading, but because of the risk involved it makes others feel discouraged about it. I’ve noticed some don’t look for knowledge first before they start trading. They just focus on profit.


What trips most beginners really need like me when trading, to avoid alot of mistakes.

- Trading with funds you can’t afford to lose makes you fearful as a trader.
- No stop loss, thinking you can get the money you risked back.

Most beginners jump into trading because of FOMO from social media. Just because they don’t want to miss the market.But that plan is different from yours, and at that moment you can enter the market too late, end up losing, and start complaining, and think trading is not for you.

That fear in trading comes from uncertainty. If you're not that sure of what you're doing, you will second guess every move you make. That's why having a clear plan is so important. Start small. Use money you can afford to lose. Practice on a demo account first. Have clear entry and exit points before you click buy. And accept that losing is part of the game it's not failure it’s just part of the game.

Many beginners fail because they are hell bent on chasing profits, not following a process. Switch that mindset off and that fear starts to lose its grip on your emotions. And also stop comparing yourself to others on social media. You don't know their entry point, their risk level or their strategy. Focus on your own plan and trust the process. Consistency beats luck every time.

[Antotena]

​True a friend of mine was telling me that trading was gambling and I was trying to explain but bro didn't want to listen, so I just kept quiet. People have a choice but they don't often make the right one. That's why you see someone saying I have been trading for 10 years, yet nothing to show forth.Some even give up before that 10 years. That said revenge trading is bad as it will seem more like gambling. Basically when you know you don't have a steady income for trading, you have to often trade with demo as a newbie, and your trade execution has to be very precise as you will need a very good strategy that aligns with your budgets. That's all.

When I see a person make clarity that trading is gambling, I don't bother to argue. I just assume such people don't know how to trade and if you want to argue with them, it will looks like you are just wasting your time. You should have conversations with people that knows and understands trading better. We know that trading involved risk and gambling has risks too but trading is manageable compare to gambling, you don't have power over casino.

There is a way you can set up your trade with risk and potential profits and if you are lucky that your call was successful it will go as you expected and if it does not, the stop loss is going to help you to reduce your exposure in trading. You can't do the same thing trading, you don't have stop loss in casino games or bet, any money you risk on gambling is gone. The only grace you have to get that money is if your bet win then you may get your money and win else it will be loss.

[Agbamoni]

There is a confidence that comes with executing a position when you strategically analysed the market to your own understanding, Fear will not be something to worry about, not because you know it will go to your favour, but because you are satisfied and and fulfilled that you did your part, To me personally even if it hit loss, i will feel just fine and opened to lean what caused it. 

You sound too certain of what confidence can do for you. Too much confidence in trading can be dangerous as fear would be. When you are too confident as a trader, it makes you think you can't make mistakes, leading to misuse of strategy and ignoring some vital principles in trading.

But in situations where you assume or hope that the market will go to your favour {GAMBLING} you will definitely get scared at the execution, because you dont know exactly what you did, and your just in the trade based on hope.

When a decision is based on hope, it is certain fear will creep onto the show. Well, a calculated strategy boosts confidence, but we both know confidence won't guarantee a profit. This may be the reason why some traders go with the hope of getting a profit instead of being so sure of their strategy.

[Franctoshi]

Everyone likes trading, but because of the risk involved it makes others feel discouraged about it. I’ve noticed some don’t look for knowledge first before they start trading. They just focus on profit.

If we can do all of this, it will help you reduce fear in trading.

1.Trade with your trading budget :We should always try to trade with an amount we can afford to lose without feeling worried about it. Many traders risk money they can’t afford to lose, thinking they can get profit when they use huge amounts. We need to always control ourselves and not trade with emotions, but follow our rules. It’s better that way. Fear won’t occur because we’re doing what’s best for us.

2. Open a Demo account:It’s better to practice trading with fake money first, learn different strategies, and gain confidence before you start using real funds. I can say you should try it for about 2 to 3 weeks, then later switch to real funds. Start with the little money you can afford to use. Don’t let anyone confuse you. Always follow your rules and only put in funds you can afford to lose 100%.

Trading a demo account does not remove fear; it only helps you build confidence with your system and not what happens in the real market. It's only when you start trading the live account because that's when you're now facing the real market.  Because when you want to practice swimming, do you go elsewhere apart from starting by swimming in shallow water?

A demo account is a different ball game from what happens in the live market; that's why people get surprised when they enter a live account and, in most cases, find out their system doesn't work, and that even causes fear. Therefore, to remove fear is to face the reality, trade the live account with the lowest leverage and with a small amount of money used to drink beer, and apply other rules, like risk management, stop losses, and the rest, and watch how it plays out.

[Botnake]

Before we proceed to prevent fear from trading, let's also consider the positive impact that mostly appear when there is fear with traders. In fact, fear turns out as a survival mechanism rather than a threat or a barrier to the success of future trades. With fear, traders are forced to adopt strict risk management,  disregard FOMO, and get rid of leveraging, so being fearful really does some help especially to beginner traders.

However, positive outcomes when trading are best maximized when traders are able to overcome their fear that could turn as a hindrance to their future success. Trading is risky, it becomes more risky when fear is the ultimate motivator for traders.

[suhadi88]

3. Have rules before clicking buy:I’ve noticed that fear can come when you don’t actually know what you’re doing. No planning anything just to rush into getting profits, It’s better to have rules like:
- Entry
- Stop loss
- Take profit

Yes, those points are important, and exchanges do offer those features. However, beginners need to learn how to use them properly; don't jump straight into futures trading. Start with the basics—spot trading—for at least a month until you're proficient.

One common cause of losses is getting overexcited after a small profit and then "going all-in" by multiplying your position size. That kind of aggressive move might feel "manly" at the time, but once you get liquidated (hit a margin call), you end up acting like a child—complaining and letting emotions drive a desire for revenge, often leading you to use additional capital from loans or the sale of important physical assets.

[Woodie]

Everyone likes trading, but because of the risk involved it makes others feel discouraged about it. I’ve noticed some don’t look for knowledge first before they start trading. They just focus on profit.

One other pitfall about a beginner trader is jumping from one strategy to another, truth be told all strategies that exist today has someone profiting from them so we can't say these are broken, and for this I believe problem could be with the trader .

One other thing I was guilty of, going to watch different traders trade on YouTube, that place messes with your confidence and trading mentality..stick to one trading system and if you can afford a mentor do get one to help put you on the right path.

2. Open a Demo account:It’s better to practice trading with fake money first, learn different strategies, and gain confidence before you start using real funds.

Demo trading is a good place for sharpening your strategies and all that , but this can never prepare you for the real thing, this can never recondition your mindset/emotions and the only fix is to tryout those strategies with real funds to see if your emotions won't be all over the place.