First steps in your trading path
Here is a simple analogy: trading is like planning a good trip. What do you usually do once you've decided to head up to a new place? 

  • Setting up a goal
    You cannot start travelling without choosing a destination. Similarly, you cannot start trading without defining your investment goals.

  • Choosing a timeframe
    How long are you planning to travel? Do you want to spend a day on a trip or do you want to reach some other destination which will probably take more time than this? Just like in travelling, a professional trader needs to understand the final result. You need to know whether you want to see an instant profit by taking higher risks or are ready to undertake a safer path and spend several years reaching solid financial ground.

  • The initial investments
    We always plan our expenses before we start the trip, right? The same rule applies to trading. It would be best to decide what amount of money you are ready to invest now and later to achieve your goals. 

Trading checklist: factors to consider 
Now when we have a beginner's guide, let's observe factors you need to consider before setting up your personal daily trading checklist.

1. Trend
As a part of your daily trading strategy, you always need to choose whether you go with the market trend or against it. It's recommended that novice traders go with the current trend as it is a low-risk strategy compared to the opposite option.

2. Investment amount
Before starting trading, you should always ask yourself about the amount of capital you can afford to invest. Limiting the leverage to the minimum ratio (10:1 or 1:1) is an excellent strategy to avoid risky situations in trading. Generally the lower the leverage the safer the trade.

3. Watching out the news
Keeping abreast of the trading developments and announcements will help you gain more confidence in your trading strategy and avoid losses.  

4. Healthy mental state
Trading is not gambling or a game of chance. It would help if you remembered that keeping your mind clear and emotionally stable is a key to balanced and thoughtful trading. Always ask yourself if you are in a good mental state to start trading.
As mentioned above, a trading checklist is a personal tool, and we cannot set up a universal template for each trader. However, you can look at a general checklist that contains the ten most common questions that an average trader should ask himself before entering the market. If your answer is ‘yes’ to each of these questions, then it's probably worth trading today.  

  1. Did I choose the investment? (e.g. stock, bond, index)

  2. Does the setup meet my entry requirements?

  3. Is the market trending?

  4. Does the trade go in the direction of the trend?

  5. Am I comfortable with the capital I am risking?

  6. Is the trade amount right for me?

  7. Is the risk to reward ratio positive?

  8. Is the economic calendar silent for the upcoming trade?

  9. Am I following my trading plan?

  10. Am I emotionally stable to enter the trade?

For your convenience, we've prepared the same checklist in the downloadable format below.