I think, that you have a proper area in your house to trade from, because your environment has a direct influence on your mindset, and your mindset has a huge affect on your overall trading performance. I would like, that this article will help you how to set up your trading room or office and adjust your lifestyle to achieve optimal trading results.
Every trader has a slightly different living situation and budget that
has an influence on how they setup their trading room and what equipment
they decide to use. Ultimately, no matter what your specific situation
is, you should aim to design your Forex trading room or office with just
the right combination of practicality and comfort.
• Forex trading furniture
The furniture that you use to trade from is very important. If you have enough room in your house or apartment, you should definitely have a decent size computer desk to trade from. L- shaped desks that you put in the corner of a room seem to work very well if you plan on having multiple monitors, or if you just need more desk space in general. Otherwise, you at least need a desk big enough for a laptop. If you have absolutely no room for a desk, you can buy a small platform to set your laptop on so that you can comfortably work with your computer on your lap without it getting too hot.
The next major piece of trading
furniture that you need to consider is your computer chair. I personally
recommend investing in a high-quality computer chair. Having a
comfortable computer chair to trade from makes the time you spend at
your trading desk much more relaxing and enjoyable; you don’t want to be
sitting in a chair that causes you pain or that just isn’t comfortable,
this is not something you need distracting you from the process of
price action analysis. If you are crunched for space you may simply
elect to get a bean bag chair and throw it in the corner of your room or
dorm, but whatever you do make sure you have a comfortable place to sit
while trading and studying the markets.
One very important point to
consider is that a clutter-free work environment helps foster a
clutter-free mind. So, when deciding on your trading desk and the area
you will trade in; make sure you arrange it to be as clutter-free and
clean as possible.
*Computers First off, you want to be sure that the particular
computer(s) you use is robust and relatively new, has an up-to-date
antivirus/firewall, and can handle incoming data feeds in real time
while running other applications. The last thing you want is for your
computer to freeze up as you are trying to enter (or exit) a trade.
Basically, you want to make sure your computer is in a good running
state before you start trading from it, you definitely do not want to
skimp out on quality when it comes to your main trading computer.
Newer
and faster is definitely better when itcomes to computer hardware, you
can get a good machine with plenty of memory, hard drive space, and
processor power for relatively little money these days. As far as how
many computers you need to trade with; you at least need one reliable
computer, and if you only have one it should ideally be a laptop.
Ideally, you will have at least two computers; one desktop and one
laptop with a good battery life, if the power goes out you are going to
be really glad you have a laptop with a good battery, it may be the only
way to get out of a trade if your house or office loses power. A laptop
also provides you with mobility, you can trade from anywhere with an
internet connection and a laptop.
• Monitors
If you can afford to get multiple monitors then you should definitely consider it. It can be helpful and more enjoyable to have one monitor for just analyzing the charts and another for placing trades and viewing quotes. However, this is by no means necessary, and it’s really just a luxury thing. Also, there is the argument that traders with numerous monitors become “data junkies”, which can distract you and cause confusion. Limiting yourself to one monitor will force you to focus your attention on one thing at a time and help to eliminate the possibility of “analysis paralysis”, this is especially important early-on in your trading career, and then as you gain experience you might decide you are ready for a multi-monitor setup.
• Internet and T.V.Trading is all about data
you need a fast
internet connection for incoming live data feed and fast trade
execution. You cannot afford to have a slow internet connection or an
unreliable one while trading. If you can get a better connection speed
from you internet service provider, you definitely should do so, I
suggest getting the fastest and most robust internet connection within
your budget. Some traders chose to have a back-up dialup connection;
however this is unnecessary as long as your primary provider is robust.
There is no need to rush out and spend money on premium charting
platforms or data feeds; most of what you will need is available online
for free. You can download the correct New York close charts here: Forex
trading charts and many websites such as Yahoo!, MSN, and Reuters are
excellent sources of news and investment information. What you do not
need is a T.V. in your trading room blasting CNBC or any other financial
TV program, typically these programs aredistractions because they are
little more than opinions of “experts” who are probably better
commentators than traders.
• Creating the atmosphere
Most traders
don’t give much thought to their trading environment, but the truth is
that it’s very important, and considering most of us are trading from
home, there’s a lot you can do to create a relaxing trading atmosphere.
One
important point to consider is that if you have a lot of room in your
house, you should try to trade from the quietest part of your house. A
room that is somewhat secluded or away from the nosiest parts of your
house or apartment is most ideal. The idea is to create a focused and
relaxed atmosphere where you can concentrate fully on the processes of
learning to trade and analyzing the charts.
You may want to hang a
nice picture in your trading room, something that calms your nerves and
is perhaps pleasing or motivating to look at. Music is another big
factor in creating the right trading atmosphere, if you need to relax
and “drown out” the distractions that might be taking place in your
house, put on some relaxing music like jazz or classical, put on some
headphones if you need to. Whatever music that you consider to be
relaxing and(or) motivating, is good to listen to while trading the
markets; whatever it takes to help you get into the “zone”.
• Other considerations
You
need to consider your physical health as well. You cannot trade
effectively if you are not getting enough sleep or are feeling
physically ill. It is important to get rest, eat a healthy diet, and get
some exercise, trading is not the easiest profession to excel in, so we
really need to put the
odds in our favor as much as we can. This
means controlling things that we can control, like diet, exercise, and
rest. You cannot control the market, but you can control your own mind,
and part of maintaining a mindset conducive to profitable trading is
taking care of your body, because the
body affects the mind. In conclusion,
I hope you find useful notes for yourself, and make your work comfortable and productive. Successful trading!