Are you a scalper or Swing Trader ?

Before we start out trading using PA or any other system, we need to be clear on what type of trader you are. are you a scalper who goes for 15-20 pips or someone who hangs on to trades for several hundreds of pips ? You need to sort this out first...the reason why this should be known is that, this is what that determines what kind of SL you should be having in mind...if you r a scalper,you typically have a SL of 30 pips for major pairs...for long term traders, you have much bigger SLs of around 200 pips....

let me tell you my own story...when i started out trading, i did not know what kind of a trader i was.....i did not know whether i wanted to be a scalper or a long term trader...in fact, i thought i could be both....i could scalp some trades and i could take some long term trades if i feel right....its easy, i thought..little did i realise that being either a scalper or a long term trader was in itself a tough job leave alone being both at the same time...

so, i scalped a few trades for 15 pips only to see the price move 200 pips in my direction making me think 'if only i had done a long term trade...' ...i tried a long term trade only to see the price move 15 pips in my direction and then 150 pips against me to end up in a loss and making me think 'if only i had scalped and closed it with 15 pips..'.....all this affected me psychologically and i got confused on what trades to scalp and when to trade long term.....cos of this confusion in taking profits, there was the confusion in the SL as well....i start off a trade to scalp with TP and SL as 20 pips and then i find the trade 20 pips against me, i think 'lets go long term on this one, i am sure it will turn around'...the trade does not turn and i end up with a 200 pip loss....imagine a loss of 200 pips aiming for a TP of 20 pips !! likewise, i take a long term trade and i see the trade go against me for 20 pips immediately...i think 'eeks...this cannot be right' and i close my long term trade with a loss of 20 pips !! only to see the trade work out beautifully later on....after i closed it...

this confusion keeps compounding and more than affecting the TP, it affects my SL a great deal and thats where the problem begins....now i am vey clear...i realise that i just dont have the patience for long term trades...i can only be a scalper....so i aim for only 15-20 pips a trade and i am happy to get it...i really dont worry if the trade continue in my direction even for 200 pips....i am happy with my 15....i know the market will be there and i am happy with what i get cos i know that if i keep getting 15 pips for every trade i make, i will be rich soon....but i ensure that i stick to the SL precribed for scalp trades....i really dont have any confusion in that...

so my daily target is also only 50 pips though i easily exceed it....it is this understanding of what kind of trader u are is the one that determines all the other stuff....

you might have seen some big trades from me....those happen cos my confidence has grown...they also happen cos it just so happens that i am away from the screen for sometime after opening a trade and i come back and see it with a profit of 100 pips....!!!