Can Your Live Off Forex?

ExecutiveIncome2You · #1 05-20-2009, 11:50 PM

There are some who make great money trading Forex, some who make a nice side income trading and others who lose the initial deposit. I'm wondering how many members here really make a livable income trading Forex?? How many people here are making enough to live off of(based on your current expenses) trading??

I'm looking forward to getting everyone's input on this!

**jafar00** · #2 05-21-2009, 10:57 AM

If somebody tells you that forex is a way of making a living, just laugh at him.
Forex is a high risk investment. The idea is that you use spare risk capital and withdraw profits regularly.
The only way to make a living from investing is to have a varied portfolio, of which things like forex, stocks and commodities can be placed in the high risk section but are by no means your only form of income.
Forex trading for me is just a way of buying extra things. For instance over the last couple of months I've paid for new laptops, business class plane tickets to a few places and a rather expensive day at Toys R Us for the kids

They also now have one year unlimited passes to go to Disney World any time they like. Little things that I probably wouldn't have bought without those forex winnings.
I did try to live off forex for about 6 months a few years ago. I was compounding and taking out living expenses and having a great time. However a couple of bad decisions pushed me back to 1/2 my initial capital which made my earnings potential very much lower so I had to diversify my way of earning and my investments.

So by all means, trade carefully and consistently, withdraw often and buy yourself some toys/holidays etc... but dont think forex is your ticket to the easy life.

Xaron · #3 05-21-2009, 11:04 AM

I agree. To make a living you should have enough capital to survive at least 1-2 years without any trading. I think 3-5% per month is an achievable goal.

ExecutiveIncome2You · #4 05-22-2009, 08:28 PM

I also agree, I think Forex is a great as a hobby or a way to earn some extra money as long as you're willing to risk a little. The truth is it's difficult to be successful trading FX especially if you're not a full time trader with years of experience and proven techniques on your side.

forexmarketer · #5 05-23-2009, 09:39 AM

Of course not, I dont even suggest this to someone. Forex should not be a goal for someone. It just a business of currencies, even if you get huge jackpot in Fores its certainly not gonna help to live life. You better limit it to just an extra earning.

**jafar00** · #6 05-23-2009, 01:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ExecutiveIncome2You

if you're not a full time trader with years of experience and proven techniques on your side.

Fulltime Trader? Meaning you are staring at 15min charts all day and wondering why you just wiped out a hard morning's scalping trades in one stupid afternoon?

I look at the charts twice a day. Once at midnight on daily charts for swing trades, and again in the morning to take some intraday breakouts. I think spending more than an hour deliberating over trading decisions is over-trading and can lead you to mistakes.

I'm primarily a technical trader over longer term charts. I don't even look at economic news as when you trade Daily/Weekly/Monthly charts, news releases are just noise in the trend

mtuppers · #7 05-24-2009, 12:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Xaron

I agree. To make a living you should have enough capital to survive at least 1-2 years without any trading. I think 3-5% per month is an achievable goal.

not really, as long as you have 2k that is good enough.

understand stochastic this indicator!

20 pip is not a problem at active sessions. by risking 30% of your account. should be profit within 30 min. $120 a day that is what I am after daily.

Xaron · #8 05-24-2009, 09:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mtuppers

not really, as long as you have 2k that is good enough.

understand stochastic this indicator!

20 pip is not a problem at active sessions. by risking 30% of your account. should be profit within 30 min. $120 a day that is what I am after daily.

Uh...I went through that stage as well, I think every trader has to go through this. I had my "indicators period" as well till I learned that this is just all crap. And risking 30% for a single trade? Wow... How long have you been doing that? 2 weeks? 3?

It's just impossible to make a living with just $2k.

contrarian · #9 05-24-2009, 10:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mtuppers

not really, as long as you have 2k that is good enough.

understand stochastic this indicator!

20 pip is not a problem at active sessions. by risking 30% of your account. should be profit within 30 min. $120 a day that is what I am after daily.

Of all the daft things I've read this week... you've just taken the top spot.