Is there a specific route to follow?

You have good intent @robruf but I think your putting the cart ahead of the horse. But if you do jump in get familiar with Level 2 and be able to read the charts from top to bottom in real time. I would suggest doing some swing trading first to get the feel for trading. Keep a journal like some of the guys do and always look for improvement in your trading...TTT

 

Hi Robruf I still wait to know if you are an Italian living in England or an English stay few months in Italy?

IMO TTT give you a good reply info... I would add do some virtual trading until you begin to form a strategy and improve it as you go along.. (understand-study-improve any mistakes etc... etc...etc..)
read study watch but tehn mix all those ideas an d form you own .... walk with you own legs ... you can't trade with someone else idea (head)
emotions -mind set are different ... we might get the same goal $$$ but in different way ...
at least you don't just seat and idle but making effort ... bravo
would you trade from an English account or USA? because there are different rule and regulation

any way I better stop before asking to many Q

 

I am a novice as well. Although I have invested a lot of time into learning stock valuation and economics, I still feel I have a great deal further to go.

Day trading requires a very honed psychological mentality that virtual trading fails to reflect, this is because you are placing REAL potential at risk rather than VIRTUAL potential. This psychological element can only be revised through self learning and dedication. Charlie Munger has contributed to this study and I believe there is a video by him on "The psychology of human misjudgement" which is well worth reading / listening to.

I would also understanding the stock market more by reading and or following more experienced traders / investors. A great way to do this are through 13F filings however I would only recommend looking at WHY they bought/sold a particular stock at a particular day rather than copying what they do since the opportunity may have gone and or you will not be bettering your own skills.

Personally, I keep a ledger that covers every transaction I have ever made in the stock market, I also write a thesis on why I made this judgement. Every Sunday I sit down and reflect upon my current positions and decide whether my thesis has proved correct / incorrect and then I try to find why it was either wrong / right. I also reflect on all previous positions usually monthly or occasionally annually to find whether I closed my position at the correct time and if my decision to close was wrong / right and why so.

Since I open positions on a much longer time scale than day trading it is hard to replicate this self-learning, however, if you desire optimal progress I would highly encourage you to attempt to self-learn via similar methods.

Although this is more from an investment approach I hope you will find use to some of my methods of improvement. I would not recommend using your own money to begin with however it is up to you so long as you understand the risks fully.

 

wow it is like listen to myself... well done Alex ... that is what I keep on say to newbie (well you explained more like a professor my English doesn't get me there but the base it is the same)

 

are you using this Plus500 >>>http://www.plus500.it/Trading/Stocks.aspx

I take you will be resident in UK, so which broker would you use? carry on with Plus500 It or UK .. difference is € or £ to trade $ stocks
as you say they put (gave IMO) $ I take it is a $ account
we told you, on the other thread regarding the CFD etc..

the English translation for my American friends >>Please note that CFDs are a leveraged product and can result in the loss of all capital.

any way good luck

 

#1. Ditch the idea of becoming a day trader ....... for now
#2. Start researching various methodology - choose one that makes sense to you on a conceptual level (avoid holy grail indicators). When you have a framework of how you believe the market/stocks work - it gives you confidence to manage your positions correctly.
#3. Apply what you've learned to swing trading on higher time frames like daily charts - Once you've got the hang of it you can consider venturing over into day trading. A chart is a chart is a chart. The patterns that play out on day trading charts also play out on swing trading.
#4. Losing is a part of the process. Accept it. The question is will your winners cumulatively outsize your losers? The reward-to-risk factor should ideally be at least 1.5 to 1 for every trade you take.

If you start out as a day trader, you're going to try to make sense of 5min, 10mins, 20mins charts, etc. It's pure noise for novices. It's also the ass backwards way to learn and it will teach you very bad habits. The other important element in all of this is personality. Are you really the kind of person who can handle the volatility and frequency of such fast action that encompasses day trading?

I started out as a day trader. I thought scraping quick gains was a safer route than having to let my position sit out there for days. Couldn't be anything further than the truth. The 5% who are good at it are sharp individuals and EXTREMELY mechanical. The rest are emotional gamblers.