HOW TO TRADE A SMALL ACCOUNT

6. Not accounting for trades

Have you ever known a trader that likes to do accounting? Traders love
the excitement of the trade, but hate the boredom of all the surrounding
responsibilities, such as accounting, taxation and documentation.
Boredom, avoidance of responsibility and denial are the backing behind
this common slip-up. It’s a lot easier to think about that great winning trade
you made than to look at hard after commission numbers. Numbers don’t
lie, but they are a strong teacher for how to improve results because they
allow you to see what’s working and do more of it.
The solution is to schedule time for accounting. It’s so easy now with
downloads from most brokers. With zero costs, you’ll then have the numbers
to reveal the most potent answers you can get to improve your trading results.

7. Lack of goal setting

As Peter Drucker said “What gets measured gets done”. This paradigm is
a step above accounting and review. Goal setting is about taking the big
picture view of your overall life and money. Take this a step further and
think about what your life will be like upon achieving those results.
Define what you want to make from your trading business. Review it
often. As Drucker said, measure your results, and then compare them to
your goals. This motivating habit drives you to do the mundane, like to
accounting. It drives you to show up to trade when you want to play golf
instead on that perfectly beautiful day.

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