STEP 1 Find your trading philosophy.
The first thing every trader needs to establish, is their trading philosophy.
You need something more than just a tip from your brother-in-law.
You need a strategy, and preferably more than just one.
Most strategies don't work well in all types of markets.
Make sure that you paper trade before you begin with any new strategy.
The strategy that you are planning to use, might work great for other traders, but you need to be able to trade it well on paper before you implement it into your trading.
STEP 2 Decide what market you will trade.
Next, you need to decide what market you will trade.
This will be determined by several factors such as: available funds, experience, risk tolerance, time, interest, volatility and much more.
There are many markets that can be traded such as: options, futures, forex, stocks, foreign equities, funds and bonds.
So decide what market you will trade.
STEP 3 Use a money management plan.
This is perhaps the single most important part of trading.
*You should not use more than 5% of your total equity in any single trade.
*Use some type of stop-loss strategy.
*Diversify *Adjust the size of your trades to the volatility of the market.
*Adjust leverage to the change in equity.
STEP 4 Establish a routine for planning.
Set aside time each day to check and update your charts, evaluate your positions, and plan the next trading session.
STEP 5 Use a trading notebook.
Create a trading notebook in which you can keep notes on charts that you are currently watching.
STEP 6 Use a trading diary.
Use a trading diary to track all of your trades, and evaluate your trading strategies.
This list will help you to become a better trader.
Remember, you should always plan your work and work your plan.