“My kids think all fathers work from home” – Marty Schwartz
One of the best things about trading is the flexibility of your lifestyle. You can trade anywhere in the world you can get a half decent internet connection, which these days is most places.
Granted: not everyone can pack up shop and ship off to live on a tropical island and trade Forex, but for many of you, your trading will be done from home and not the office.
Trading from home presents its own set of special challenges, so here are some tips.
Tip #1: Optimize your workspace. Your trading space should be optimized for performance. That means no clutter or distractions. You may want to include physical reminders that help to put you in the zone and stay centred, such as my little Buddhas that travel the world with me as I trade.
Tip #2: Hang your personal life on the coat rack. When you work in an office, no matter the troubles you have at home, you put them aside when it’s time to go to work. You hang them on the coat rack when you arrive, and pick them back up when you leave. You need to apply this same principle when you “work” from home.
Tip #3 Take the dog for a walk. Staring at the charts all day is not particularly good for your productivity, or even for your trading. Take lots of breaks and get out and about throughout the day.
Tip #4 Be a zen master and a yoga master. Align your body and your mind with your inner trader by developing a routine of meditation and stretching.
Tip #5 Take care of your peepers. Watching the screen is not very healthy for your eyes. Don’t forget to blink and, if you get dry eyes, use eye drops. For those trading at night, a trader friend of mine recently shared this neat app: f.lux.
Tip #6 Avoid dodgy websites. For some of you this may seem like a weird thing to say, but some traders get hooked on all sorts of dodgy websites. I’m not making a judgement here, but this type of distraction is not good for your trading. Stay away.
Tip #7 Rehearse like an elite athlete. The night before you trade, rehearse the next day’s trading performance, like an elite athlete would the day before the race. That way, when you sit down, you will be mentally ready to be in the zone.
Tip #8 Start an online business. If trading is your sole source of income, it can be incredibly stressful. I tried it for a three-month period, and it was not good for my state. Now I have other sources of income that take the stress off my trading, and I am much better for it.
Tip #9 Lock away the wife (or husband!) and the kids. There is time for work, and there is family time. It’s important to minimize distractions from your family as much as possible when you are managing your positions.
Tip #10 Be loving, open and respectful of your family. Don’t be a closed off trading Nazi that leaves your family starved of attention. Be sure to make time for them and give them your full attention when you are not trading.
What tips do you have for trading Forex from home? Let me know in the comments below.
About the Author
Sam Eder is a currency trader and author of the Definitive Guide to Developing a Winning Forex Trading System and the Advanced Forex Course for Smart Traders. He is a part owner of Forex Signal Provider fxrenew.com (You can get a free trial). If you like Sam’s writing you can subscribe to his newsletter for free.