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Nial Fuller

NIAL FULLER Nial Fuller
Professional Trader, Author & Coach

To Make Big Money Trading, Don’t Think About the Money

FALL IN LOVE WITH PROCESS jpgObviously, you’re into trading to make money, the dream is always to earn money and live the lifestyle of our choosing and enjoy the freedom trading brings. I know those are some of the things that lured me to trading in the beginning of my career.

Almost 100% of people coming into trading are drawn in by the desire to make money and improve their lifestyle. Whether you want to admit it or not, that is probably why you are on my blog; because you think you can make a lot of money trading or you think trading can bring you an amazing lifestyle change. Hey, there’s nothing wrong with those kinds of thoughts and feelings because they ARE obtainable goals if you study hard, perfect your craft and manage to keep your bankroll intact long enough to live to trade another day and come out the other side profitable.

I’m certainly not hear to squash the dreams and ambitions of newbie traders (I was once one myself), but what I am here to do is help you achieve those dreams, and in order to do that we first must put these life-changing dreams and goals to one side and look at what’s actually going to get us there, we need to get smart, we need to be real and cut through the noise. You will only make money as a trader if you’re in this game for the right reasons and for most traders, at least in the beginning, they are not trading for the right reasons…

Do you love the money or the process?

Let me ask you this; do you REALLY LOVE THE PROCESS of learning about markets, studying and looking at charts and trading in general? Do you TRULY enjoy it? Or, are you just sort of slugging along because you think you can make fast money? For most traders, especially beginning traders, the honest answer is the latter.

In trading, as with any business endeavor and life in general, if you aren’t IN LOVE with the process you are VERY RARELY (if ever) going to achieve the goal. Read that last sentence 5 times before you continue.

How can you make an honest assessment of whether you are in love with money or the process of trading?

Here are some signs that prove you’re trading for the wrong reasons

  • You’re trading money you can’t afford to lose. If you’re doing this, it’ because you’re too focused on the money. People who risk money they really cannot afford to lose are doing so because they want to make money fast and they are only thinking about the prize, not the possibility of losing that money. Bottomline, don’t trade with money you really cannot afford to lose.
  • You’re thinking only of money, not enough about trading or your trading plan or strategy. Trading really shouldn’t be all about ‘money’ to you. The money is just a way to keep score in a game that tests your ability to remain disciplined and patient in a world of constant temptation. If you are trading properly and focused on the process and excited about the process, you will make money and that money is like the score, if you’re score is going up, you’re winning, if it’s going down you are losing. Ironically, when you focus too much on the score (money) you end up losing.
  • You’re already making plans of what you’ll do after you make XYZ money in the market, you only think about the rewards and not the risks. Like the last point, but a bit more specific; I know a lot of amateur traders who get super excited about the possibilities of what they will do with the money they make from trading. It’s great to have ambitions and goals, don’t get me wrong, but this cannot consume your thoughts. If you’re making plans of how you will spend money you haven’t made, your trading mindset is not right yet.
  • You trade for no good reason, even late at night before bed, pressing some buttons for the gamblers endorphin release, you need to be in a trade. If you end up trading all the time, entering one as another one closes out, you don’t want to trade anymore, you NEED it. This is trading addiction and I can promise you that it will very quickly drain your bank account.
  • You get enthralled by the next biggest trading thing (Like crypto currencies, which by the way, I think bitcoin and the like is basically a Ponzi-scheme and I encourage people to stay away). Stick to major markets, major Forex pairs and major stock indices and commodities, don’t trade every market under the sun, this will cause you to over-analyze and over-trade and lose money.

vincentvangogh1

The right reasons to trade:

  • You should trade because you love trading, plain and simple. You must love the process of trading, not only the dream of the end-goal, or you will never achieve the end-goal
  • You’re becoming methodical and well-structured in your approach, making plans and keeping notes and spreadsheets, you’re taking this seriously. Once you start doing things like this you know you’re on the right track. Being methodical and having a trading plan and keeping a trading journal in spreadsheets of your trades is something traders do who truly enjoy the process. These things keep you accountable and help develop proper trading habits and routines.
  • You live and breathe markets, it’s what you do, it’s who you are, every precious moment of free time you’re reading a post on a blog like the one you’re reading now or you’re reading a classic trading book like The Market Wizards or Trading in the Zone or perhaps studying chapters in my price action courses, you’re studying charts religiously, even if you’re out and about.
  • Your family and friends don’t understand you any more, the conversations have turned into things people can’t relate to, you feel alone, isolated, and feel desperate to find others who think the same way.
  • You love self-improvement. Trading, more than anything else, is about self-improvement. Show me a successful trader and I will show you a person successful in other areas of his or her life. Intense discipline, focus, passion, patience – these are the ingredients of LIFE success not just of trading success.
  • You are competitive, you like the competition. The idea of competing with millions of other traders and putting yourself into the that top 10% who are making all the money – drives you more than anything – it’s inside of you – it’s NOT JUST about getting a lot of money it’s about the self-confidence and the feeling of knowing you are better than all those other traders and you out-competed them. It puts you in a very small group of upper-echelon individuals and is a true accomplishment, one you’re dying to achieve.
  • You simply love markets, you love charts, you love business and entrepreneurship, you love studying what drives the world economies and you find yourself watching CNBC even when you’re bored or (god bless you) the PBS nightly Business news.

Conclusion

If you want to get fit and healthy and achieve your optimal body composition, you must fall in love with the process of working out and eating healthy, because if you don’t fall in love with it all, you will never continue to do the little things day in and day out that lead to the type of body you want. Same thing in trading. To get the money and the cars and houses and the life you want, the life that IS possible from trading, you have to love the process, the little things, the details, otherwise you’ll never stay committed to the discipline that is required. As they say, the devil is in the details.

To succeed at trading you must let go of the need to control the outcome. You must trust the process. You must trust your intuition. You must trust yourself. You must fall in love with the process if you want to get the results you’re looking for.

Don’t worry if you’re not yet feeling this quite yet or doing the things I discussed above, just stick with the plethora of inspirational and educative lessons on my blog and then study the chapters in my professional trading courses as well as follow along with the daily market analysis I post for members. You will soon find yourself enjoying your trading and hungrier for knowledge day by day, momentum builds momentum, and you must turn your desires into habits. Habits are what makes someone successful and when you start by developing the proper trading routine and stick to it, it will turn into a habit that leads you down the path to trading success.

For those who can’t yet make sense of it all and feel overwhelmed, the cliché saying holds true here; When the student is ready, the teacher appears; you just need to turn your desires into passion and to do that you need knowledge and consistent stimulation. At Learn to Trade the Market, we live and breathe trading… so we have you covered.

What did you think of this lesson? Please share it with us in the comments below!

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Nial Fuller

About Nial Fuller

is a Professional Trader, Investor & Author who is considered ‘The Authority’ on Price Action Trading. His blog is read by over 200,000+ followers and he has taught 25,000+ students since 2008. In 2016, Nial won the Million Dollar Trader Competition. Checkout Nial's Professional Trading Course here.
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  1. MUNGE GATHURI

    A great article for all traders who have being in the market for long the message resonates well with all they have gone through and confirms the bitter truth of what the market is and what is expected of the traders .Thank you Nail Fuller.

    Reply
  2. David A

    WOW… Great Article Nial… This Really Helps Me A Lot With Keeping Motivated. I Read This All The Time Whenever I Am Feeling Down And Out… And Most Of All Overwhelmed With College / Studying And Trying To Juggle Trading And Work As Well… Thanks Nial…

    Reply
  3. Nick

    When the student is ready, the teacher appears. “

    Reply
  4. Bamidele

    Just being eternally grateful to you, Nail Fuller. God bless you Sir. I stopped blowing my trading accounts when I started reading your articles voraciously. You taught me discipline. Bamidele from Lagos, Nigeria, West Africa.

    Reply
  5. ade septi

    how is safe and profitable trading, and easy to understand? thankss

    Reply
  6. Благодарность

    Mr. Nial! super article!

    Reply
  7. Mlungisi

    A sent Prophet in the market, full of knowledge, understanding and wisdom to prepare and guide us. God bless you, Sir.

    Reply
  8. Sboniso

    Since i have started following you , Market understanding of mine has rapidly increased dramatically .I sincerely appreciate what you have done to the journey of my trading lessons and those of others who have been inspired by you.

    Reply
  9. basil

    This is THE most important article anyone should bare in mind before even contemplating the trading business without ANY question

    Reply
  10. Jonathan

    I got covered with you prof. Nail, thanks for this.

    Reply
  11. Patrick Pressler

    Nial, you put it very well!

    Reply
  12. Patrick Pressler

    Nial, you put it very well!

    Reply
  13. Sihle

    Thanks Nial, what you have said is very true……………..

    Reply
  14. Ernie

    “You get enthralled by the next biggest trading thing (Like crypto currencies, which by the way, I think bitcoin and the like is basically a Ponzi-scheme and I encourage people to stay away).”

    I have been watching Bitcoin this weekend not that I am interested in trading it, but watching the chat in Tradingview was both hilarious and informative. I even seen people quoting learntotradethemarkets to support their analysis. I watched it for several hours as each post was coming in about every half second. I was able to watch human psychology at an accelerated pace. So many were trying to catch falling knives that it was unbelievable. The majority were trying to define the reversal at every minute. Some were even watching the 1 minute charts. You could tell that 99% were clueless. You are awesome Nial please keep teaching the way you do. It is much appreciated.

    Reply
  15. Oscar Lopez

    awesome lesson thank you again nial :)

    Reply
  16. Catherine

    Thanks Nial! Great article and that’s very true, Your teaching theory is great which can apply for every learning and not only for trading!

    Reply
  17. Sola

    Thanks for your guide and enlightenment. God bless you Nial.

    Reply
  18. David

    Thanks man.

    Reply
  19. Nwanna Ifeanyi

    Nial…. I strongly believed that this lecture was prepared for me and for me alone. I appreciates.
    Kind Regards

    Reply
  20. Jeffrey

    Thanks nail. Your teaching has really helped me.

    Reply
  21. Emeka Egwim

    This is another trademark masterpiece of your proficiency and gregarious disposition towards rising the complete tradesman. This has gone to my special chess box of inestimable and invaluable heritage. You are indeed a fantastic boss, a fabulous gift to the trading world.

    Reply
  22. Lawrence Eneze

    This is great write up, a good motivation and learning, its wonderful.

    Reply
  23. Jeriah

    Thanks for mentioning about bitcoin Nial. Your words of wisdom are always appreciated.

    Regards,

    Jeriah

    Reply
  24. Marisa

    I loved this article, thank you Nial.

    Reply
  25. khesiwe

    Thanks Nial wonderful article

    Reply
  26. John Wintels

    Another home run. I read the sentence six times. If something is worth doing, it is worth OVER DOING.

    Reply
  27. Irmad

    you are really my inspiration, what is described above, like the journey of my life at this time. if I could, I’d like to meet and say thank you.

    Reply
  28. WL Taba

    True to what you said, without question, thank you for the very encouraging article, it’s been very great help in guiding me to the right path to trading success.

    Reply
  29. Javier

    Thanks Nial for another great article. Really loved Trading in the Zone, the Disciplined Trader and the New Market Wizards, could you recommend other related books you enjoyed?

    Reply
  30. Abdallah

    Thank you Nial, just what i needed to hear as a beginner in trading. Great Article!

    Reply
  31. Fitria Sukmawati

    Hi Nial, Its a very good article. But I just fail to understand only this one of your “right reasons to trade” : “Your family and friends dont understand you any more, the conversations have turned into things people can’t relate to, you feel alone, isolated, and feel desperate to find others who think the same way.” Can you help me to understand why this is a right reason? I believe most of peoples like to be understood by their families and friends and dont like “feel alone, isolated, and feel desperate to find others who think the same way”

    Reply
    • John Wintels

      I think he means that in a positive way, actually. Imagine that youre a brain surgeon. How many people can actually understand, much less relate, to what you do? You are a minority of one. Cops have the same problem. So do EMTs, firemen and fighter pilots. So do top athletes. Once you get into it the way he describes (total absorption) you will find that NO ONE understands what you do. Thats not a bad thing. It actually means youre on your way.

      Reply
    • Fitria Sukmawati

      Thanks John. Got the point

      Reply
  32. Roy Peters

    Great piece mentor, just great.
    we who have a small account must take heed to these words.

    Reply
  33. DERRICK

    self empowering

    Reply
  34. Jennifer Monks

    Nial, Another excellent article… i am in my fourth year of (part time) learning /trying to understand trading and at last i am getting the ah ha moments … your price action trading style is the best…. thanks as always…

    Reply
  35. John

    Very true indeed, this applies to me and I am working to get out of the trap. Thanks Nial for the good coaching.

    Reply
  36. Lesedi

    Highly inspirational article .
    Thank you

    Reply
  37. Rahwa

    Thank you very much NIAL. You are wonerful and help peopl to trade and win. I am on my way to trade with discipline and patience. I am improving every time because of you.

    Reply
  38. Caroline McArdle

    I agree and am inspired by most of what you say but i do believe in BALANCE too. A true measure of success and discipline is to be able to switch off from trading and engage with others on what interests you both and to have other areas of interest in one’s life too.

    Reply
  39. Joshua

    Knowledge, and the right knowledge for that matter, is very important in achieving success in any area of human endeavour. Nial, you have the right knowledge (outside a lot misleading noise we hear out there) for achieving continual success in Forex trading. Thanks so much for your professional write-ups, I really appreciate them all!

    Reply
  40. Godwin

    Nial, once again you stand for truth.When we get the process right the money will show up.Thanks.

    Reply
  41. Mattilight

    On point great mentor, am a newbie in forex and I have invested and lost, but am not giving up, thk God I now have u as my mentor. I wish I came across ur blog much earlier than this.

    Reply
  42. rossen dimitrov

    Thanks for the nice lecture

    Best Regards

    Rossen Dimitrov

    Reply
  43. Thang

    There is no path to Happiness. Happiness is a road!

    Reply
  44. M.Saleem

    Great piece of writing , Thanks

    Reply
  45. KRISTOFA OKENTA

    Thank you very much. Once again I have MORE reasons to trade and stay DISCIPLINED.

    Reply
  46. farzad

    Thanks again dear Nial.

    Reply
  47. Kgomotso

    Thanks you mantioned bitcoin. I wanted to trade it and ever since I discovered you I never looked back.
    Thanks again!!!
    great article as always!!!

    Reply
    • Mahmudur Rahman

      I cant tell about what happened before, but bitcoin isn’t a ponzi anymore. If Bitcoin is a ponzi, then WTI crude oil, S&P 500, Dow 30 all are ponzi because all these instruments are traded in CME as future contract.

      Reply
      • Nial Fuller

        Just because a bitcoin futures market exists on CME or CBOE etc, it DOES NOT mean that the actual underlying bitcoin market is legitimate. Time will reveal what Bitcoin really is, I believe it will encounter many problems.

        Reply
  48. Chema González

    Amazing article Nial. Always so inspirational. Thank you for so much!!

    Reply
  49. Halldór Jónsson

    I fail to understand that writing down trades that are history can help me to make future trades, How do you substantiate this?

    Reply
    • Diana Kirkpatrick

      You need to do this. I have kept a trading journal for 8 years. You are able to see where you made the mistakes this way. Go over last years trades, and see what you did incorrectly and what you did correctly. You have to identify the patterns that work best for you and patterns that you need to avoid at all costs. History repeats itself. Price has memory. Chances are it will behave the same way when it reaches a certain level that it has behaved before.

      Reply
  50. Donatus U Okechukwu

    you are my mentor thanks for your kindness , great man long live

    Reply
  51. Padma Kaur

    Very true . interesting reading material.

    Reply
  52. Zafer Güneş

    Really nice one this is. Best article for a long time…

    Reply
  53. Vincent Tan

    It is awesome. It takes discipline and patient to learn the process of trading.

    Reply
  54. Łukasz Mikołajewski

    Realy like this post.

    Reply
  55. Boon Ong

    Wisdom of words. I had been through that “I have to be in the trade” symdrome.

    Reply
  56. Abdur-Raheem Shuaib Agbarere As-Sayuty

    Very educative, informative and a true pointer to success and Professionalisim. Thanks

    Reply
  57. Maximilian Ndelwa

    The lesson I have learned is so much good, am so interested with what your posting great job Mr Nial. Be blessed

    Reply
  58. Mindlifaunlocker Unlocker Mind

    thank you so much Nial , i dont know how to express myself how good i feel about this article , thank you so much

    Reply
  59. James Rae

    Just incredible, great gems of wisdom here.

    Reply
  60. Soweto Born Mining Magnate

    Who better if not the Price Action Giant himself to know better. Very insightful, ground breaking and spell binding knowledge, Quintessential in its own right. Kind Regards Nial. Soweto

    Reply
  61. Kevin Henry Ostermeyer

    Very informative and a real eye opener

    Reply
  62. Adriana Ghidau

    Hello Nial. As always your articles are breathtaking truthful!
    I love money as someone else love cars but I am competitive and determinated to educate myself, train myself like I do every day in the gym to became an elite instructor and hey hoo there is lots of discipline needed. Sport and trading achievement go hand in hand for me. Thank you again Nial for sharing your knowledge and experience. Have a good day.
    Adriana

    Reply
  63. John E Mullins

    Bullseye on this article Nial. You are absolutely 100% correct on how to approach trading, investing and Life as a whole. Thank you for sharing your knowledge. I’m happy to be a Lifetime member. The education is priceless.

    Reply
  64. Tom Jones

    Very positive, Nial. Enjoyed the read. Thanks.

    Reply