Hi everyone, my name is Stephanie and I still consider myself a rookie forex trader as I have been at it for only about 18 months. I am a full-time university student in my second year and I work two part-time jobs. This leaves little spare time for my forex adventure, but I welcome the challenge. My initial goal was to earn enough money to replace my two-part time jobs which would free up more times for my studies. I realized a few months into forex learning that it would take a bit longer to actually earn money consistently which is perfectly fine by me. Time is on my side on this one.

A friend of mine suggested forex trading to me and after listening to him for about 45 minutes over coffee I decided that it could be a great fit into my busy schedule. The part that it can be automated really got my attention as it would allow me to not worry about actually trading and focus on university. When I brought the idea to my parents, my mom asked me not to waste my energy on something which won’t work and my dad grinned at me suggesting that if I feel ready he would get me in touch with our financial adviser who will talk about investing with me.

Basically both told me that I should not bother and when I asked them how long they have been trading forex, they stared at me for a moment and said they never traded and that they let the professionals handle their finances. This answer was simply not good enough for me. I was told by two very close individuals to me, two I respect very much and whose opinion I value, that I should not trade forex but they have no experience in this matter. I know both want what’s best for me, but their reaction was more due to fear of the unknown rather than supported by actual facts why I shouldn’t trade forex myself.

We discussed this topic a bit further over dinner and I slept over what they told me. The next day I consulted my closest circle of friends. None of them ever traded, but all of them told me more or less the same things my parents have told me. Their unanimous verdict was for me to not bother with it. I am not even sure they paid much attention to the reasons why I thought it would be a great idea to explore forex trading. They all made up their mind that it is a bad idea, that you can’t earn money trading against professionals with deep pockets and that the market is rigged to benefit a few very wealthy individuals at the expense of the masses.

While I do respect the people I asked, something just didn’t add up to me. I spent the next two months reading as much as I could about forex trading. I read posts and opinions published by forex brokers and people who claim to be full-time traders, professional traders and coaches. I must admit that I did enjoy a lot of the material, things still didn’t add up to me. The advertising material was often just a lousy attempt to get deposits and I started to understand the overall negative responses I received from friends and family. I also believe that a lot of claims by traders are just false and mask the truth about trading.

So here is my advice to everyone who is reading my little post about forex trading: Make up your mind, be serious and committed and then just do it! Never listen to people who don’t do what you want to start, and be careful whose advice you take from those who claim to trade. After I researched as much as I deemed necessary, I created a game plan for myself and then executed. I studied the material relevant to the type of trader I wanted to become and then started on creating a strategy which I felt comfortable with. I am not looking for huge returns with a relatively small deposit, but realistic gains with consistency.

I am 18 months into my forex adventure and I am happy that at the end I only listened to myself. I am still not consistent, but after blowing through a few smaller live accounts I have just a few weeks made a bigger deposit thanks to my parents who got on board after they saw my dedication and progress. I will continue to work on my trading strategy which I plan on perfecting this year and I am really looking forward to earn 4% each month consistently which will allow me to say good bye to one of my two part-time jobs. So, never listen to nay sayers and do what you know is right in your heart!