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Ep. 61 - Perfect Your Trading Routine with Andy Demi

 

Sponsored by XTB Brokers . Go to www.twoblokestrading.com/xtb to secure your dedicated TBT account manager and 15% Spread Rebate!

To learn the systems that the Two Blokes use and get  3 months free coaching  from Traders Support Club visit www.tscmember.co.uk/tbt

 

In this episode:

 

Hedge Fund trader Andy Demi of London Trading Group talks trading routine, trading motivation and how he builds a repeatable trading system

We discuss how to structure your day to Trade Like a Boss!

Owen gets a(nother) man crush and Tom gets jealous

Tom and Owen determine to reset their lives - start with being fit and healthy and getting out of bed on time and the success will come!

Tom reads ‘Building Winning Algorithmic Trading Systems’ by Kevin Davey and gives us the lowdown

Owen reconsiders dipping his toe into cryptocurrencies trading with the Ashraf Laidi webinar

 

Trader Interview - Andy Demi of London Trading Group - Perfecting Your Trading Routine

 

Andy Demi is a properly motivated chap. Up at 0430 hrs and straight to the gym. He’s at his desk by 0615 hrs ready to Trade Like A Boss!

 

If you are struggling for a bit of motivation in your trading, or life in general, then listen to this interview and you will come away feeling full-on inspired.

 

A technical trader who uses 5% macro fundamentals, Andy Demi believes in repeatable systems that you can build into a rock-solid trading routine. He believes in controlling your environment in a routine that suits your personality.

 

A Routine that Works for You.

 

As Owen says on the podcast, the best form of exercise is one that you enjoy. That way you are definitely going to do it and not put it off like a total melt. The same goes for trading routine. Pick a routine that works for you and stick to it.

 

Not a morning person? Don’t try and replicate Andy Demi-god’s hardcore 0430 rise, but make damn sure you do your analysis in the evening, every evening.

 

Owen thinks running really long distances at a low intensity is sinfully boring, so he smashes hill sprints instead. Tom thinks lifting weights is utterly dull, so he marches up massive hills with a heavy bergen.

 

Same goes for trading routine - Owen has to get up at 0530 because that’s when his baby gets up. Tom on the other hand loves his 8 hours, so he’ll do his analysis the night before!

 

Find something that works for you and stick to it!

Trade Like a Boss

 

Tom and Owen were feeling inspired at the end of the podcast, thanks to Andy’s blatant total bossing of life. So they’ve decided to get their act together and build proper routines to help them Trade Like a Boss.

 

We encourage you to do the same.

 

And not in some naff, super-motivational American-style schmaltzy way (apologies to our American audience, we love you.)

 

Rather, we encourage you to join us in a vaguely cynical but ultimately effective British way. Completely with faux-understatement and plenty of unnecessary swearing. Non-Brits welcome too! Take this opportunity to reset your life, get a routine and start to Trade Like a Boss!

Ep. 60 - Trading Active Markets vs Inactive Markets with Brandon ‘The Boss’ Turner

 

Sponsored by XTB Brokers . Go to www.twoblokestrading.com/xtb to get a dedicated TBT account manager and 15% Spread Rebate

To get  3 months free coaching  from Traders Support Club visit www.tscmember.co.uk/tbt

In this episode:

Brandon Turner returns! He trades Forex using fundamentals and sentiment and talks about the differences between trading active markets and trading inactive markets

He also talks about what it is like working at a prop trading firm, how to get a job as a prop trader and whether becoming a prop trader is a good idea at all!

Owen has begun forward testing his new monthly reversal system

Tom mugs off Goldman Sachs

 

Trader Interview - Brandon Turner - Trading Active Markets vs Trading Inactive Markets

 

Brandon Turner has been on the show many times. It was he who first interested Owen and Tom in trading Forex using the fundamentals (interest rates, jobs data etc) and sentiment (short term price action driven by the economic and political news and data).

 

This was Owen’s first love in Forex trading and he harbours a passion for it to this day! Tom was always less sure on the practicalities of trading Forex using the fundamentals on a day to day basis. But he recognised the usefulness in understanding what was driving price action.

 

Rookie Trader Graveyard

 

Brandon offers advice on the dangers and opportunities of trading active markets. When the markets are moving fast they often have a strong reason to move. If you can try and get in on that move you stand to profit greatly. But the risks are also tremendous.

 

Brandon knows that other traders with better information, or indeed ‘non carbon based lifeforms’ can make decisions far quicker than us. Without experience, trading inactive markets using sentiment can be a rookie trader graveyard.

 

The markets can move so quickly after big news, like Non Farm Payroll reports, that it scares retail traders into the market and then scares them out again. This usually leads retail traders to buy the top and sell the bottom of these moves!

 

Fibonacci Retracements

 

Brandon and Owen both love a fib. Brandon explains how to use shallow fib retracements on these fast moves (the 38.2 is a particular favourite) to ensure you get in, but in at a discount. It probably also has a calming effect - making you sit on your hands while the big move happens!

 

But, in inactive markets, where traders are looking for a reason to trade, the price will often drift slowly back from highs or lows. This is where he looks for a 61.8 fibonacci retracement and gets in with a big discount on the prevailing trend.

 

Rejection

 

There is one aspect of trading fibonacci retracements that it is essential you understand, regardless of whether the market is active or inactive. Owen has made the mistake of ignoring this rule  for a long time! If the price comes off the top of a move and retraces, you can’t just guess which level to get in at - you must wait for a rejection.

 

You might have an idea of what you are looking for, but you HAVE to wait for a rejection of that level. In other words, the price must bounce, to some extent, off the fibonacci retracement level you want to trade. This might mean a 5 or 15 minute reversal candlestick completing, depending on the timeframe. Without this confirmation of a reversal you are just trading against the price movement - a sure fire way to lose money!

 

Some great advice today from a great trader - we hope you enjoy having The Boss back on the show!

Ep.59 - Ali Crooks on Trade Management Techniques - Part 1

 

Sponsored by XTB Brokers - Sign Up through TBT to get a dedicated TBT account manager and 15% Spread Rebate

To take get  3 months free coaching (!) from Ali and his team visit www.tscmember.co.uk/tbt

 

In this episode:

 

Ali Crooks talks trade management. Ever wonder how, or even if, you should move your stop? When to run a trade to T2 or T3? Ali has the answers.

We get a bit exuberant and swear a lot. Sorry Mum.

Owen then remembers that he messed up his backtesting, has to redo it all, and has a small cry.

We look forward to live trading our new trading system

Tom reveals his secret for hyper-accurate backtesting

 

Trader Interview - Ali Crooks of Traders Support Club - Risk Management Part 1: Effective Trade Management

 

This is the the first part of a two part series on Risk Management. Today’s guest is Ali Crooks, Founder and Head Educator at Traders Support Club. For those who don’t know, The Blokes are currently in the middle of a training programme with Traders Support Club, receiving mentoring from Ali and his Team.

 

Part two will be out in a few weeks and features Martin Dimitrov. Martin is on of TSC’s main educators. He will focus on Money Management and how he ensures he manages the systemic risk in his overall trading strategy.

 

This interview is all about trade management techniques. Effective trade management is absolutely essential, but is one of the hardest things to get right. Owen spends a good chunk of this episode bleating about not being able to manage his trades once he has hit the buy or sell button.

 

Ali is here to put him straight.

 

Trade Management Masterclass

 

Ali talks about stop loss management. When to move your stop to break even, how to trail your stop effectively and how to monitor the efficacy of your approach. Also covered is profit taking. Should you run your trades; how long for?

 

Psychological pitfalls are everywhere here and Ali gives us a rundown on how to prepare to succeed by ensuring a good trade management psychology.

 

Trade Management - what you do once you are in a trade - is as important as how you choose your trade entries, but receives a lot less attention from traders. Ali Crooks gives us an absolute masterclass today.

 

Quality Trades not Necessarily Winning Trades

 

We are now at the point in the course where we are ready to start live trading the system we have learned. This doesn’t mean we have to trade a ‘live account’ yet (i.e one with real money), although Tom hates demo so much he is going to!

 

But Ali is a big believer in worrying about taking ‘quality’ trades rather than ‘winning’ trades. If you have a proven, backtested strategy and you focus on trading that strategy as perfectly as possible, then the profit will take care of itself.

 

Owen will be demo trading the system for a few weeks and sending the data to the TSC team. Ali talks about only giving a green tick or a red cross instead of looking at profit or loss. The question is - did I stick to my rules? Is this a quality trade.

 

Once you can put together a spreadsheet of green ticks, then you are good to go ‘live’ and put your real money on the line.

Ep. 58 - Hakon Fuglaas of K2 Trading on How To Turn from Failure to Success in Trading

Sponsored by XTB Brokers - Sign Up through TBT to get a dedicated TBT account manager and 15% Spread Rebate

To get access to the profitable trading systems mentioned in this podcast (and a special listener price!) visit www.tscmember.co.uk/tbt

In this episode:

Hakon Fuglaas of K2 Trading tells us about his disastrous start in trading and how he turned that around to manage over $2.5 million by age 19

We reveal the results of our backtesting - all aboard the profit train!

Owen has a minor meltdown about trading against the trend

Tom gets annoyed that someone younger than him is successful - a charming personality trait, I’m sure you will agree

We send minor shade towards Daenerys Targaryen and risk the biggest backlash this show has ever seen. Podcasting winter is coming. (Sorry, yes, we are nerds.)

Trader Interview - Hakon Fuglaas of K2 Trading - How to Turn from Failure to Success in Trading

Hakon Fuglaas started trading at age 16 and, like many new traders, quickly blew through several accounts. This interview is the story of how he turned it around in record time.

Clearly Hakon is the kind of guy who learns from his mistakes and he turned his youthful enthusiasm into a disciplined trading methodology. By the time he was 19 he was managing $2.5m and well on the way to becoming a trading guru.

Hakon first came to prominence on eToro, where he became one of their most copied traders with combined equity under management of $2.5m. He now runs K2 Trading where he provides education and mentorship, but he hasn’t stopped refining his own trading system.

Simple Trading with a Good Mindset - Easy!

He firmly believes that he became successful after he simplified his trading and focussed on his mindset. By removing the fear of loss and by ‘trading in the zone’ through the use of sensible risk management, he could start to see consistent profits.

It is amazing how many times the consistently profitable traders we have on the show talk about mindset, risk management and money management as being the keys to long term profit. Hakon Fuglaas of K2 Trading is no different.

COT Data

Now, having a simple trading system does not mean having an unsophisticated trading system!

Hakon piqued Owen’s interest with mention of the Commitment of Traders (COT) data. David Belle mentioned this briefly many moons ago. Although The Blokes looked into it at the time, now, with a bit more experience under their belts, they feel that this could be worth applying to their own trading.

In other words, what are the people whose job it is to speculate on the Forex markets doing? And what about the people whose job it is to hedge long term (i.e. large corporations and governmental organisations)?

For Hakon’s long term Position Trading he believes he needs to know what the commercial traders are doing, rather than the people trying to make money in the short term. It seems to Hakon (and we agree!) that if you know this, you may have a big leg up with predicting where the market will go next.

Do Your Own Research etc

As ever, never trade something just because someone told you to. Owen will be going away and doing some secret squirrel work on the COT data. Feel free to do the same.

Watch this space for Owen’s research findings in a few weeks.

Ep. 57 - Akil Stokes on System Hopping + Ethereum Flash Crash

 

Sponsored by XTB Brokers - Sign Up through TBT to get a dedicated TBT account manager and 15% Spread Rebate

To join Tom and Owen on their trading training journey (and get a few quid off!) go to www.tscmember.co.uk/tbt

In this episode:

We discuss the Ethereum flash crash and whether currency traders should risk trading cryptocurrencies

Owen updates on his ladsladslads tour of Las Vegas

Trading legend Akil Stokes outlines his views on changing markets and the difference between system hopping and trading adaptability

Trader Interview - Akil Stokes of Trade Empowered - Trading Adaptability versus System Hopping

This is Akil Stokes’s second time on the show and he comes at us with a lesson just as powerful as his original appearance. In his previous outing on episode 37 Akil told us how to survive your first year in trading. This week his message is for traders with a bit of experience under their belt - how to be adaptable in changing markets

Any trader with a few months in the markets will have felt the classic urge to try out a new system. Very few traders will have found their first trading system, perfected it, traded it for profit, and never changed. If you did, then well done! If you are anything like us, you will have shopped around for a few different styles and systems before alighting on your preferred method.

Empirical Evidence

Even when you have chosen your trading system you may then feel the need to alter, adapt or change it altogether. Our question for Akil was - when is it legitimate to fiddle with your trading system?

Akil Stokes is a legendary trader and having a chap like him tell us that it is OK to change your trading system is a relief. But the advice comes with some strict rules! Empirical evidence is everything. Without constantly analysing your live trading data the markets will shift before you know it and catch you out.

This is one of our best interviews yet and a lesson that all traders could benefit from.

Ethereum Flash Crash

Here at the TBT ivory tower we have been keeping our beady little eye on the world of cryptocurrencies. It seems that there are a lot of people making a lot of money trading these things.

But, discretion being the better part of valour, we decided to stay away. We know we can make modest profits trading regular currencies, so why risk it all on trading something we don’t fully understand?

We view forex trading as a stack of small, systematically won gains that compound to provide a return greater than that achievable in conservative investing. Buying a bunch of Ethereum CFDs and hoping that “cryptocurrencies are going up” has no place in that philosophy.

It Could Happen Again

Coinbase, the operators of the GDAX Ethereum exchange that was hit by the crash, have themselves stated that their Exchange did exactly what it was supposed to. This wasn’t an error. Someone sold a big order and the market went down. A lot. The market is just too small and too new, and is easily manipulated, either accidentally or deliberately.

This Ethereum flash crash has highlighted the risks of dabbling in the unknown, and as the Blokes discuss on this week’s episode, there is no reason why the exact same thing can’t happen again.

Ep. 56 – Commodities Demystified With Andrew Masters

Tom and Owen trade with XTB - Join Here for a 15% Spread Rebate!

Tom and Owen are trading using strategies learned through Traders Support Club. For superb trader training and an exclusive Two Blokes Trading price then visit www.tscmember.co.uk/tbt !

In this episode:

The blokes report back on the initial backtesting of the live trading strategies they have chosen from Traders Support Club

Andrew Masters from Fibo Group gives a flying introduction to trading commodities using fundamentals, including Gold and Oil

We score a spectacular PR own goal by antagonising a listener of the POD!

Trader Interview - Andrew Masters of Fibo Group - How To Trade Commodities using Fundamentals

Andrew Masters hits it off with Owen right away through their shared love of trading fundamentals. Although Owen has been trading Forex through fundamentals and sentiment for some time, he has never felt confident enough to branch out into the world of commodities.

Andrew breaks it down for The Blokes and demystifies the whole thing. He answers the question - what fundamental data do I need to understand in order to trade Gold and Oil?

Trading Gold Using Fundamentals

If you have never traded Gold before, you will be pleased to hear that it is a lot like trading USD! Andrew explains that Gold and the United States Dollar are often correlated, or rather, inversely correlated.

If you already understand the fundamental data that drives USD prices - interest announcements, inflation data, quantitative easing etc., then you know enough to trade Gold! When data or announcements are released that will drive the Dollar then, according to Andrew, this is enough to inform your Gold trading.

Now, he has one caveat - this is, in his opinion, far better suited to long term position trading than short term trading.

How to Trade Oil using Fundamentals

On this whistle-stop tour of an interview, we are quickly onto another commodity, that Owen freely admits puts the Fear in him: Oil. Fortunately, Andrew is on hand to ease his doubts and show that the basic understanding needed is easy enough to come by.

What remains clear to Owen, however, is that if he wants to stay on top of the fundamentals for all of these different products it will have to be as a long term trader! There’s just not enough time in the day to stay abreast of all these markets from a fundamentals and sentiment day trading perspective.

Lex van Dam Free Webinar Series

Our broker partner, XTB, have offered Two Blokes Trading listeners the opportunity to catch 5 free webinars by legendary trader Lex van Dam (told you they were cool!)

Lex van Dam is legendary amongst retail traders as an ex Goldman Sachs trader, current hedge fund manager and star of the BBC documentary Million Dollar Traders.

If this floats your boat (and it should) then you can click this link and sign up for free.

You’ll get to watch the first 2 webinars with zero commitment, and the final 3 will be available if you sign up for an XTB account. Aww come on, as catches go, it is pretty harmless! And besides, they are an awesome broker so you should take a look at them anyway!

Ep. 55 - How To Build Your First Trading Algorithm

Sponsored by XTB Brokers - Sign Up through TBT to get a dedicated TBT account manager and 15% Spread Rebate

 

To join Tom and Owen on their trading training journey (and get a few quid off!) go to www.tscmember.co.uk/tbt

In this episode:

UK election review - how did we trade it? Hear what we learned from the previous spate of elections to trade this one for profit

Ivo Luhse of Evestin Forex explains how to build your first trading algorithm

Learn how to select a system, hire a developer for your trading algorithm and ensure you can adapt with changing markets

Trader Interview - Ivo Luhse of Evestin Forex - How To Build Your First Trading Algorithm

Ivo is a trader who tried manual testing and grew weary. Once he realised that he could automate his systems by building a trading algorithm that did the hard work for him, his profits started to soar.

Ivo opens up in this episode about his journey to that point and what he has learned building multiple, proven, and profitable trading algorithms over the last few years. He starts by telling us ‘keep it simple stupid’!

K.I.S.S

According to Ivo, simple trading systems work best for trading algorithms. The more variables you have in a system, the more discretion comes into it, and the more likely you are to struggle to build a successful trading algorithm. If you want your algorithm to work consistently you have to be able to clearly define your trading rules - which is easier the simpler they are.

Ivo gives us his ideas on how to get hold of your first system and then how to hire and manage a coder to build it for you. Ivo is a fan of building trading algorithms in MLQ5, the automated trading algorithm language and tells us where to find a developer to code in this language. He also shows us the pitfalls and gives us some tips to getting a good outcome.

Proven Track Record

Ivo has made his own trading algorithms available to the public on evestinforex.com and has been happy to share his proven track record of profitability with us. You can see the recent track record of three of his clients who trade using his algos below:

https://www.fxblue.com/users/452293

https://www.fxblue.com/users/724177

https://www.fxblue.com/users/11852

If you are interested in building your first trading algorithm then this episode is a must-listen!

Discretion vs Automation

Owen reveals his secret plan to become a technical trading ninja and then automate a system before reverting to his true love: sentiment/technicals/price trading. In his mind if he can use the learning from Traders Support Club and apply it to a trading algorithm then he can continue to see if he can make pips by manually trading his old style.

Perhaps this is the path of foolishness, but at least it will be fun to observe for the neutral. Glorious victory or crushing humiliation - both will make entertaining listening!

The serious point is one of discretion versus automation. The trading systems that we have learned from TSC have come with strict trading rules. But many of them do have levels of discretion. The question is whether, after removing the human discretion, these can still be traded effectively through a trading algorithm.

Only time will tell.

Ep 54 - Pivot Point Trading with Kym Watson

 

Sponsored by XTB Brokers - Sign Up through TBT to get a 15% Spread Rebate

 

To join Tom and Owen on their trading training journey (and get a few quid off!) go to www.tscmember.co.uk/tbt

 

In this episode:

 

Backtesting. Why you should do it, how thorough you should be, and how it can make you more money!

Kym Watson of Ezeetrader tells us about using statistical evidence to turn Pivot Points into Pips!

We only slightly hyperbolically announce the Best Webinar in the World Ever! 5 Easy Steps to Get Into Forex. Friday 9th June, 7pm GMT+1 (London Time). www.twoblokestrading.com/webinar

 

Trader Interview - Kym Watson - The Best Strategies for Pivot Point Trading

 

Kym Watson of Ezeetrader is one of the most accessible traders currently in the educational space. The beauty of his trading style is that it is entirely ‘retail trader’ based. He doesn’t use any fancy indicators you haven’t heard of, or access to inside information or ‘institutional strategies’. As well as some fundamentals and sentiment analysis, Kym uses moving averages, overbought/oversold indicators, support and resistance lines and, of course, Pivot Points.

 

His trading is informed by the indicators, oscillators and methods that form the bread and butter of retail traders everywhere. But, crucially, he trades them solidly, scientifically and with a plan.

 

Kym has spent the time putting together data for all of his trading strategies and his Pivot Point trading, as well as his work with support and resistance, is informed by the statistical proof that he has gathered.

 

Kym tells us how he has put together this data and how he uses it. He tells us about his layering approach to building trading systems and the way he places Pivot Point trading at the heart of many of these systems.

 

Kym’s long experience in the markets and consistent profitability is a result of taking a professional, solid approach to this trading. He uses technical, fundamental and sentiment analysis to drive his trading, and always keeps one eye on the basics of price - Pivot Points!

 

Backtesting - Spreadsheet vs Cigarette Packet

One of the topics covered by Kym was backtesting. Like all good traders he believes that unless you believe in your system you aren’t going to make money trading it, and backtesting is key to this.

 

However, unlike our friends at Traders Support Club, he believes that you can backtest from ‘the back of a fag packet’. (That’s a cigarette packet, for our American readers!). What he means is that he thinks that grabbing a pen and paper and rudimentarily recording winners and losers will achieve a lot of what you can achieve with hugely detailed spreadsheets.

 

Clearly for a data driven guy like Kym, however, he has done the hard work and if you really want to be successful then maybe that needs to be an option for you too! Our latest webinar with Traders Support Club ended with some homework - to backtest a chunk of our own data and submit it for approval! Watch this space.

 

5 Easy Steps To Start Trading Forex - Live Webinar - Friday 9th June at 7pm GMT+1 (London Time)

 

The first ever Two Blokes Trading Webinar is almost upon us! This webinar is perfect if you are new to trading Forex and want to know:

 

How to avoid scams

Where to learn to trade Forex for free

How to setup your first trading account

 

Sign up at www.twoblokestrading.com/webinar

 

Only 100 places are available on this webinar so be sure to sign up now!

PIVOT POINTS EXPLAINED

Ep 52 - Intuitive Trading with Andre Minassian

 

Sponsored by XTB Brokers - Sign Up through TBT to get a 15% Spread Rebate

 

In this show:

 

Tom begins this episode with a frankly horrifying chicken-based anecdote, but it is all uphill from there.

We’ve taken part in the first online trading room webinar with Traders Support Club, and we really feel underway on the next stage of our trading journey.

We interview Andre Minassian - The Intuitive Trader - who brings a unique life philosophy to his trading.

We have a special announcement for those who are total Forex trading beginners

 

Trading Rules

 

Once we’ve got Tom’s macabre tale of poultry slaying out of the way we get into the trading-proper! Our first experience of the Traders Support Club ‘Live Online Trading Room’ was a positive one. Ceri Bryans (see Episode 42 for more from her!) gave a two hour introduction to the philosophies of Traders Support Club. Everything that they do at TSC is clearly thought out and rules-based, but leaves room for interpretation. Now, that might seem counter-intuitive, but what it means is that you are free to create your own trading style, but within a proven framework.

 

We both have a solid grounding in trading theory, after almost a year of active trading, but hearing profitable traders talking in detail about their trading rules, strenghts, weaknesses, style and mindset was fascinating.

 

Andre Minassian - The Intuitive Trader

 

Andre Minassian is one of the most uniquely interesting people we have ever had on the podcast. We met Andre at Round The Clock Trader Live, and event that we went to in London. We interviewed Andre in front of a crowd there but it was great to have another thirty minutes with such a free-thinking trader!

 

Andre’s essential premise is that he trades from intuition. He believes that the markets are far more controlled than many people believe, and his long experience and intuitive way of thinking means that he can predict what it is that the higher powers want the markets to do.

 

The good news, for the rest of us, is that Andre believes this intuitive way of thinking is a skill that can be taught. If you are interested in learning more about Andre then you can find him at www.clevergamesuk.com

 

Special Announcement for Rookie Forex Traders

 

One of the things that has bugged us here at Two Blokes Trading Towers for a while is the ‘barrier to entry’ for new traders. We hope that the podcast and website have provided some resources that make entering the world of Forex an easier process. But, we feel we could do more.

 

So, after a year in which we have interviewed over fifty traders and trading industry insiders we feel that we have some great knowledge that could be useful for people trying to start in the industry. We aren’t going to be telling people how to trade just now, because we aren’t consistently profitable, but we definitely know the inner workings of this industry.

 

So, we are putting on a special webinar for trades who are new to Forex to show them how to avoid scams and how to set up an account with a reputable broker. Then we will show them the starting point to get a great trading education for free! Watch this space!

 

See you back here next week,

 

Happy Trading!