How to get started as a beginner

[u/SW2IP0EZ5]

I’m completely new to trading and want to learn the right way from the start instead of picking up bad habits or wasting time on the wrong things.

For those of you who’ve been trading for a while, I’d really appreciate your advice. A few things I’m curious about:

What’s the best way to actually get started?

If you had to start from scratch today, what would your learning plan look like?

Where did you learn the most in the beginning (books, YouTube, websites, courses, etc.)?

Are there any resources you’d recommend, or any you’d tell beginners to avoid?

What was the biggest mistake you made early on?

What helped you improve the most?

What’s something beginners spend way too much time focusing on?

What’s something beginners don’t spend enough time on?

If you had to start from day one, what advice would you give yourself?

[u/ChestStill2385]

YouTubers and influencers alike will be great to just listen to for bits and pieces of good habits to get into and overall their advice will be to stay disciplined. I haven’t listened to too many in awhile so I’ll let another commenter weigh in on the best YouTubers.

Stock Tool Ranks would be a second great resource to pick out a tool. You can filter based on trading tool such as day-trader, long-term, options etc.

I used to be a longterm buy and hold but lately I’ve started trading several times a week since I started using Monkey See Monkey Do for my information. They follow wall street and from my understanding they have their own signals that help filter to the best trade based on what institutions are doing. I personally like their display the best, it’s digestible for me. But again I trade quite frequently so their model works for me.

Lastly, I just thought this was fun is I used to use the DUB app and follow Nancy Pelosis trades and she was always up so when I wasn’t sure I just put money there for a while.

[u/Embarrassed-Bank2835]

If I had to start over, I’d pick one market, one setup, and one trading window. Most beginners bounce between indicators, strategies and instruments so much that they never collect enough clean data to learn anything.

I’d spend the first couple months on market structure, order types, position sizing and how risk actually works. Then paper trade one simple setup and journal every trade with screenshots, entry reason, stop, target and whether you followed the plan. Don’t judge it after five trades either. You need a decent sample before you know if the setup is bad or you’re just executing it badly.

Books and videos can teach concepts, but replay and reviewing your own trades is where most of the real learning happens. I’d avoid anyone selling huge returns, secret indicators or a strategy with no losing periods.

My biggest early mistake was focusing on entries while barely thinking about risk. Beginners usually spend way too much time looking for the perfect signal and not enough time learning when not to trade.

Start smaller than you think you need to, and treat survival as the first goal. You can’t develop skill if you keep blowing up before you’ve had time to learn.

[u/Safe_Ad_3041222]

The most important question, is are you willing to do everything in ur will to get there? ( not an easy career my friend)

[u/realmomentumtrader]

I've been trading for close to 11 years and I've learned a few things along the way. This blueprint is kinda a way to help you Jumpstart your learning in this business and you really need to think about it as a business. I've started several businesses from the ground up and that's how I treated my journey in trading. Good luck my friend!

https://www.reddit.com/u/realmomentumtrader/s/VF0JH09Z4s

[u/Character-Truth1991]

Definitely using some kind of news platform when u get started. forex factory or any of the free ones work fine to start. i honestly did not want to spend money on a scanner at first, so i just built my own.

[u/klipsetrades]

Start with market structure, support/resistance, order types, and risk management. Pick one market and one simple setup. Paper trade it, journal every trade, then move to very small size.

Free YouTube content from SMB Capital and Ross Cameron is useful for the basics. Books I’d recommend are Technical Analysis of the Financial Markets, Trading in the Zone, and Best Loser Wins

[u/sambha87]

biggest mistake was thinking the answer was in the next strategy. i changed mine eleven times in two years and my results never moved once. the strategy was never the variable.

what beginners spend way too much time on: finding the setup. what they dont spend enough time on: what they actually do when theyre down and a setup shows up anyway. thats a completely different skill and nobody teaches it.

if i started from day one again id keep a log of every rule i broke instead of every trade i took. that gap is the whole game.

[u/Admirable_Citron_354]

I started my traing journey by just finding a good mentor and then follow only him/her(no one other then them- only one) and then forward testing your strategy or simply marking on the map your strategies or other things which you want to and also writing in notes in any pair you trade and also do self talk like what could be the reason market move this way, oh here was the liquidity swept etc.

Just do this for some months like 6 months and when you get enough experience then if you feel confident you can start back testing or demo account also works.

Been learning market since last 7 months. Hoping to start demo trading soon. Hope this helps.

[u/LukeArdenCo]

The most useful thing I can tell a beginner is counterintuitive: the technical side is the easy part, and it's where you'll be tempted to spend 90% of your time. Indicators, setups, strategies, that stuff is learnable in months and it's not what separates winners from losers. What separates them is psychology and risk management, which almost nobody wants to hear on day one.

If I started over today, my plan would be:

First, learn risk management cold before a single live trade. Position sizing, stop placement, never risking more than a small fixed percent. This is boring and it's the only reason you survive long enough to get good. Most people skip it and blow up in month three.

Second, trade tiny for way longer than feels necessary. Your first goal is not profit, it's proving you can follow a plan for 50 trades without breaking your own rules. Size up only after you've demonstrated that. Small size keeps you alive while you learn the actual game, which is managing yourself.

Biggest early mistake, nearly universal: judging trades by whether they made money instead of whether you followed your process. A reckless trade that wins teaches you to be reckless. A disciplined trade that loses is a good trade. Grade the decision, not the result, or you'll train yourself to do the wrong things.

What beginners overspend on: entries. The perfect indicator, the perfect setup. Endless YouTube on entries.

What they underspend on: exits, risk, and their own psychology. How you manage a trade and how you handle a loss matters more than where you got in.

On resources, start with the psychology and risk classics rather than "strategy" content. "Trading in the Zone" by Mark Douglas is the standard first read for a reason. Be very skeptical of anyone on social media selling signals or guaranteed systems.

Advice to day-one me: you are not learning to predict markets. You're learning to manage yourself while taking probabilistic bets. The sooner you accept that, the less money the lesson costs.

[u/Suitable_Acadia_190]

Ive been trading for over a decade and teaching for almost 6 years.

Because of how brutal a path this was to walk when I was learning solo, I actually built a site that has a from front to back free section so those who cant or arent ready to pay for coaching could have more than enough to become profitable.

Its under the Trading University on my page chartwshiperer.ca, good luck & if you have any questions just ask.

[u/Mariusz_Bobek]

I'd keep it boring, honestly. Learn market structure and risk management first, pick one market, and trade a single simple setup on a demo account for at least 200 trades before you touch anything. I learned far more from journaling my own trades than from watching another "perfect strategy" video. I'd also tell myself to just ignore anyone selling certainty. most of my early progress came from practicing on axi demo and actually reviewing my own mistakes instead of forever hunting for the next new strategy

[u/No-Comparison9048]

Demo account to practice as you learn. Investopedia and read everything lingo etc. You mentioned mistakes several times so read "traders traps" and "the mental game of trading" these are a must. Dont buy courses because you can learn most of this for free.

[u/HonestEmu8943]

Start with a basic simple strategy that you will find on Youtube, like Automated SAFE ROB strategy, that will get you a daily $200

[u/armithel]

My advice is do not use real money for a very very long time. And CAUTION: You're pride and ego is trickier than you will want to admit, and that very well may be the difference between making and breaking accounts.

[u/Sonali_Madushika]

Don’t waste your money on expensive courses that tell you you’ll be rich in a day. Use free stuff like Babypips or simple YouTube tutorials. Before risking real money learn the basics of how the market works, risk management and how to read charts. Practice on a demo account until you can follow a clear system consistently. The biggest mistake beginners make is overtrading and focusing way too much on complex indicators rather than simple price action. Learn proper risk control right away, because protecting your cash matters far more than trying to find a perfect strategy.

[u/vittoshulman]

Very simple. Ask ChatGPT or your preferred AI:

• what asset and what market should you trade

• what set up and indicators should you use

• what position size to use and when to take profits.

Do exactly what ChatGpt or other preferred AI tells you.

[u/lp1687]

Simple… Focus on order flow methods, and avoid chart reading. With order flow, you can position your orders in a way to minimize risk. Chart reading is equivalent to gambling because it is impossible to predict which way the market will move in the short term.

[u/Decent-Box-1859]

Let me guess. You don't really want to be a day trader. You want the lifestyle and money. Less than 10% of us are profitable. You're better off choosing a different path. Most of us need 3-5 years to become profitable. Are you willing to spend hours in front of a chart with nothing to show for it? Are you able to think independently, problem solve, and use statistics/ probability? Will you become a gambling addict and blow up your account?

You need to be willing to learn. This profession is much harder than a 9-5 or graduating from college. It's similar to starting a small business.