Five Tips for New Traders and Investors

17 de jan. de 2021

Whether you are new or have been trading for 20+ years, this post is a reminder about having realistic expectations when it comes to markets. Patience, the desire to learn, and a positive outlook toward the future, especially over the long run, will help you on your journey. Here are some tips to get you started!

1. Code the markets
Financial markets attract smart people who run strategies, indicators, and analytics to make better decisions. The Pine Script community is a perfect example of this - head over to the Pine Script Editors' Picks page to see for yourself. With Pine Script, you can code and create your own indicator or strategy. More importantly, you can learn the intricacies of price action and the underlying mechanics of specific indicators.

2. Paper Trade to test your ideas
All members have access to our free Paper Trading tools. This means you can trade, invest, and study your ideas in a simulated environment. Do you think you can outperform the market? Open a chart on your desktop, click Trading Panel at the bottom, and connect your account. Place trades and study your performance over the next several days, weeks or months. Let's see how good you really are before risking any real money. 😁

3. Follow others, use chats, and be open minded
Traders and investors from around the globe share ideas here. They also participate in chats and the comment sections. This is not only an opportunity to learn and meet others, but it is also a reminder of who else is participating in markets. You can get instant feedback by asking questions, following their profile or contributing to various chats. It's never been easier to network and work with others to learn about the markets. It's also a reminder that markets are competitive. So get started by exploring the community, meeting others, and learning new concepts.

4. Backtest, backtest, backtest
The Strategy Tester makes it easy to backtest your trades over a period of time. You can test different strategies in the Public Library by opening the indicators menu and selecting a strategy. Strategies are shown with a down red arrow and an up green arrow at the end of its title. It will look something like this: "Momentum Strategy 🔻▲." Add a strategy to your chart and use the Strategy Tester to follow its performance. For those looking for a simpler way to backtest, the Bar Replay tool can take you back in time to test your ideas on a specific ticker. Press the Rewind ⏪ button on the top of your chart.

5. Make a plan
Many new traders and investors forget to make a plan. Instead, they start trading without testing their ideas or learning from others. Use the tools available to you and make a long-term plan! Draw your plan directly on the chart, use the Text Notes tool located at the bottom of the chart as a personal blog or diary, create indicator layouts, save specific chart layouts to never lose your plan, and create alerts for quick reminders. All of these tools can enhance your process and long-term plan. Visit our Help Center to learn more and everything available to you including any questions you may have about your account.

We hope you enjoyed this post and please leave any questions or comments below! Our team is always reading for your feedback. Stay tuned, we have more posts like this coming.