What Is Your 'R' Factor and How to Stop Yourself Cutting Winning Trades Short

Dean Whittingham has been a guest blogger here before (see previous posts) and every time he brings great material to our readers and this post is NO DIFFERENT! So please enjoy the article, be sure comment, and also if you have time check out ATradersUniverse.com. ENJOY!

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In trading there is a factor known to many as the ‘R’ factor or risk factor. Traders determine their average or base risk per trade they’re willing to take and name it ‘R’, and then measure profits as a multiple of this ‘R’. For example, a 3R profitable trade means the trader has made 3 times the amount they risked. The idea is to determine the ‘R’ factor early on in the trading system building stage and keep it consistent, whether it is a fixed dollar amount or a percentage of available capital.

The benefits of using an ‘R’ factor include measurability, especially during back testing, which helps to determine a systems potential, and being able to track your trades from a systematic point of view rather than a monetary point of view. However it is the monetary point of view that I would like to address as I feel there could be another angle or point of view that could aid struggling traders, especially those that find themselves cutting winning trades short (breaking their systems rules).

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More than Major Pairs

Shane got such a positive response to his first guest blog post (below) that I wanted to keep his momentum going and give him space to give you a little peak into his world of Forex trading. Many of you have checked out his “Evil Genius Cheats” newsletter, but if you haven't I recommend you do so before he won't let any more free people in. Please enjoy the article, check out his “Evil Genius Cheats” newsletter, and let the comments FLY!!

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Ask any trader what currencies they trade and 99% of them will mention the major pairs.  The EURUSD, GBPUSD, USDJPY and a handful of others.  These are very active, very liquid and perhaps out of habit, the most widely traded.

What about the “exotic” pairs?  The Danish Krone (USDDKK), Singapore Dollar (USDSGD) and a host of other pairs, give ample opportunity for the professional trader to make money.  Right away, the main argument will be about the spread to trade exotics.  True, the spread is much higher than EURUSD but look at the pip cost below while trading 100k.  It is not the standard $10/pip/$100k.

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Derivatives Are Evil And Must Be Destroyed

Recently I had the opportunity to meet with one of the most excitable options traders and educators in Las Vegas...his name is Mark Longo and he's the founder and main options guy at TheOptionsInsider.com. I was able to spend about 45 minutes just chatting with him about what's going on in the options world, what's new with his site, and everything he said about options made perfect sense. Almost as if he actually knew what he was talking about! Come to find out later in the conversation he knew what he was talking about, and he's an authority on options...egg on my face! TheOptionsInsider.com is a great FREE resource for all things options and with Mark at the helm you won't be led astray. Please enjoy the article (as I read it twice), comment below, and visit TheOptionsInsider.com today!

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We are seeing a familiar refrain in the financial world these days. Regulators, politicians and even the financial media are jumping back aboard the "derivatives are evil" bandwagon.

Derivatives are a popular scapegoat for the ills of modern society. When commodity prices surged last year, the finger of blame immediately pointed at rampant speculation in the derivatives markets (see It's Time To Ban CEOs & Senators From The Derivatives Markets and The Rage Against Derivatives Speculators Is Unfounded for more information).

But the true backlash came later when the financial crisis paralyzed the global economy. Not surprisingly, the outrage once again turned toward derivatives. But this time the response was different. It wasn't isolated to a handful of grandstanding politicians and CEOs arguing about inflated commodity prices. It poured in from all segments of the marketplace as institution after institution collapsed under the weight of their own greed.

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The Perfect Storm the movie...of trading?

Is there really such a thing as "The Perfect Storm" of trading? At first I wasn't sure. But after talking to Shane Daly, coach at Netpicks and writer for "Evil Genius Cheats" newsletter, my mind was changed. We spoke for a while and that's when I asked him to write a blog post so I could get the pulse and opinions of the Trader's Blog readers! So he got to writing and put together the article below. I'd like to get your thoughts and opinions as Shane will be reading and answering questions and comments. If you also find the article useful then I recommend you check out the newsletter "Evil Genius Cheats" that's put together just for

The Perfect Storm

Trader's Blog readers.

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Back in 1991, several conditions occurred that created an unusual storm that not only took some lives, but also had caused over $200 million in damages.  Most famous, are the 6 lives that were lost and highlighted in the movie “The Perfect Storm”.

The act of trading also adds in some conditions that, if not prepared for, will not only cause you loss of money but also perhaps life as you know it.  Trading is also “A Perfect Storm”...

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They Say That Timing In Life Is Everything

Well here I am at my vacation home in Maine watching the markets go crazy. Yes, we are so lucky to have access to the Internet and to the markets themselves no matter where we are in the world.

I didn't plan on doing a video today, but the market action left me no choice. Today we witnessed an important "Trade Triangle" signal in this major index that should not be ignored.

In my new video, I share with you this same signal that thousands of MarketClub members witnessed and will discuss some of the potential downside targets for this index.

This is a video that is worth watching as I think we should all be prepared for what lies ahead.

There is no need to register for this video and of course you can watch it with my compliments. Enjoy the video and please give us your feedback on our blog.

All the best,

Adam Hewison
President, INO.com
Co-Creator, MarketClub