Forex trading is similar to sharpshooting in more than one way.
Just as a sniper needs a sniper rifle, must have mastery over it, possess immeasurable patience, must exhibit complete control over his mind as well as body in difficult situations, and must have an innate smartness to know the right time to shoot, a Forex trader requires a trading edge (his weapon), must become a master of it, cultivate and practice unflinching restraint and self-discipline, and learn to identify the right moment to take a call.
Trading is obviously miles less stressful than a war, but the concepts of sharpshooting apply fully to trading. How well you trade depends, more than anything else, on how well you cultivate the aforementioned qualities of a sniper.
Traders who cultivate these qualities in themselves invariably taste success in the long run. On the other hand, those who latch on the qualities of a machine gunner—spending ammunition on everything in their view that is moving (trading too much)—finish their ammunition (money) quickly and consequently roll out of the game without achieving even a quarter of what they set out to achieve.
Tips on How to Trade Forex like a Sniper
Less is better
In Forex trading, more is not always more. And less is not always less. In fact, mostly the opposite is true.
The quickly you imbibe this principle, the better you will be at Forex trading. Instead of investing on everything that you think is a trade and in turn damaging your trading account, you should wait for the pre-determined target to appear, in the same way as a sniper patiently sits for hours or days or, even, weeks for the pre-defined target to make an appearance.
Price action trading gives you an extremely powerful trading edge by allowing you to execute with the precision of a sniper. And the “battleground” to carry out your edge on is provided by the daily charts.
Higher time frames trades are the best option
No other time frame offers you the highest-probability or highest value targets than the daily charts, and precisely for this reason, you must choose them to be your “battleground” for cultivating and honing “Forex sniper” skills.
The probability of a trade setup is directly related to the duration of the time frame. That is, lower the time frame, the less accurate any trade setup becomes and vice-versa. And that’s why trading with higher time frame (that is, 4-hour time frame or above) is smarter than trading with lower time frame (that is, anything less than a 4 hour chart).
A sniper patiently waits to eliminate high-value targets, targets whose elimination changes the whole complexion of a war. In the same way, you need to wait for highest-probability setups, which will boost your record maximum.
Patience is the key
No trait hurts the newbies more than the tendency of forcing the issue. That is, reading signals that are not there and closing signals prematurely.
In effect, all this boils down to impatience. Most of us are naturally impatient when money is involved. That’s why patience is an acquired skill, and the more quickly you develop it, the better results you will get in Forex trading.
Become master of the chosen strategy
A sharpshooter works on his shooting skill unless it becomes perfect. Much like the same, you must train in a particular trading strategy to improve your chart-reading skills. However, that’s not all—you must go beyond that and master the chosen strategy. Unless you do that, you will always fall short of becoming successful at Forex trading.
Education, time, and relentless effort are three cornerstones of mastering anything, including Forex trading. With that said, if you bring the last two things to the table, with this post you will sooner than later become a Forex trading sniper.
Develop the mindset of a sniper
Sniper-like trading needs patience and discipline, but it also improves these two qualities in you.
As said before, the higher in time frame you go, the more accurate a trade set up becomes. That is, you are more likely to reap rewards for trading the higher time frames, for which patience is needed in good supply. Seeing the rewards of being patient, you will make conscious efforts to work on it and will be less tempted by the urges to over-trade. And the more knowledgeable of Forex trading and self-disciplined you become, the greater your success will be.
In other words, adopting the working method of a sniper right at the beginning of your Forex trading sets you on a success loop, ensuring long-lasting success.
Do not try to control the market—because no one can do that. Your success at Forex trading is determined by one thing and one thing only: how well you control the way you trade. And the right way to trade is but one—trading like a sniper.