How to improve as a trader: three tips from a global broker Octa

Automatism as a key to success

In trading, there is always a struggle between long-term ambitions and immediate needs. What is easily overlooked in a trading journey is how crucial it is to approach it step-by-step, aiming for automatism and consistency. Excited by the prospect of fast gains, many emerging traders neglect to follow the progressive learning process and dive in head first, risking large parts of their capital in a single trade.

Hastiness and greed in trading often result in bad outcomes, with many new traders quitting within a month. With that in mind, incremental knowledge acquisition and persistent skill development are paramount for trading success and should never be neglected.

Calculating the correct position size, executing plans based on predefined strategies, and marking support and resistance levels to spot an entry point are second nature for successful traders. They don't waste any mental energy to perform all these routine actions, having formed a set of habits that help them reduce cognitive load. Octa's experts suggest applying a step-by-step approach to achieve this automatism: new traders should master one element of trading before starting with the next.

Sometimes less is more

Octa's internal survey showed that traders tend to break down information into smaller parts when reading or watching educational content. They opt for five- to six-minute daily study sessions instead of time-consuming and committing deep dives. This preference is natural: knowledge can be acquired much more efficiently if broken down into manageable blocks.

Smaller chunks of information are more accessible to repeat and memorise, which helps speed up the required skill automation process and reduce cognitive load. This principle works especially well in Forex, which otherwise can be confusing for beginners due to differences between currency pairs and more familiar traditional assets.

As a client-oriented broker with extensive experience, Octa constantly adjusts its products and services to meet traders' ever-evolving requirements. After analysing the internal survey results, the broker’s experts fine-tuned their approach to creating educational materials. Offered in less time-consuming and more intensive blocks, Octa’s trading guides allow new and seasoned traders to increase their expertise in small steps and trade with confidence.

Details matter

The principle of incremental minor improvements is also at work when calculating outcomes. For example, many new traders underestimate the impact of trading conditions on their results. However, the difference in spreads, for one, can make or break a successful trading session. Since spreads are imposed on a per-trade basis and do not depend on the order amount, trading with lower spreads becomes more important as the number of trades per session increases. For daily traders who place up to hundreds of trades per session, 0.1 pip of difference in spreads can amount to dozens of U.S. dollars deducted from their account balance at the end of the day.

Octa offers its clients some of the lowest spreads on the market, providing optimal conditions for profitable trading. With zero commissions, no swaps, leverage options up to 1:1000, and transparent and quick deposits and withdrawals, the broker has more than 300 tradable assets available. A wide variety of tutorials for any level of expertise ensures that traders have all the tools at their disposal for informed and deliberate decision-making. This well-rounded approach allows Octa to foster a trading environment that drives consistent growth and propels traders towards their financial goals.

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