Without a doubt successful retail Forex traders come in all shapes and sizes, from all corners of the planet. Some take to the task very quickly, some take longer, some do it part time, others full time, some are fortunate to have the time to dedicate towards what is a very complex challenge, others don’t.

Only a tiny percent of retail traders will ever make it

There’s lots of information, data and opinions on this subject, but none of it is conclusive or definitive. We read that 95% of traders fail, that only 1% of forex traders make a living trading and that the vast majority of traders give up after three months and an average €10k loss. These figures may be true, but they require further analysis before accepting them as truth.

Whether we discover the activity of retail forex trading by accident or design, we’re social animals and in the social media world we now inhabit, we’ll eventually discover forums and other social media methods, to share and discuss our trading ideas. As we discover forums and other discussion venues, we’ll note that certain biases take over. A form of group think eventually develops and overcomes certain subjects; “this works, this doesn’t, do this, don’t do this, ignore that, pay attention to this”...

As traders we pride ourselves on creating a bullet proof trading plan that has strict money management/risk control and discipline. And yet, the suggestion from the title, is that there are times when we watch profit escape us, we knowingly let it happen, without trying to capture that extra profit.