I don’t know if the term “day trading” ever existed before we had access to the internet. If it did, I some how would picture a broker becoming a bit frazzled, trying to keep up with this mad client who is buying and selling at the speed of light. Because this is the life of the day trader. They do not care about fundamentals or even for that matter what the company does. They are riding the trend, up or down it doesn’t matter, as long as the asset is behaving the way they have projected it would. Day traders don’t care what markets they are in, be it stocks, options, currencies, or futures, they get in and out with a fast profit. A transaction may last a few minutes, an hour or so, but never more than that day.

These rebels of tradition are literally traders, rather than investors, but can reap huge rewards in a relatively short period of time. Of course, day trading for a living does carry some fairly large monetary risks, so you must know exactly what you are doing from the time the markets open to when they close. This is the itinerary of a day trader. If you can’t commit or don’t have the time to pursue this strategy properly, I suggest you look into swing trading. These types of trades are ones that last longer than a day and can run a course of up to a few weeks, as an average. Swing trading can be a part time effort. Make no mistake however, in both strategies as with anything connected with investments, you had better be knowledgeable. Always have an exit plan or stop loss in place and it is essential that you have an excellent technical charting platform.   

You must also be aware of The Securities Exchange Commission, and all rules concerning day trading. A day trader must function under certain regulations which include minimum equity requirements for a day trader account, as the day trade buying power of that account and what defines a trader as a day trader. You do not want to begin your new career with SEC trouble. Check out the regulations and the requirements. Do your homework and possibly buy and download the applicable software to your home or office computer. Day trading for a living can be very lucrative, or it can  financially ruin you. I was a broker for a few years, in the late 90's, and had many of my clients tell me that they couldn’t take advantage of a recommendation because they had lost their extra money day trading. I mentioned software because back than the access to sophisticated programs was limited and also rather costly.

Today you have the advantage of, for one thing, reading this article. For another, you have immediate access to hundreds of software packages that don’t cost an arm and a leg. I don’t profess to being an expert, but I do know of some. I obviously don’t have the time to go into all the details now, but at my site Market Mentalist you will find all you need to know about investing online. There is access to some of the top trading systems available including software, books, newsletters, and Forums. Whether you are an inquisitive novice or a seasoned pro Market Mentalist offers the online investment resource you just might be seeking.