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Coaching forex traders to success. One at a time.
Most people quickly realize they will probably need some form of training once they decide to spend some time and resources on forex trading.
The question then is, what is the best training? How should you view training? Especially due to the overload of offers. You are confronted with the problem of differentiation between too many options.
I am not talking about getting free forex courses or free training offered by most forex brokers. Nor am I talking about free forex training video courses or even some forex training portals.
I am referring to the serious person, who has either already sampled the value of such free training, experienced that it is not very useful and are now looking for approriate and meaningful forex trading training.
Let's consider the whole concept of "training and training courses for forex trading success".
Horses for courses!
We begin by identifying different types of training / "trainers".
Mentor| Coach | Trainer | Councellor | Instructor | Presenter
It is absolutely critical that you engage the right type of "teacher" / "advisor" at the right time.
You are different from every other person on the planet. Your circumstances are different. Your situation NOW is different from what it was and will be.
There are large and important differences between YOU and other people (obvious) and YOU today vs YOU yesterday vs YOU tomorrow (by way of speaking) even if you narrow it down to
forex trading as an endeavour.
I am sure I don't have to say much more about this. It should be very obvious that if you make a mistake about when you need what type of teaching things can go wrong, and probably will. While you would like to blame others, you will be the only one to blame
because you are the one in charge of your life and destiny and decicions you make are your responsibility.
This is how you can take control of your forex trading success. This is how you can control your forex mentoring. This is how you can begin to make it personal.
You are the only one who really know your circumstances and you are really the only one who can make the right choice.
I can help you to make a good choice for NOW.
Do you need a coach perhaps, or maybe at this time you just need a presenter? Possibly you have been burnt by the market already and you actually need a councellor.
Let's go through the list in order to help you to identify what type of forex training will be best for you.
Presenter
A presenter can explain the benefits of forex trading to you. The media of choice for presenting forex trading as a way to make money online is live forex seminars and online forex webinars. In reality live seminars and online webinars are basically glorified infomercials. In order to be a presenter you only need a superficial knowledge of the topic you are presenting. In fact it is common and easy to include someone with more expertise than you in a presentation with the idea to make a success of your infomercial.
Success would be measured by the number of sales leads and number of sales (if the presentation lead to immediate selling, which most do.)
Now if you apply it to yourself, the question is if you NOW need a presenter as your primary teacher? It is possible that at this stage you need a presenter to sell the currency trading concept to you.
But really, how many presentations (infomercials) (about financial freedom) do you need? "Forex trading" isn't "kitchen utencils".
The problem is this: There is a gigantic gap between the (your) need for a seminar / webinar and your need (now) for a forex trading system or forex trading strategy punted in that webinar.
Be real, you are not even sure about the concept of forex trading for you, yet you are confronted and pressured to buy the final life-long forex trading solution before the doors close!
Instructor
What about an instructor?
An instructor is a teacher who gives very specific hands-on instructions to complete a well-defined task or process where no or little discretion and critical thinking is needed.
In the forex trading context some people may need instructions in answer to some "how to" questions, like:
How do you place an order on the Meta Trader 4 trading station?
How do you open a forex trading account?
The point is this: You can't get an instructor to instruct you on "how to trade currencies", "how to do technical analysis", "how to read the market sentiment".
In my opinion in forex trading the need for instruction is very low and on quite unimportant levels. There are for things that you would need instruction very good resources that are free.
Forex trading is not simply a set of instructions. No instructor will play an important role (as instructor) in your life as a successful forex trader. Successful traders don't need or take instructions, they give instructions!
So, by all means if you need an instructor get one. (And if you need instruction from me, I'll be able to help you out.) But remember - "horses for courses"!
Councellor
You might lift an eyebrow about councellor on this list. Initially I wouldn't have put it here. Then when I did some research I realized because we are talking about forex trading it is absolutely necessary.
Additionally, because it is me, Dirk, talking on my website about what I do, even more should this be part of this.
Over the years the primary thing that many people needed from me was councelling. Thereafter we could move on to more practical coaching and mentoring.
To "counsel" means, like many other words "to give advice" or "to guide". For instance there is legal counsel. You get "a council" (a deliberating group of persons). Then school councellor. Pastoral councelling. The difference lies in the context.
In our context, forex trading, forex training, forex mentoring it is best to consider the difference between "coaching" and "councelling" and for this I rely on an article on the website www.wishfulthinking.co.uk with the theme "creative coaching and training".
Counselling deals with personal problems – Coaching addresses "workplace" performance.
Counselling begins with a problem – Coaching can begin with a goal or aspiration.
Counselling is sought by people having difficulties – Coaching is used by high achievers as much as beginners or people who are stuck.
Counselling focuses on the past and the origins of problems – Coaching focuses on the future and developing a workable solution.
It shouldn't be difficult for you to see that councelling may be the very first training you need now!
As a private trader everything you go through in your trading process is acutely personal. You are unique in your trading experience.
If you are struggling to make things work. Your trading strategies all blow up. Your emotions and motivation are in tatters. You have problems. You need forex councelling.
Most important: Can you see why you should determine where you are now? If you haven't traded before you probably don't have an immediate need for councelling, but for instruction / training / coaching. If you already have traded, and are trading and experience
diffculties and problems the training that may have most value for you is proper councelling. Not only because trading cause psychological / emotional issues (at least related to trading) but because of what's last on the list above: the root of the problems must be found and addressed.
Coach
I am not going to treat trainer separately because a trainer is more of a specialist in a specific area of a coach's expertise. You might find trainers as juniors under a coach in an organization. A coach will oversee a whole (training) programme while trainers will work on specific aspects of the programme.
Do you need a forex coach or forex coaching program?
Absolutely. Most people rather need a forex coach and forex coaching program than a forex training programme if you understand it correctly. (Again, if you are so serious about this as you should be, having these things right is critical for success.)
Here's why you need a forex coach with a coaching program rather than a forex training course (like the many you get online).
Training is about specific skills – Coaching is about facilitating someone else’s thinking and helping them learn "on the job".
Training is more typically carried out in groups – Coaching is usually a one-to-one process, tailored to the individual’s needs.
Some thoughts on the above
In terms of forex training, there are many online training courses. They teach certain skills. Almost all of them teach aspects of technical analysis only.
What is important is that it doesn't do more than that.
This is a huge shortcoming and flaw. Technical analysis is only a subset of the skill you need to trade successfully. Focusing solely on technical analysis and associated "money management" is severely limiting.
It is based on the misconception that private traders somehow can do what professional trading institutions can't do!
What's really going on is that technical analysis is very suited to visual training and its easy to put an "instructional course" masqerading as "personal coaching" together.
The idea that a total novice in forex trading takes a technical analysis training course believing that will change him in a
life-long successful trader is wishful thinking of the first degree!
Because forex trading can indeed change your whole life from a financial point of view it isn't easy. You need your own "thinking", "own your own brain" (a slogan I have used for years) and because it is complex it is highly likely that you need a specialist coach and a specialist coaching program.
But I really want you to focus on this, as opposed to training in a group or something like a "forex DVD course":
Coaching is usually a one-to-one process, tailored to the individual’s needs.
Do I really have to say more? It must be crystal clear to you that a good coaching program with the above characteristics can take you a very far way on the road to successful forex trading.
"one-to-one process ..." implies the specificness of two persons and the broadness of a period of time.
"tailored to ...individual needs" implies the quality of personal time and individual attention.
Mentor
Both "training" and "coaching" programs imply a limited period of time. Training more so because many times people "go for training", then they return and apply what they have learned. Coaching, we have seen implies more an on the job process. But a formal coaching program also assumes a time limitation.
Mentoring and coaching share the "one-to-one process ... aspect. Mentoring, strictly speaking is much less limited in time duration. Mentoring can be a life-long process.
To understand the importance of a mentor in the online forex trading context one needs to know what a mentor really is. A mentor is not a course presenter, an instructor, a trainer.
A mentor can be a coach and a councellor because mentors informally do coaching and councelling. In certain circumstances it can be formalilzed and mentoring can include a coaching programme and specific councelling.
Mentoring is relationship oriented.
It seeks to provide a safe environment where the mentoree shares whatever issues affect his or her professional and personal success. Although specific learning goals or competencies may be used as a basis for creating the relationship, its focus goes beyond these areas to include things, such as work/life balance, self-confidence, self-perception, and how the personal influences the professional.
Mentoring is always long term.
Mentoring, to be successful, requires time in which both partners can learn about one another and build a climate of trust that creates an environment in which the mentoree can feel secure in sharing the real issues that impact his or her success.
Successful mentoring relationships last at least nine months to a year.
Mentoring is development driven.
Its purpose is to develop the individual not only for the immediate job at hand, but also for the future. Proper mentoring implies growth to being self-sufficient in the specific endeavour, thus having a lasting impact.
Mentoring is the pinnacle of forex trading training if your goal is to make forex trading a part of your long term financial success, growth and future.
Start your forex mentoring with Dirk du Toit at DayForex Today
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Thank you!
