IS IT SO HARD TO DO?

Lately I am kind of very dissapointed & demoralized with so many things around me, particularly works. I wonder and wonder that each day more and more bosses are treating their subordinates like robots rather than human.

Yes, we do have deliverables, datelines and objectives. We are all answerables to somebody, even to our spouse. We all have our own stresses and problems that we need to manage, especially financials. But then, should we work in a way that personal touch is no longer important? What I meant here, issues on staff motivation is hardly a point of concern anymore to plenty of management personnels.

When motivation degrades, performance will suffer.

My point is simple. Most managers are hardly leaders. They manage but they don't lead. They don't care what happen and will happen if they fail to address certain things. Worse of all, they never have the guts to ask for feedback and others opinion. Just because they are appointed by the company to a certain post, they thought they knew everything and anyone else below his/her rank shall work like a slave.

Is this a correct thing to do? Can someone tell? Did the management made a wrong decision appointing such persons to certain managerial position? Perhaps, maybe, I don't know, mmmm... which one?

Anyway, I have no specific names here as my opinions are rather generic than specific, though I am referring to certain specific cases. If any of these managers happen to read this, good, as you know who you are.

Thinking about it, I guess all these are boiled down to one's attitude and character, plus some office politics that we all need to understand. Yeah I know at times, we need to please our bosses. We do have to be strict and stringent with our decisions simply to demonstrate our firmness in handling certain matters. But most of the time, we are nothing more than a normal human. We all die sooner or later, so why not make the most of it rather than work work work...

We all work for money (some let money works for them)... after that?

Simple equations always tell me that humans need rest. Humans need to be happy. Humans need time out. Humans need reasons to live. Humans need motivation and so on.

Is it so hard for managers to say:

- good job!

- congratulation!

- splendid!

- thank you!

- I'll support you, don't worry... etc

OR

- visit your subordinate who just got a newly-born baby

- call staff for a dinner

- have a chit chat once a month during teh-tarik session

- sharing concerns from time to time

At the end of the day, there is only one place that we shall go for sure... and why is it so difficult for us to treat each other nicely? regardless of who you are in the office...

SLUMDOG BOWLER...

The result speaks for itself... 134, 130, 162, 153, 147, 135... Avg 144... What happened?

Lately my pinfalls have suffered severely due to lack of focus, heart and mental commitment to the game. For the past 3 years, I used to play beyond the 180 average for any game or tournament and so far the best 12 games average was 215 pinfalls (w/o handicap) in one of the graded tournament held in Johor 2 years ago. I even made a few 220 average for a 4 games tournament. It wasn't too good but good enough for my own satisfaction.

Even without a good-form, normally it has never gone below 170 average pinfalls. My normal respectable average was always at 180 to 200 range which is acceptable (& respectable) though I can hardly be in Top 5 with that average.

But now, I am back to a slumdog status. My strike ball constantly missed the pocket and my spares are no longer consistent. At times, I even miss the pin 5 spare, the easiest spare on earth. I guess it's time to call it a day as my passions are no longer there for the game. I believe there is a way back but for now, I just couldn't find the key anymore.

Some of the possible factors are due to:

1. Work stress. The mind wasn't there during the games.

2. Zero fighting spirit. I felt no desire to win at all.

3. No more fun in the game. The game has lost its sex-appeal to me.

4. Practise. I just don't have enough time to play as usual as before.

5. Competitive Sports to Recreational bowling. I can no longer take the game seriously.

6. Not enough rest. I was rushing from office before the game in KL.

7. Multiple personal factors. Perhaps so many agenda in the head.

Rather than physical, I strongly believe the mental part of the game has seriously fallen apart. Once you lose the focus in doing anything, performance will suffer, not only in bowling.

And focus is not something that you can simply do. You have to have a clear mind, get enough rest and play with a mission. Otherwise it is like driving a car without a final destination. You could end up in the river...

Well, who cares right? Some of my true bowling colleagues did express their concern and willingness to help me in bringing back my game. Some even recommended me to change the ball as my all-time-favorite ball has reached its retirement age (5 years already), and so on... personally I believe there's nothing wrong with the ball as I guess the main problem is with me.

Thinking about it over and over again, I believe the best is to STOP (until further notice) as lately performance has suffered signifcantly. If I continue playing, things will get even worse rather than better. This could be temporary or this could be for good, I just don't know.

Whether I'll be back or not, bowling will always be one of the game that I watch and support.

To my bowling colleagues especially the Oil Business Team... trust your game, stay united and we shall retain our last year's championship title....

All the best to you guys!

VOLTAGE DROP CALCULATIONS

The voltage drop of any insulated cable is dependent upon

1. the route length under consideration (in meters),
2. the required current rating (in amperes) and
3. the relevant total impedance per unit length of the cable.

The maximum impedance and voltage drop applicable to each cable at maximum conductor temperature and under a.c. conditions is given in the tables. For cables operating under dc conditions, the appropriate voltage drops may be calculated using the formula:

2 x route length x current x resistance x 10¯³.

The values detailed in the tables are given in m/V/Am, (volts/100 per ampere per metre), and the nominal maximum acceptable volt drop specified by the IEE Regulations is 2.5% of the system voltage, i.e. 0.025 x 415= 10.5 volts for 3 phase working or 0.025 x 240 = 6.0 volts for single phase working.

Consider a 3 phase system. The requirement may be for a load of 1000A to be transmitted over a route length of 150m, the cable to be clipped to the wall and close protection provided. The rating tables in the IEE Regulations indicate that a 35mm copper conductor PVC/ SWA/ PVC cable would be suitable for the loading required, but the voltage drop must be checked.

Volt drop = Y x current x length
= 1.1 x 100 x 150 millivolts
= 1.1 x 100 x 150 volts/1000
= 16.5 volts
where Y = value from tables in mV/A/m Unless a particular value of voltage drop, acceptable to the user, is specified, the IEE Regulations figure of 10.5 volts must be adhered to.

Thus:
Total volt drop = 10.5 volts = Y x 100 x 150
Therefore Y = 10.5/100 x 150= 0.7/1000 volts/ampere/meters

Reference to the voltage drop tables indicates that the cable size with a voltage drop of 0.7/1000 V/A/m(0.7mV/A/m) OR LESS is a 70mm copper conductor.

Therefore, in order to transmit a 3 phase current of 100A per phase over a route length of 150m, with a total voltage drop equal to or less than the statutory maximum 10.5 volts, the use would require a 70mm (cu.) multicore PVC.

Conversely, The user may have 150m of 35mm (Cu.) multicore PVC cable and require to know what maximum current rating can be applied without exceeding the allowable voltage drop. The method is exactly the same as above,viz: total drop = 16.6

= YxAxM
= 1.1 x A x 150/1000from the tables Y
= 1.1mV/A/m=1.1/1000V/A/m
therefore
A = 10.5 x 1000/1.1.x 150
=64 amperes

From the foregoing, it is apparent that knowing any two values of Y, A or m, the remaining, unknown value canreadily be calculated.

The advice is always available to check, clarify or suggest the most suitable size and type of cable for any particular, specified requirements.

Useful three phase formulae:
1. kW = kVA x power factor

2. kW =
Line amps x Line volts x 1.73 x p.f.
1000

3. kVA =
kW
p.f.

4. Line amps =
kW x 1000
Line volts x 1.73 x p.f.

5. Line amps =
kVA x 1000
Line volts x 1.73

6. Line amps =
h.p. x 746
Line volts x 1.73 x Efficiency x p.f.

7. kVA =
Line amps x Line volts x 1.73
1000

8. kW =
h.p. x 746
1000 x Efficiency

9. kVA =
Line amps x Line volts x 1.73 x Efficiency x p.f.
746

10. h.p. =
kW x 1000 x Efficiency
746

11. h.p. =
kVA x 1000 x Efficiency
746

Resourced from : http://www.csedistributors.co.uk/cable/voltage-drop-pf.htm

THE 7 WONDERS IN FOREX...

Have you ever wonder:

1. Why is that most traders lost money instead of making money?

2. Why everytime you open a position it seems that market is always against you?

3. Why sometimes the market seems stagnant and at times move like a big tsunami? I meant volatility...

4. Why people are still trading when they knew the risk is high?

5. Where on earth does the money comes from? (say when you make profit)

6. Who dominates the market?

7. What really moves the market?

There are answers to these questions for sure.

For professional traders, these questions are basics but to the green horns, these are among the 7 wonders that they need to really understand before they should start trading. If we could not even answer these simple questions, how on earth will us survive?

To me, doing something that you barely knew is ok, but you can hardly be successful in the long run.

There are simple ways, but I believe there are hardly any shortcuts. The best way to make money with a black box is to sell one instead of relying to one that you bought for 97 dollars.

Though the market patterns are recognizable, but to get in with a perfect timing requires skills, guts and patience. Sometimes you get it right but most of the times, it is normal to get it wrong. This is where risk management is vital due to our potential in making mistakes with our entry and speculation.

For the past 2 weeks, I am not doing very well as though I could bagged in over 500 pips for the week as usuals, but I lost over 500 pips as well that bring to a total sum of approx. minus 50 pips average by the closing of the week.

The system's attacking wise is ok. I just need to work on the defense. Just like a soccer game, there is no point of scoring 5 goals if your defender conceded 6 goals by the end of the 90 minutes.

I guess I need to find ways on how to play the games with clean sheets as well. Perhaps defensive trading is the answer.

THE EURO COULD SOON BE HISTORY... by Jack Crooks

The Man Who Predicted It... And Where We Go From Here

By Dr. Steve Sjuggerud
October 10, 2008

"The euro could soon be history."

That was the title of Jack Crooks' speech back in July. At the time, the euro was sitting near its all-time high around $1.59. Nobody was foolish enough to suggest it could crash.

But Jack said 1) the bottom is near for the U.S. dollar, and 2) the European Central Bank won't survive a big test.

The crowd – a room full of "gold bugs" – didn't want to hear the dollar was going to soar. But Jack called it like he saw it.

Jack was exactly right. The U.S. dollar has soared (the dollar index has risen from around 72 in July to around 81 today). And the euro has crashed down to $1.36 – a 14% percent fall since July.

Jack is the only man I know who called it right, at exactly the right time. (We called the euro's demise here in DailyWealth just a few days later.)

I've known Jack since we worked 15 feet away from each other for a few years at firm specializing in international investing. That was 15 years ago. Jack is a smart, uncompromising currency trader who knows his financial history and knows the markets.

In his speech, Jack's case for the dollar was right: The dollar had been in a seven-year bear market and was 34% undervalued against the euro. Also, the dollar had rallied during four of the last five recessions. Lastly, sentiment was extremely negative toward the U.S. dollar – everyone who wanted to sell had already sold.

Jack agrees with the late Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman's take on the euro... "Sooner or later, when the global economy hits a real bump, Europe's internal contradictions will tear [the euro] apart."
Europe has too many divergent interests... As Jack explained, Spain's crashing housing market has nothing to do with Ireland's economy. And about Italy, Greece, and Portugal, he asked, "Tell me again why their bond yields should match Germany?"

As the ultimate sign of a top in the euro's bull run, the Financial Times ' Person of the Year was none other than Jean-Claude Trichet... the head of Europe's central bank!

In July, Jack said the dollar could surprise on the upside, and rising one-size-fits-all tensions could hurt the euro. He nailed it... So what now?

When it comes to currency trades, Jack looks for the same three things we look for in DailyWealth : "cheap, hated, uptrend."

Even with the U.S. dollar's extraordinary recent rise, it's still cheap versus the euro.

The dollar is still hated (though not as hated as it was back in July).

And most importantly, we have an uptrend in the dollar now. Trends in currencies matter more than in just about any other investment... Once the trend begins, it's hard to derail it.

The trend is up in the dollar now. And the trend is down in the euro. The trade has made Jack's subscribers and DailyWealth readers a lot of money so far. And the trade is still on...

Good investing,
Steve

HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR BOWLING GAME

Bowling is a game that requires execution finess & consistent practise for you to maintain good muscle memory & performance. As a spinner myself, the 5 keys to my good performance are always due to:

1. Consistent Scheduled Practise (minimum 3 times a week as a part time bowler)

2. Always do post-Game Analysis (analyse your game and decide which area requires further improvement i.e. sparing, shoulder squareness, release etc)

3. Spare shootings practise ( i.e work on perfecting pin 7 and pin 10 sparing)

4. 1st shot execution accuracy practise (ie. learn to adjust and adapt accordingly to lane condition)

5. Participate in various local tournaments (ie Local and Graded tournaments are good platforms for experience enhancement)

There are many other factors as well but those listed above are always the keys. Neglecting any one of the listed elements above will surely jeopardize my chances in performing well for tournaments.

Unlike spinners, playing hook is even more challenging as hook players must also focus on 5 other elements of adjustment inclusive:

1. Angle adjustments (ie which board to play)

2. Balls selection (ie dry, medium, oily)

3. Lofting & Lifting (ie where your ball should land on the lane)

4. Speed (ie your throw and steps)

5. Release (ie broken wrist, cup or natural)

Ultimately, in any game that you are playing, listed below are the master keys that will determine whether you can be a winner or otherwise:

•Convert your SPARES since STRIKE is actually a bonus. You MUST LEARN to convert your spare consistently for high average games.

•Don’t know how ? Learn.. The best is through trial error as there is no specific rule… BUT

•Using 3-6-9 method is one of the simplest method

•Remember where your stance and target is, and adjust accordingly during tournaments.

•Spare is really simple once you know how.. It’s just your mind that telling you otherwise.

•Focus on each throw. Ignore the scoreboards…

•It’s not over until it’s over… Don’t worry if you open frames, just focus on the next shot.

•Bowling is all about repeating a good shot over and over again.

•Always Practice Practise Practise !!!

Last but not least, you do need luck at times since no matter how good your execution is, there is always 1% possibility for you not to strike.

All the best to your bowling games !

A TRIP TO REMEMBER...

It was Thursday evening, 8th of March 2007. I rented a car from Enterprise right after my spouse and 3 year old daughter (at that time) landed in Heathrow at 5pm that evening. Winter was almost over but still the weather was pretty cold (8 deg C) for us.

I managed to get a nice Volkswagen TDI 1.8 Compact as we had a plan to visit one of the famous football club in the world, Manchester United on the following day. We had only 3 days to spend together (before my business trip to Holland) so every single second that we had need to be fully utilised. To tell the truth, I had no idea on how to be there, moreover driving on my own.

The only confidence that I had was due to the steering wheel located on the right hand side of the car.

Nevertheless, with the help of my fellow colleague in providing me with a mapbook of UK, I told myself it is now or never. Why not give it a shot. As long I don't break any traffic rules, I should be ok.

That Friday morning, we started our journey as early as 7am after having some light snacks as our breakfast. No GPS. The only GPS was my spouse giving me the direction base on her understanding on the maps. We departed from Reading and driving from one highway to another. We were on M1, M4, M40 and all sorts of M that represents Motorways in UK. Of course I couldn't remember all.

The best thing of all, after almost 2 hours of driving, we later saw a signboard stating that Reading was 5 miles away from there. I couldn't believe it. 2 hours of driving and we were right back to where we started.

To cut it short, I made a turn later on and hold the maps on my own, studying every possible way to get me back to Manchester. My spouse was fired on the spot and she was demoted from reading the map to reading the signboards only.. haha, just kidding. I still need her to read the map as my focus was on the road.

All in all, it was a nice journey though, and finally we managed to be at Old Trafford 5 minutes before the last stadium tour, around 4pm. We were so excited and managed to take a number of photos around the Theatre of Dreams especially in the Museums, Players Room and the Dugouts. Though tired, it was definitely a trip to remember...

PREPARING MYSELF

I received an email (and later phone calls) 2 days ago mentioning that I was shortlisted for an interview next week in KL. This is regarding a potential job in Saudi Arabia for a Snr Electrical Engineer's position of a well known Petrochemical company there, located in Al-Jubayl.

Well, frankly speaking I am excited but definitely I have no idea (yet) on what sort of offer that I am going to get. Though I did give a few talks on how to attend job interview to my previous internship students, but when it comes to myself, I must admit that I am getting a bit nervy. It's been quite a while since my last job interview and assessment.

Anyway, preparing for job interview is not that difficult though, as all you need is to do some homeworks on the company profile that you may be working with apart from (of course) preparing my self-confidence and experience prior to the interview.

Some of the key things:

1. Prepare all sort of certificates, documents, papers as well as work evidence for them to review. They have got my resumes upfront but for sure preparing extra 2 to 3 copies wouldn't harm anybody.

2. Dress appropriately, or simply dress to kill though I don't intend to kill anybody.

3. Be there 30 minutes before the interview. I am planning to overnight at the hotel a night before with my family so I don't have to deal with the traffics.

4. Smile & confident. Be myself and show respect to the interviewers. Explain my skills and capability appropriately or perhaps use the white-board if necessary.

5. Shows interest in the job and try to deliberate on how can I contribute to the company with the experience that I have.

6. If there is a sign that they may hire me, then only I will negotiate the offer. I will not demand but basic rules is always to have at least 2.5x higher than what am I earning now. Otherwise, I wouldn't go for sure. Another thing is to confirm on either permanent or contract basis. I will not take a contract's position unless the monetary benefit is colossal.

7. All in all, I still have a good job in hand. So there's nothing to fear here. Being confident is vital but over-confident will definitely kill.

Well, I guess wish me All The BEST then... ;))

IT IS FUN WATCHING UNLESS...

YOU'RE IN...

Watching the forex market movement especially the major pairs are not for the faint of heart. When you are not in, it is a pleasure and wonders to watch these prices volatility, how the bulls and the bears are fighting each other.

But once you're in, you know there will be 2 conditions especially if you're an intraday trader or scalper.

1. Hit and run when you got it right. Typically 10 to 15 pips per trade, sometimes even smaller.

2. Hit and quit if you get it wrong. At times, you might hang on to a losing battle.

I must admit that this is one of the reason why I chose forex market over the others. It is the biggest financial market in the world (over USD3T per day!) and yes, it is high risk, but only if you put in so much at one time looking for a home run. If you play it dilligently and patiently, it is quite fun & I guess the pressure is off. All you need is patience to strike at the right moment.

The important thing is not to argue with the market. They are always right. So, admit when you're wrong and execute the escape plan before you're trap. That's my style, at least. Careful with the news time as well since news have always bring short term volatility that could hurt you. The data is not as important as the time of released since it is how the market response that really matters.

The way I look at it, good positioning is always the key regardless of how much you are putting at risk. Even if you risk it small but then getting it wrong all the time doesn't give you the edge in making good money in this market.

The rule here is not to be average since most (if not all) average traders lost money. Perfecting the timing and recognizing a high probability trade are the elements that traders need to master.

One more thing, I am training myself NOT TO TRADE instead of making it a routine to trade everyday. At times, I feel so obsessed with trading that my performance in catching the pips starts to deteriorate slowly. Making 150 pips in the beginning but later gave back 100 pips before the New York session close.

When poor performance starts becoming a streak, I guess the best thing to do is to backoff and stay away from the market for a while, well at least watch the market without doing anything.

This is called a self discipline.

Happy trading guys!

GETTING A PERFECT ENTRY

One of the best question traders always ask : How Do I get a perfect ENTRY?

A perfect entry, regardsless of long or short position, is something that we all desire as traders. Not only this will maximise our profit, but also minimise our risk in setting a minimum range for the position's Stop Loss.

I guess the best entry position is always at top (for selling) and bottom for buying. But of course, how do we know whether it's a top or bottom? In my adventure as a currency trader, I guess picking tops and fishing bottoms are the hardest thing to do indeed. Out of 10 attempts, I always wrong 80% of the time. Even when I got it right, I didn't have the guts to ride the profit as I just couldn't afford to see a winning trade turn to a loser, thus quitting a good potential trade earlier than I supposed to.

Hence, I believe the perfect answer to this perfect question is :

YOU MUST HAVE A SYSTEM IN TRADING & HAVE A DISCIPLINE TO STICK WITH THAT SYSTEM (as mentioned by Bob Prechter).

Why?

1. A system will provide you with signals whether the setup is good for entry.

2. A system will give you ideas on the overall trend PLUS the best way to exit.

3. A system will keep you organize and make a systematic approach in your trading.

4. A system will eliminate all the guess works.

5. A system will normally provide you with a good risk reward ratio for each of your trade.

6. A good system will boost your confidence as a trader.

7. A system will take out the emotional factor in your trading.

It doesn't have to be perfect though. A system with 50% accuracy is good enough to give you a consistent profit, provided you apply a proper risk reward ratio for your money management.

I believe making profit is easy with forex. It is making big profit (and retaining that profit) that remains as a challenge. At times, due to part time involvement in this trading arena, I always missed the chance to join a big trade since by the time I have the chance to watch the market, the breakouts has always moved 100 over pips and so on.

Though the trend is already there, but entering a trend right in the middle is not something that I like doing, unless of course later after it has gone through some retracements. Catching it just before it happen is always the best.

BE GRATEFUL FOR WHO YOU ARE

I just celebrated my 31st birthday on last Friday and it seems so many things have happened all these years without I even realized.

Looking back on those 31 wonderful years back and ponder on the most memorable things in life, I guess there are just too many to recall.

Anyhow some of the finest things that have ever happened to me so far:

1. Earned my degree in 2001.

2. Getting married to a very wonderful lady in 2002.

3. Being a father in early 2004.

4. Played Bowling for the company Team in the Ascope Games 2007 in Manila.

5. Travelled to Finland, England, Scotland, Holland, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy, Japan, Philipines, Hong Kong & China, both on business and pleasures.

6. Able to support my parents and family consistently on their financial needs.

7. Job promotion.

And some of the major mistakes that I have done so far:

1. Wrong investment that had caused me substantially.

2. Bought a 2nd hand car that can hardly start.

3. Did not play golf earlier when I was offered the opportunity by one of the top managers.

4. What else?

Well, I guess sharing is caring. The point here, regardless of whatever good or bad things that you have done in the past, you should always look forward into the future and see which area can be further improved. What's done is done and there is nothing we can do about it, except learn and move forward.

Unlike those who are less fortunate than us that has to live in fear every now and then, we should always be thankful and taking advantage of the situation for our own properity. Sit and do nothing will obviously bring you to nowhere.

To my fellow forex traders, have a very profitable week next week! Let's play some defensive trading this time.

PREDICTING MARKET MOVEMENT COULD BE DISASTROUS

Unlike last week, this week seems pretty bad from my overall trading perspective. I thought of not sharing this bad news but what the heck, I need to log this down or else I will not remember it myself.

And today marks another remarkable day when I made a net loss of 147 pips (SL50 x 3 positions) due to wrong speculation on the EU movement. I should have not anticipate it in the first place, I know I know. But this is forex... you just can't help it at times... tendency to outsmart the market is there... ;))

Perhaps I focused so much on the interest rate cut by ECB @ 7.45pm local time that I tend to forget about the G20 meeting that has lots of positive outcomes and expectations. I guess I need 2 to 3 years more (at least) before I can earn a masters degree in Forex.. haha. Then only I can generate at least 10k per day. The best so far is only 2k.

Shorting 3 positions @ 5pm onwards, the market went to opposite direction all the way and I just let the price hit my SL. I guess they are too strong for me to defy. But the thing is, I just didn't know why I didn't get along with the market. Main reason is because I presumed the market will push the price down by 7pm, instead of up due to the interest rate cut later on. Too much relying on fundamental sentiment I supposed.

Definitely I was wrong & this is the main weaknesses that I need to repair. I should have just follow where the market goes. Well well well... Losses are inevitable then.

I had enough for this week and probably I will not trade the NFP tomorrow. I've reached my threshold limit and enough is enough. Will come back next week with better mindset and strategy.

Tomorrow night, I'd rather go for Bowling instead!

Stay tune!

IS IT PROFIT TAKING OR MODE SWING? HOW TO IDENTIFY?

One of the beauties in forex trading is its dynamism and volatility that it creates endless opportunity for traders who knew how to capitalize on these movements.

Nevertheless, most of the time traders are caught buying at the top and selling at the bottom. This is very common. At times, when they did not enter the trending, the market keep on moving like there is no end to it, and they regret for not joining such a strong trend. When they are caught in such situation, they normally join the trend later at the end and hang on to their losses as they are not sure whether those slow (but sure) reversals are corrections or reversals in trend.

The question is; how do we know? Well, there is no exact answer to this as we are always dealing with the unknowns in trading. But of course, there are ways to increase our chances in being correct.

That is why experts always remind us not to jump on a running train. You could survive but it is very risky. Always bear in mind that trading is not an exact science as it is an art that one should continuously learn to understand.

The easiest way to identify this is to refer to the 5 minutes chart of Kuasa Forex and analyse whether it has broken the 5M Bollinger band or not. The moment price indicates reversal signs within the candlesticks stop and wait. Do not enter as timing is everything here. Look at the movement and wait for it to break the 5M Bollinger to confirm. Even if that happens, it is not advisable for you to join the reverse movement as in a strong trend market, temporary reversal is mainly due to profit taking rather than anything else. You could but do not stay there for long, just scalp a few pips and get out. Do not be greedy.

If the price does not break the Bollinger Band and keep on ranging close to it, then it is the best bet for you to enter there (in tandem with the main trend) and setting your SL merely 10 to 25 pips below (if LONG) or above (if SHORT) the band. Set your TP between 20 to 50 pips as these are easy targets. Chances are you get the best results as even if you are wrong, you are risking no more than 25 pips.

Remember the phrase that it is always a battle between buyers and sellers. The best time to join the trend is when you can clearly seen that almost everyone is on the same mode, or so called in consensus. This is normally happened during major news release that generates a strong sentiment that moves the market strongly in one direction than the other.

When this occurs, join the trend diligently with great timing especially if you are scalping. Swing trader with stronger swing absorber (higher margins & SL), then you should go ahead sticking with the trend.

Always use your analytical skills in studying whether this is a profit taking activity or a mode swing. Normally, when profit taking took place, the most it will reverse is 100 pips, depending on the trend. Normally it will not even go beyond 50 pips. So the point here, when you accidentally entered at one of these tops or bottoms, never set your SL beyond 100 pips. The best is to keep it below 50 pips since this will for sure minimise your losses if you are wrong. Or perhaps the best advice is “just get out”.

In my opinion and experience as a part time trader, being either a pure technician or fundamentalist will not do the best trick in your trading. For you to be consistently on the profitable side, you need to have a perfect blend between these two and always take the advantage when opportunities present by itself. We are small traders with vision and hence taking advantage by making intelligent guesses are all that we have as weapons.

If someone tells you that he knows something for sure, he is lying. No one ever will.

copyright Ó 2009 by shahrul nizam hussin