Market Mechanics

What you will learn

Market Order

Buy or sell right now, at the best price available that instant. Upside: you're guaranteed to get in. Downside: in fast or thin markets you pay the spread and can suffer slippage (filled at 100.05 instead of 100.00). Use it when getting in or out matters more than the exact cent.

Limit Order

Set the highest price you'll buy at (or the lowest you'll sell at): it only fills at that price or better. Upside: you control the price and never overpay. Downside: if the market never reaches your price, you miss the trade. Ideal for patiently entering at support and resistance.

Stop Order

A resting order that turns into a market order when price hits your level. Two uses: as a stop-loss (it takes you out if price goes against you) or to enter on a breakout. Watch out: once triggered it fills at market, so in a price gap it can fill worse than your level.

Stop-Limit

Like a stop order, but on trigger it places a LIMIT order instead of a market one. You control the fill price, but the trade-off is it may not execute at all if price races past. Handy to avoid slippage; risky as a stop-loss, because it could leave you unclosed.

Trailing Stop

A dynamic stop-loss that follows price at a fixed distance (rises in longs, falls in shorts) but never backtracks. It locks in profit automatically while you let the winner run, and takes you out when price reverses by that distance. Key to 'cut losses, let winners run' without watching.

Regulation

Only trade with brokers regulated by serious bodies (FCA in the UK, CFTC/NFA in the US, ASIC in Australia, CySEC in Europe). Regulation forces them to keep your money separate from theirs (segregated funds) and gives you someone to complain to. Without solid regulation, your deposit isn't protected.

Spreads

The gap between the buy and sell price: it's your direct cost on every trade, on top of any commission. A 1-pip spread on EUR/USD is normal; 3+ pips is expensive. In scalping the spread eats a big chunk of your profit, so compare it across brokers before you choose.

Execution

How fast and reliably your orders get filled. It matters a lot in fast trading and around news: requotes, latency or rejections cost you real money. Look for ECN/STP execution (your order goes to the market) and be wary of brokers taking the other side against you if you trade a lot.

Leverage

Amplifies both gains and losses — use with extreme caution

MetaTrader 4

Industry standard for Forex, automated trading (Expert Advisors)

MetaTrader 5

Multi-asset platform with advanced order types and market depth

TradingView

Best charting platform, social features, multi-broker integration

Why Journal?

Elite traders keep a journal because it's the fastest way to see your own patterns: which setups make you money, what time of day you fail, how emotions sabotage you. Without a record, you repeat the same mistakes without noticing. It's the difference between 'trading' and actually 'improving'.

What to Track

For each trade log: entry, exit, size, setup type, risk in R, result, market conditions and your emotional state (fear, euphoria, boredom). Add a chart screenshot. After 30-50 trades, clear patterns emerge that you'd never spot from memory.

Review Process

Review the journal every week and every month, looking for what you repeat: your best setups (do more of those), your money leaks (cut them) and market patterns. The review, not the trade itself, is where the real learning happens. Be honest — the journal is for you, not to show off.