“Create a second source of income”
“Attain financial freedom and travel the world”
“Only 10 minutes a day”
You’ve seen them. The ads promoting trading courses, all competing for your hard-earned dollars. But are they worth the hype? Ask yourself the following questions first.
#1: Are they making money mainly from selling you the course or their own trading?
Only one thing matters in trading – a long-term track record of profitability. Using just this statement alone to judge instructors will save you hundreds or even thousands of dollars.
The reason for this should be obvious – you want to learn trading from someone who has consistently been making money from the markets. Anything else is murky marketing.
What does NOT constitute a long-term track record:
- Showcases of past winning trades, especially emphasizing dollar amount won instead of return vs risk taken
- Customer testimonials
- Pictures of the instructor on holiday trading using only a laptop
What IS a long-term track record:
- At minimum, a chart showing percentage returns over time
- Even better would be a boring spreadsheet that has recorded all trades taken before, both losses and wins
- If the instructor claims to made millions from trading, ask for legitimate trading account statements
The instructor might not be lying about their millionaire status, but it is your right to ensure that is a result of their trading, and not their teaching.
#2: Are they making unrealistic claims?
If the course claims to sell you a magic system that can make you thousands of dollars each day, turn the other way and run as fast as you can.
The reason is simple: If their strategy was so profitable, they wouldn’t be selling it to the public. They would be hiding out on a remote island (in fear of people stealing it) and going all in using their system to make billions. In other words – if their claims are true, your course fees would be small change to them. At the very least, they would have set up a hedge fund.
Understand this: No one knows where the market is going to go tomorrow, even the professionals. Traders in hedge funds and banks make losing trades like everyone else – if anyone claims to know where the market is going, do yourself a favour and walk away.
#3: Are they exploiting my emotions to sell me the course?
Trading course instructors are masters at marketing themselves – learn to spot their usual tactics and you will be able to tell who has substance and who does not.
Their advertisements are specifically designed to appeal to your emotions. Specifically, in money-obsessed Singapore, their favourite target audience would be the stressed out office executive working a 9-5 job.
Thus, they tend to:
- Show themselves trading while on holiday (implying you can do the same after taking the course)
- Claim that you will be able to create a second source of income (possible but unlikely after only taking one course)
- Only show winning trades (in amounts greater than most people’s monthly salary) and no losing ones
Think about it – If lawyers and doctors require years in school just to learn the basic skills needed for the job, the same should apply to a pursuit as complex and challenging as trading.
Years of experience are needed for a trader to learn the ropes. If they are not being honest about this, then they are selling you a fantasy – nothing more.
#4: Am I (secretly or not) hoping to get rich after taking the course?
This is more of a question that you need to ask yourself. Why are you attracted to this course?
For many, it is the lure of easy money. The harsh reality that trading instructors will NEVER tell you is that in trading 99% of people come out as losers and 1% as winners. It takes years of sustained effort, which most people don’t like to hear.
Be honest with yourself and manage expectations accordingly. Good trading courses should emphasize the trading process and risk management (the boring stuff). Above all, take responsibility for your own financial destiny and don’t let yourself be emotionally vulnerable to simple marketing ploys.
Read Also: How To Protect Yourself When Trading Forex
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