The Trader Studying 3,000 News Releases

Last week I had a conversation with fund manager Aatu Kokkila (you can listen to it here.)

He manages 8 figures trading FX over news releases.

There were a bunch of takeaways, but one stood out.

He has studied over 3,000 news releases.

That’s three thousand.

• Charts
• Number expectations
• Actual numbers
• Sentiment
• Context

That’s the level of work needed to play at the highest level…

Not only did that give him the ability to fine-tune his edge, but it also gave him unwavering confidence in the strategy, even during times of stagnation or drawdown.

Traders often ask:

“How do I build confidence in a strategy without any track record of its success?”

Well here’s the answer…

Putting in the study time.

Now 3,000 might seem daunting… I get it.

But start with 10.

Research ten instances where your setup played out and print out the charts.

Note down all the parts that matter, context, pattern, range, stop level, etc. etc.

Once you build momentum, confidence will start to flow and you’ll do another ten, then fifty, and before you know it you have studied 100 examples of your strategy.

Ok, so that’s 2,900 less than Mr Kokkila! But it’s a great springboard to build from.

You only need to taste the confidence that brings to get a thirst for doing more.

Set aside some time, make it fun, and get to work.