Profit

Hey, this is NorthRay.

Remember last time I said I was learning not to freak out and to trust my strategy?

Well, today I took the next step.

I opened a new order on EUR/USD. Again with 0.50 lots. But this time — with two new words in my vocabulary:

Take Profit and Stop Loss.

Before, I used to look at those fields in the terminal and leave them empty. I thought: "Why? I'll close it myself when I need to."

How wrong I was.

I'll explain it the way I understood it myself. Simply.

Stop Loss — is your safety net.

It's the price at which a trade will close AUTOMATICALLY if the market goes against you.

You tell the broker in advance: "Listen, if the price drops to this level — close the trade. Don't ask me. I don't want to lose more than I'm ready to lose."

Why you need it:

You don't sit at the screen 24/7.

You don't rely on "maybe it will turn around."

You limit your losses.

Without a stop loss, you're like a skier without brakes. Fun until you have to hit a tree.

Take Profit — is your success alarm clock.

It's the price at which a trade will close AUTOMATICALLY with a profit.

You tell the broker: "When the price reaches this level — take my profit. I won't be greedy and hope for more."

Why you need it:

You lock in profit before the market turns around.

You don't torture yourself with the question "close or not close."

You protect yourself from greed.

I opened an order on EUR/USD, 0.50 lots.

And for the first time in...

Hey, this is NorthRay.😎

Remember that very first trade of 0.01 lots? The one I opened with shaking hands and a feeling that the world was about to explode?

I closed it.

Not in a minute, not in an hour. I held it for several days. Watched the green numbers turn red. Bit my lip. Wanted to hit "close" a hundred times.

But I held.

Because I wanted to understand: what would happen if I just let the trade live?

Spoiler: the world didn't collapse. And I got my first conscious profit.

When I told a friend, "I made 24 cents on a trade," he looked at me like I was crazy.

— Seriously? You waited several days for 24 cents?
— Yes, — I said. — Seriously.

He didn't get it. And that's okay.

Because it's not about the money. On a demo account, those cents are virtual. You can't spend them on coffee. They won't buy me a sandwich.

But for me, those 24 cents mean more than $1,000 of someone else's "easy money."

Why? I'll explain now.🔝

First: I held on.

The market went back and forth. I wanted to close at zero, just to stop suffering. I wanted to close at a small loss because "what if it drops even more?"

I didn't give in. I gave the price time.

Second: I closed by the rules.

I had a plan. Not complicated. Simple: "I hold until I realize I'm wrong, or until I see a +."

I waited for the green zone. Small. Funny. But mine.

Third: I took the next step.

24 cents of profit on demo — it's not about money. It's about confirmation: "You can do this. You're capable...