You analyze the chart. You see a perfect setup. You enter the trade.
Two hours later, you hit Stop Loss. You get angry. You double your lot size to win it back. You lose again.
Does this sound familiar? You are not alone. **Over 90% of retail traders lose money.**
The truth is harder to swallow: **You are sabotaging yourself** through lack of discipline and poor risk management.
In this breakdown, we will expose the **7 proven reasons** why your account is bleeding, and provide the antidote for each.
SVG 1: The Cycle of Doom (The Sabotage Loop)
1. System Hopping (The #1 Killer)
You try a strategy for 3 days. You lose 2 trades. You immediately switch to find a "Better" strategy. This is the **System Hopping** trap.
**The Fix:** Pick ONE strategy and trade it for 100 trades. Do not change it.
2. Revenge Trading (The Ego Trap)
You lose $50. Your ego demands: *"I need to get that $50 back NOW!"* So you open a random trade with double the lot size.
**The Fix:** The "Walk Away" Rule. If you lose 2 trades in a row, close the computer for 24 hours.
3. Catching Falling Knives (Counter-Trend)
You think: *"It has to come down."* You sell against a strong trend. You blow your account.
**The Fix:** **Never fight the trend.** Wait for clear structural confirmation before reversing the trade.
4. Over-Leveraging (Greed)
You use oversized positions, risking 10%+ of your account per trade.
**The Fix:** Professional traders risk **1% per trade**. Use the Position Size Calculator. Never risk more than **1-2%** of your total capital per trade.
5. Trading the Wrong Session
You trade during low-liquidity hours (e.g., Asian Lunch). Price moves sideways, spreads are wide, and you force a trade out of boredom.
**The Fix:** Only trade when the liquidity is high. Focus on the **London and New York Sessions**. Monitor liquidity using the Realtime Market Dashboard.
SVG 2: The Two Mindsets (Gambler vs. Professional)
6. No Trading Plan (No Business Model)
You wake up and just "look for trades". You have no rigid checklist. If you don't know exactly what you are looking for, you will find "fake" setups everywhere.
**The Fix:** Create a rigid **Trading Plan** with definitive rules. Use the Risk & Reward Calculator to verify every trade's potential outcome before entry.
7. Ignoring the "Big Picture" (Higher Timeframes)
You trade based on the 5-minute chart, ignoring the crashing 4-Hour chart. You are trading against the macro flow.
**The Fix:** Always do **Multi-Timeframe Analysis**. Never trade against the Higher Timeframe trend.
How to Stop Losing and Start Winning
Here is the formula used by profitable traders:
- Trade only with trend
- Wait for confirmation
- Use stop-loss correctly
- Risk small (1-2%), aim for high RR
- Journal every trade
- Avoid news spikes
**Final Advice:** If you follow these steps, you are already ahead of 90% of traders. Trading is not about being perfect — it’s about being **consistent**. If you are losing right now, stop trading real money. Go back to Demo.
