Monitoring active trades is not as easy it sounds. In this article I’ll take you through several ways of doing it effectively:
No matter what trading style you use it always pays off to watch and monitor your trades once you have placed them. There are several way of doing it and it is up to individual to work out the best method based on his/her personal situation.
Audible Alerts: If you happen to use MetaTrader then you have a feature of placing audible alerts. Once set properly MetaTrader would alert you when the price reaches a certain point, it can be your Stop Loss or Take Profit level. To set it up simply press “Ctrl + T” and then select “Alerts” Tab. Right click and select “Create”. I personally use this feature a lot, it helps me get away from PC and do other things around the house while still trading at the same time.
Expert Advisor: Unless you are very good at programming I won’t recommend creating your own Expert Advisor for managing trades. However there is an popular free Expert Advisor called “ManageTP” available on forums which works just fine. It helps you to automatically place Stop Loss and Take Profit levels and move them as per price action. Simply Google the name you would find the Expert Advisor along with instructions on how to use it.
Multiple Monitors: While on your desk looking at charts it helps if you have multiple monitors. You can then place charts on one monitor and work on something else on the other monitor at the same time. I’ve a setup of 2 x 22” monitors dedicated for trading and third one for other purposes.
PDA: Using PDA to monitor trades comes in very handy while on the road. MetaTrader and several other Brokers offer PDA versions of their trading platform. Before buying a new PDA check with your Broker support to see if it is compatible. You can also use a laptop with a wireless internet to do the same.
No matter what trading style you use it always pays off to watch and monitor your trades once you have placed them. There are several way of doing it and it is up to individual to work out the best method based on his/her personal situation.
Audible Alerts: If you happen to use MetaTrader then you have a feature of placing audible alerts. Once set properly MetaTrader would alert you when the price reaches a certain point, it can be your Stop Loss or Take Profit level. To set it up simply press “Ctrl + T” and then select “Alerts” Tab. Right click and select “Create”. I personally use this feature a lot, it helps me get away from PC and do other things around the house while still trading at the same time.
Expert Advisor: Unless you are very good at programming I won’t recommend creating your own Expert Advisor for managing trades. However there is an popular free Expert Advisor called “ManageTP” available on forums which works just fine. It helps you to automatically place Stop Loss and Take Profit levels and move them as per price action. Simply Google the name you would find the Expert Advisor along with instructions on how to use it.
Multiple Monitors: While on your desk looking at charts it helps if you have multiple monitors. You can then place charts on one monitor and work on something else on the other monitor at the same time. I’ve a setup of 2 x 22” monitors dedicated for trading and third one for other purposes.
PDA: Using PDA to monitor trades comes in very handy while on the road. MetaTrader and several other Brokers offer PDA versions of their trading platform. Before buying a new PDA check with your Broker support to see if it is compatible. You can also use a laptop with a wireless internet to do the same.
