Table of Contents

Acknowledgments.

Preface.

Foreword.

Introduction.

Chapter 1 A Reality Check.

Why Do 90 Percent of Traders Lose?

Common Mistakes—Year One.

Common Mistakes—Year Two.

Common Mistakes—Year Three.

How to Join the 10 Percent Winners' Circle.

In Summary.

Chapter 2 The Process of Trading.

The Process of Trading.

Chapter 3 Principle One: Preparation.

Maximum Adversity.

Emotional Orientation.

Losing Game.

Random Markets.

Best Loser Wins.

Risk Management.

Trading Partner.

Financial Boundaries.

In Summary.

Chapter 4 Principle Two: Enlightenment.

Avoiding Risk of Ruin.

Embracing Trading's Holy Grail.

Expectancy.

Opportunities.

Pursuing Simplicity.

Treading Where Most Fear.

Validation.

In Summary.

Chapter 5 Principle Three: Trading Style.

Trading Mode.

Time Frames.

Choosing Your Trading Style.

Long-term Trend Trading.

Short-term Swing Trading.

Long-term Trend Trading Versus Short-term Swing Trading.

In Summary.

Chapter 6 Principle Four: Markets.

Good Operational Risk Management Attributes.

Good Trading Attributes.

In Summary.

Chapter 7 Principle Five: The Three Pillars.

Money Management.

Methodology.

Psychology.

Chapter 8 Money Management.

Martingale Money Management.

Anti-Martingale Money Management.

Key Concepts.

History.

Anti-Martingale Money Management Strategies.

Trading Forex_Trader Using a Single Contract with No Money Management.

Forex_Trader Using Fixed-Risk Money Management.

Forex_Trader Using Fixed-Capital Money Management.

Forex_Trader Using Fixed-Ratio Money Management.

To Chase $18,000,000 in Profits or to Chase $1,500,000 in Profits, That is the Question.

Forex_Trader Using Fixed-Units Money Management.

Forex_Trader Using Williams Fixed-Risk Money Management.

Forex_Trader Using Fixed-Percentage Money Management.

Forex_Trader Using Fixed-Volatility Money Management.

Which Money Management Strategy to Choose?

Trading Equity Momentum.

In Summary.

Chapter 9 Methodology.

Discretionary or Mechanical Trading.

Creating a Methodology.

Trend Trading.

Not All Indicators are Bad.

But Don't Markets Change?

Multiple Methodologies.

Basic Attributes of Winning Methodologies.

Example of a Winning Methodology—The Turtle Trading Strategy.

Example of an Objective Trend Tool.

Fibonacci: Fact or Fiction.

Placebo Traders.

In Summary.

Chapter 10 Psychology.

The Consensus View.

Managing Hope.

Managing Greed.

Managing Fear.

Managing Pain.

Maximum Adversity.

In Summary.

Chapter 11 Principle Six: Trading.

Putting it All Together.

Trading: Order Placement.

In Summary.

Chapter 12 Just One Piece of Advice.

Balance.

The Market Masters.

Ramon Barros.

Mark D. Cook.

A Diverse Group of Traders.

Michael Cook.

Kevin Davey.

Tom DeMark.

Lee Gettess.

Daryl Guppy.

Richard Melki.

Geoff Morgan.

Gregory L. Morris.

Nick Radge.

Brian Schad.

Andrea Unger.

Larry Williams.

Dar Wong.

A Wealth of Advice.

Chapter 13 A Final Word.

Appendix A Risk-of-Ruin Simulator.

Simulator Variables.

Model Logic.

Simulator.

DIY Simulator.

Appendix B Risk-of-Ruin Simulator.

DIY VBA Risk-of-Ruin Simulator.

VBA Code for Risk-of-Ruin Simulator.

Appendix C Risk-of-Ruin Simulations.

Index.

About the Author

Brent Penfold is a full time trader, author, educator and licensed advisor. He began his career in 1983 as an institutional dealer with Bank America and today specializes in trading forex and global indices. Brent is the author of the bestselling book Trading the SPI (Wiley 2005) and is profiled in John Atkinson's e-book The Stock Market Wizards of Australia. Brent publishes daily newsletters for active Forex and Index traders and is a popular and sought after international speaker who has presented to traders throughout the Asia Pacific region in Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, India, China, Australia, and New Zealand.
Brent is a licensed futures advisor (AFSL 225946) and holds a Master of Commerce (Finance) degree.

Reviews

Brent gives you the opportunity to sit down with some really great traders and learn from their good and bad experiences. This should be an invaluable experience for the reader. --Larry Williams, Trader Unlike most trading books, The Universal Principles of Successful Trading covers the key principles of trading success. It even has a money management chapter-a topic which most books neglect. I recommend reading this book cover to cover several times. It will change your mind about what's important in trading. --Van K. Tharp, Ph.D., Trading Coach and President, Van Tharp Institute (www.vantharp.com), and Author of The Definitive Guide to Position Sizing Brent Penfold has successfully provided readers with a blueprint for trading success. Not only does he cover such vital topics as trader psychology and effective money management, he also presents interviews with many successful traders and market researchers and his probing questions and their answers offer insights into their specific trading styles and psyches?a "how-to" book from start to finish. --Tom DeMark, Founder, Market Studies, LLC This is one of the best books on trading to come along in a long time and I predict it will become a classic. The book covers just about every aspect necessary to become a successful trader. His discussion and conclusions on the highly promoted Gann and Fibonacci methodologies might indeed surprise you. He made over 16,000 observations of Fibonacci ratios to derive his conclusions. This section alone is well worth the price for the "wanna-be" traders who are looking for techniques that work. In summary, read this book. You will be richly rewarded for your time and effort. --John Hill, President, Futures Truth Co. Brent has compiled all the ingredients in this book. He has experience, intelligence, and knowledge that he has tapped from traders all over the world. It is so refreshing to read a book written by a "true trader" such as Brent. --Mark D. Cook, Pro Trader and Creator of the Cook Cumulative Tick Indicator In my opinion trading education is delivered in two styles: quantitative and qualitative. The vast majority of information in the trading universe is quantitative-"hard-coded" information that can be replicated by the majority. However, successful trading only comes about by an understanding of qualitative learning-how you can readily teach someone to learn to lose when it goes against everything we're brought up to believe. Brent's "Just One Piece of Advice" section is one of the best attempts to get this qualitative message across. Take it. Read it. Then read it again and again. --Nick Radge, Trader and Adviser (AFSL 288200) and Author of Adaptive Analysis (www.thechartist.com.au) This book cries out to be placed in any trader's library. Brent does a superb job of outlining, exploring and evaluating the current state of position sizing algorithms. As successful traders know, money management is one of the three pillars of trading success. He also provides a unique trading plan. A great book! --Ray Barros, Professional Trader and Fund Manager and Author of The Nature of Trends This book is a "must-read" for anybody approaching the world of trading but also for skilled traders. I've read many books but this is the one I wished I had found when I was starting this adventure. Brent addresses exactly what a trader should really focus on. --Andrea Unger, Winner of the World Cup Championship of Futures Trading (R) 2008 & 2009 Normally when asked to review a book, I will skim through it and make a few comments. With this book, I just kept reading-I couldn't stop! Brent has an amazing ability to tell it like it is. His "Just One Piece of Advice" section is brilliant, and worth the price of the book many times over. If you have a genuine deep desire to be a consistently profitable trader and want to learn what traders really need to know as opposed to what most think they need to know, do yourself a favor and read this-please! --Stuart McPhee, Trader and Author of Trading in a Nut Shell In my 25 years in the market I have read and seen just about every trading book there is. Very few get to the crux of trading like Brent has. Get it. Read it. This is not your typical trading book, this is a comprehensive book written by a real trader for traders, everyday people who are serious about becoming successful traders. --John (JR) Robertson, Director, I-Deal Financial Group Crawling in the right direction beats running in the wrong direction every time and Universal Principles of Successful Trading will definitely get you heading in the right direction. Straight forward language, simple concepts and emphasis given where emphasis is needed. I wish this book was around when I started out because to master the markets now all you have to do is master this book. --Alan Hull, Trader and Fund Manager and Author of Active Investing When Brent asked me to review his new book The Universal Principles of Successful Trading I was both excited and curious. Having read his first book and recommended it to many of my clients I knew to expect something big. Brent is one of the very few authors who actually puts into practice the strategies he espouses, which lends great credibility to his words. He provides the most comprehensive approach to the various strategies of money management I've ever seen. A must read for anyone serious about trading. --David Montuoro, Futures Broker and Director, Bellmont Securities Concise, to the point, and relevant for gaining the trading skills and strategies needed to maneuver in today's marketplace, Brent provides a clear road map on how to emulate the elite traders who consistently win over the long-term. Forget the hype you hear about trading and get this book. Read it, read it and read it again. And then study it until your eyeballs drop out. Brent keeps it real and if you can too then you may just find yourself in the exclusive 10 percent winner's circle! This book is destined to become a trading classic. --Steve Mater, CFD Business Development, MF Global In his first book Brent hits the nail on the head with a down to earth, no nonsense explanation of what you need to be a successful active trader. I haven't seen a more practical guidebook for traders in over 20 years in the financial markets. If you want to stop being in the 90 percent of traders who lose and join the elite 10 percent who win, then I suggest you throw out all your other textbooks and read this book from cover to cover. This is a book written for traders by a trader and is the obvious starting point for a successful trading career. --Tony Makowiak, Head of Dealing, Aliom Pty Ltd