How to...Trade online

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Online trading depends on the same principles and skills as off-line trading, so use

them to guide your thinking and actions

From How To Do Just About Everything to Succeed, in association with eHow (Collins, £9.99)

Steps

Have a long, serious and brutally honest talk with yourself (and perhaps a trusted

friend) about the kind of personality you have -you'll need to be disciplined and

goal-orientated if you are to succeed.

Be sure you have at least £3,000 in easily available funds

Set limits to your trading activity, such as number of transactions and/or commission

paid, for an initial three-month period.

Research at least three online brokerage services and read all the 'terms and

conditions' statements concerning trading accounts.

Open an account with the brokerage service you choose for the minimum amount necessary

to trade.

Write down all your trading (buys and sells) immediately after they have been

executed: date, time, quantity and price per share of the actual purchase. Use these

records for tax preparation and save them in case you are audited.
Evaluate your performance at the end of the three months. What were your gains and

losses? Emotional reaction to the process? Did you stick to your goals?

Tips

Free research online is available from many of the big investment firms.

Avoid fee-for-service features of your account unless they will directly improve your

ability to trade intelligently.

Warning

All laws regarding securities trading apply to trading online.

Technical service calls and broker advice over the phone are rarely free - check first.
Never trade on advice from chat rooms, message boards or any other questionable sources.
Trade only with your savings until you are experienced. Only then consider borrowing to trade.