Octa broker's expert on 3 things about trading he wished he knew sooner

There is no universal recipe for success in trading. However, there are some baselines you should follow to have a better shot at gaining profit. You can learn these vital reference points from your own mistakes—or choose the easier way and study the experience of others. In this article, Kar Yong Ang, financial analyst at Octa broker and successful trader, names three fundamental rules of trading that he learned the hard way—and wished he knew at the start of his journey.   

At the age of 21, Kar Yong Ang started trading with just $500 in his account balance. In two years, he turned it into $13,000. Today, he is a financially independent trader and investor, an expert analyst at Octa broker, a speaker, and a mentor who has coached hundreds of traders across Southeast Asia.

Despite his successful career in the financial markets, Kar Yong acquired his trading skills and knowledge the hard way—from his own wins and losses. Below are some of the key things about trading that he wished he had known sooner.

Use risk management to mitigate stressMany traders treat risk management tools as optional and fall back on them only on special occasions—for example, in times of increased market volatility. Unfortunately, this approach has some significant drawbacks. It may not affect the outcomes immediately, but in the long run, the  'intuitive' trading draws your energy and exposes you to stress. What's more, the shorter the timeframe you're trading on, the more significant the probability of a single drastic price change that can ruin your session. 

The stop-loss and take-profit orders make traders feel more confident and think clearly. The basic risk management tools allow them to put the nerve-wracking price drops out of the equation and make their sessions more time-efficient.

To empower traders even more, Octa broker implemented advanced risk management features into its proprietary trading platform, OctaTrader. Trailing stop and break even tools allow traders to set up dynamic, market-sensitive exit points to secure the gains or eliminate the risk of financial loss within a particular trade.

Try to keep things simpleIn most cases, a simple, logically sound strategy will outperform a more sophisticated but less mentally accessible one. For most traders, considering factors such as price action, basic support and resistance zones, and volume can be enough to start making progress. Simpler strategies have the advantage of being easier to execute, given the trader's self-discipline.

The more steps a strategy involves, the more room for doubt, error, and emotional interference. When the approach is simple and well-tested, execution becomes automatic, and consistency improves.

According to Kar Yong, engaging with a reliable and globally regulated broker like Octa is one of the most crucial steps a trader can take to simplify his or her journey. Since its foundation in 2011, Octa has offered transparent fees and trading conditions and avoided any hidden tricks when it came to client relationships.

Octa's trading platform, OctaTrader, aims to simplify the trading process by giving traders all the necessary tools within a seamless, customisable trading ecosystem. OctaTrader combines powerful AI tools and actionable expert knowledge to facilitate well-informed, low-stress decision-making.

Follow the three-fold process For many years, Kar Yong has been rigorously following the same process throughout his trading sessions. It consists of three phases: direction, setup, and context. Along with the use of risk management tools, this framework helped him make his trading more consistent and reduce the cognitive load.

Direction: define the market trendIt defines whether it is time to buy or sell. At this step, traders identify the dominant movement—uptrend, downtrend, or range. Direction is often determined using price action, trendlines, or momentum indicators.

Setup: find an entry pointAfter defining the direction, Kar Yong switches his attention to the setup, or the specific conditions or patterns that indicate it's time to act. These conditions include breakouts, pullbacks to moving averages, candlestick formations, or support/resistance bounces. Allowing for the technical precision, the setup phase refines the entry point. Given that, the setup must align with the chosen direction: many losing trades come from jumping on setups that go against the prevailing market movement.

Context: look for factors that can affect the tradeContext is the broader environment around the setup—volatility levels, time of day, proximity to news releases, key support/resistance zones, or overall market sentiment. For example, a textbook setup might appear just minutes before a major central bank announcement. In that context, the setup becomes less reliable due to expected market turbulence.

It is worth mentioning that all three elements must align. When this framework is applied with discipline, it acts as a mental checklist—keeping traders focused, methodical, and less vulnerable to emotional or impulsive decisions.

Conclusion

As a trading professional with a long and successful track record in the markets, Kar Yong Ang values experience over immediate success. In trading, one of the most important prerequisites of success is perseverance and seeing every trade as an opportunity to improve.

Having said that, traders can significantly reduce the burden of beginner's mistakes by using modern trading tools such as Octa's proprietary platform. It empowers both emerging and seasoned traders by providing them with a seamless trading ecosystem that enables better performance and less stress. On top of that, Octa additionally reduces the traders' stress by offering seamless, fast, and efficient withdrawals, which helps the broker establish trusting relationships with its clients.

Disclaimer: This article does not contain or constitute investment advice or recommendations and does not consider your investment objectives, financial situation, or needs. Any actions taken based on this content are at your sole discretion and risk—Octa does not accept any liability for any resulting losses or consequences.

Octa is an international broker that has been providing online trading services worldwide since 2011. It offers commission-free access to financial markets and various services used by clients from 180 countries who have opened more than 61 million trading accounts. To help its clients reach their investment goals, Octa offers free educational webinars, articles, and analytical tools. 

The company is involved in a comprehensive network of charitable and humanitarian initiatives, including improving educational infrastructure and funding short-notice relief projects to support local communities.

Since its foundation, Octa has won more than 100 awards, including the 'Most Reliable Broker Global 2024' award from Global Forex Awards and the 'Best Mobile Trading Platform 2024' award from Global Brand Magazine.