High leverage = High risk?

As someone with just a few dollars extra to give trading a shot, would it be possible at all to gain anything without the use of leverage? And is it even wise to use up all of your own cash?

Disclaimer: I am not just another trader who is dreaming of a yacht life, I just want to be able to get by with the basics of life through trading profits.
Suggestions appreciated.

The use of leverage that brokers offer in principle makes sense, you should be a little prepared and learn all the nuances of how it works.

unsightlydray posted:
As someone with just a few dollars extra to give trading a shot, would it be possible at all to gain anything without the use of leverage? And is it even wise to use up all of your own cash?

Technically leverage helps you to gain more but the problem with them is that you can also lose completely

Beagelv posted:
The use of leverage that brokers offer in principle makes sense, you should be a little prepared and learn all the nuances of how it works.

All up for learning mate!

ddarko3 posted:

unsightlydray posted:
As someone with just a few dollars extra to give trading a shot, would it be possible at all to gain anything without the use of leverage? And is it even wise to use up all of your own cash?

Technically leverage helps you to gain more but the problem with them is that you can also lose completely

I hear about it being a double-edged sword and all, but without it, I doubt I will be able to gather anything.

forextrader777 posted:
Leverage does help in multiplying your profits but don't forget that losses will also be in multiples which is why it needs proper understanding of how it works. So, it’s better to learn about it’s concept first.

I have no intentions of jumping the gun, but when I do go live, I wanna know if one should start with all of their own capital or use little bit of leverage

Leverage sure is a double-edged sword, but without leverage trading would not bring in any scalable results. That is unless you have heaps of money to invest. How much would a movement of a few pips give on 3 or 4k. That also might be considered a big amount for a lot of current investors in the market. Considering most are part-timers, and some even college lads.
Had it not been for leverage, I would have stopped after meagre earnings. Still trading solely because of high leverage.

On small accounts you need it to be fair to have a chance at trading

In order for it not to be so costly, you need to correctly, correctly calculate and prescribe in your trading plan.

Faujinn posted:
In order for it not to be so costly, you need to correctly, correctly calculate and prescribe in your trading plan.

which broker should i choose for the your suggested plan Faujinn

The higher the leverage, the higher the risk. So it is very important to be careful about leverage.

dutchy1986 posted:
On small accounts you need it to be fair to have a chance at trading

That’s what I think, can’t put in all my savings for trying my hand at trading, leverage is important.

Faujinn posted:
In order for it not to be so costly, you need to correctly, correctly calculate and prescribe in your trading plan.

Ya and that’s why my plan as of now is based on risk management, every decision revolves around it, including leverage.

LeviSievwright5 posted:
The higher the leverage, the higher the risk. So it is very important to be careful about leverage.

Certainly! I am devoting maximum time on my risk management part of the trading plan. Not planning on risking more than 1%, and going to maintain a ratio of 1:3 for using leverage. Hopefully I’m on the right track.

right now i am using high leverage most of the time in demo ,
 it supports me to avoid unfortunate risk and losses when trading in a real account.

Tradelist45 posted:
right now i am using high leverage most of the time in demo ,
 it supports me to avoid unfortunate risk and losses when trading in a real account.

I don’t get it! Did you actually mean you are using “high leverage” which is keeping you safe????

blandpatsyy posted:
Leverage sure is a double-edged sword, but without leverage trading would not bring in any scalable results. That is unless you have heaps of money to invest. How much would a movement of a few pips give on 3 or 4k. That also might be considered a big amount for a lot of current investors in the market. Considering most are part-timers, and some even college lads.
Had it not been for leverage, I would have stopped after meagre earnings. Still trading solely because of high leverage.

You’ve just echoed my thoughts, without margin trading I doubt I will be able to make any money here. Thanks for the motivation :)

I think when newbies enter the live forex market, they want to book more profits with very small amounts, so leverage attracts them. But it should be kept in mind that leverage is associated with a certain amount of risk. While it can push your trades to make profits also at the same time it can put you in loss which is even more than your balance you have. When I started, I used to look for a 1:30 leverage ratio with a minimal balance that I can handle. This keeps my risk minimal. You can gradually increase your leverage ratio depending upon your earnings and understanding.

blackChelsea posted:
I think when newbies enter the live forex market, they want to book more profits with very small amounts, so leverage attracts them. But it should be kept in mind that leverage is associated with a certain amount of risk. While it can push your trades to make profits also at the same time it can put you in loss which is even more than your balance you have. When I started, I used to look for a 1:30 leverage ratio with a minimal balance that I can handle. This keeps my risk minimal. You can gradually increase your leverage ratio depending upon your earnings and understanding.

I understand, and so I am not going to rush into any trade. I will start with safe pairs like EURUSD and then try my hands with other pairs.