Welcome

 I’d like to introduce myself….my name is Kate and I am a professional currency trader!

That sounds pretty good!!  The truth is I have done a lot of trading education, i.e., read all the books, watched hours and hours worth of videos and webinars, and sat and watched the various markets to get a feel for the ebb and flow.  I naively thought becoming a highly profitable intraday trader would be easy and that with a little self-education, I would be on my way to an independent lifestyle in no time.  Well, the truth is, for me at least, that isn’t exactly how things have gone.

Let me backtrack a little.  After 18 years in healthcare management, I came to the conclusion that it was time to indulge a lifelong passion…being independent and starting a business of my own.  Not quite three years ago, my sister and I planned to open a garden shop and design business.  We had a great business plan, all the right start-up info and the passion to succeed.  Unfortunately (talk about the worst timing EVER), the Economy had other plans.  It became apparent very quickly that a retail business was not the place to be.  The good news…this all happened before we had made final commitments on leases, etc.

Time for Plan B!  I had recently become interested in the stock market as a way to grow our capital.  Now it looked like a true “saving grace”.

As is my nature, I dove in head first, reading every book I could find, watching every webinar, absorbing everything I could get my hands on…I found very quickly that I absolutely LOVED trading and started out breakeven trading the US equities markets and ETF Funds.  Problem was I never got any better than breakeven, and soon my capital was dwindling and I was having to borrow to pay my bills.

Right or wrong, I have never given up and still believe that trading is the way to achieve my dreams and goals.

Since being humbled by the markets, I have made what I feel are appropriate adjustments (i.e., I now trade the currency markets, specifically EUR/USD, which require less capital although can be highly risky due to leverage allowed [more about that later]) and want to use this blog as a way to share my journey with anyone who is interested.  While I am focusing primarily on women (because trading has always been a male-oriented industry and I think there is a true dearth of female-friendly content out there), everyone is welcome and all comments are appreciated. 

As this journey progresses, I hope to share what I have learned, be able to recommend resources that I feel are outstanding, and provide community in what can be a somewhat lonely environment.  I believe women are especially well suited to trade whether it is a full-time business or a part-time endeavor and I hope to be able to demystify the markets for others as I continue towards my goals. 

Last piece of business…

  

Why the vineyard background on this blog…why not a finance or trading-related background?  This goes back to the core of why I want an independent, self-sufficient lifestyle.  If I could put my life’s goals/desires/passions into visual form for you (a vision board, if you will), in addition to trading it would include traveling (especially the Mediterranean region of Europe), gardening, fine food and wine, cooking classes, and someday owning a vineyard….this background picture just encapsulates it all for me.  If you don’t know what it is that you want the freedom to pursue, I suggest you stop right now and explore all the options.  It’s what makes this all worthwhile!

To your dreams…..