Michael Taylor made the move to trading the stock market with his own capital on a full time basis in December 2016. As well as ShareScope, Michael contributes to Investors Chronicle and other online publications. He has also written a free book on getting started in the UK stock market, along with a stock trading handbook – both of which are available to download from his website at www.shiftingshares.com
I believe that anyone can learn to trade if they are able to remain objective and are willing to put the hours in. I lost a lot of money early on by not having a proper strategy and following the crowd. If you want to make money then you need to generate your own ideas – I use SharePad to find and plan my trades, and ShareScope to run on my trading screens.
Most traders focus on when to buy or sell – but how your trade is executed can make or break your results. Michael Taylor explains the key differences between SETS and SETSqx, and how understanding them can save you costly mistakes. Most new traders think that buying and selling involves clicking a few buttons. They’re
This final instalment of Michael Taylor’s position sizing series dives into scaling in, scaling out, and keeping emotions in check. He rounds things off with a simple checklist to help you trade smarter and stay in the game longer. This is the final part if my four-part series on position sizing. If you’ve not read
Knowing the rules is one thing – applying them in live trades is another. In Part III of his position sizing series, Michael Taylor explains the spreadsheets, numbers, and mindset you need to size positions like a pro. This is part 3 of my multi-series on position sizing. If you’ve not already, then I’d suggest
In part two of his position sizing series, Michael Taylor moves beyond the basics and dives into more advanced techniques that separate disciplined traders from the rest. From adjusting risk based on volatility and conviction to avoiding common pitfalls, he shows how smart sizing can protect your capital, compound your edge, and keep you in
Michael Taylor tackles one of the most overlooked yet crucial aspects of trading: position sizing. Get this wrong and you risk blowing up your account — get it right and you give yourself the best chance of staying in the game long enough to win. Let’s get one thing straight. Position sizing isn’t glamorous. There
Michael looks at the emotional effects on position sizing and how to size appropriately, showing why it’s the trader’s final line of defense. In this insightful piece, he shares practical strategies to balance risk, protect capital, and keep emotions from undermining performance. The art of sizing correctly Sizing correctly isn’t just a science. It’s an
Michael looks at the merits of keeping things simple and removing complexity. I was at a dinner party this week and was asked, “Well, if you’re doing so well, why don’t you go and raise money?” [for a fund]. The gentleman in question wasn’t having a go – he was genuinely curious. And I told
In this article, Michael looks at how to develop your ‘trading board of directors’ to level up your trading. Most people treat trading like a solo game. It is. It’s certainly not a team game. It’s a sport where everyone else can be winning, and you keep getting struck out on trades. Or a friend
In part two of his trading hacks series, Michael dives deeper into the mindset shifts and tactics that can truly transform your trading game. This is the second article in my two-part series ‘How to hack your trading’ – you can read the first part here where I cover the first three points. We left
Michael looks at small but productive ways for traders to improve P&L with the first of this two-part checklist and walkthrough. Let’s get one thing straight… There are no shortcuts in trading. I wish there was because it would’ve saved me a lot of time and money. But sadly, there is no way to quick
I got lucky when I started trading. Well, my first trade was a 100% loss with a company called PeerTV. So whilst that wasn’t exactly lucky, it was lucky that I kept going. And also lucky that back in 2016, the market was in a huge bubble for small-cap stocks. You didn’t even have to
I got asked this week about growing a small trading account and was told that a lot of the advice and suggestions given out are for around a large trading account. I’m trying to think what would be different, but let’s start out with a small trading account of £5,000. When I started trading, IG