What you'll learn
- Fill in an order ticket correctly
- Read the positions and orders windows
- Modify and close positions safely
The ticket
| Field | What it means | Common mistake |
|---|---|---|
| Symbol | The pair | Trading the wrong one after switching charts |
| Volume | Size in lots | Entering 1.0 when you meant 0.10, ten times the risk |
| Type | Market, or a pending order | Placing a limit where a stop was meant, or vice versa |
| Price | Entry for pending orders | Setting it on the wrong side of the market |
| Stop loss | Price to close at a loss | Leaving it blank to set later |
| Take profit | Price to close at a profit | Setting it inside the spread |
Open positions
Each line shows a position's direction, size, entry price, current price, stop and target, swap accrued, and profit or loss in the account currency. The total at the bottom, added to your balance, is your equity. Watch the loss column in money rather than pips; pips do not pay the bills, and a small pip move on a large size is a large loss.
Pending orders
Orders waiting to fill are listed separately. A pending order has no market risk until it fills, but it does have a cost: forgetting it. Orders left over from a plan you have abandoned fill at the worst moments. Review the orders window at the end of every session and cancel what no longer belongs to a plan.
Modifying and closing
- Modify a stop or target by editing the position rather than placing a new order.
- Partial close lets you take some profit and keep the rest running; check the platform supports it.
- Close all or close by symbol exists on most platforms for emergencies.
- One-click trading skips the ticket; disable it until you are practised, because it also skips the moment of thought.
Key takeaways
- Check the volume field twice; it is where the costly mistakes are.
- Read running profit or loss in money and add it to balance for equity.
- Cancel pending orders that no longer belong to a plan.
- Leave one-click trading off until you are practised.
Knowledge check
Trading forex, CFDs and other leveraged products carries a high risk of losing money. This lesson is general education, not advice. Risk disclosure.