Preliminary steps

• Step 1: Know what stocks to trade and be correct on market direction.
• Step 2: Find a stock that you want to trade, and find Support and Resistance Level.
• Step 3: Identify a correct strategy, that is, whether to trade in Stocks, Options, or Spreads. Lastly, the mechanics of the trade are needed to open the position.

Order entry

To place a Stock Order through your TradingBlock account or any other brokerage account, follow these steps:

1. Select whether you would like to place an order to Buy or Sell. For this example, we will place a Buy order.

2. Next, type in the number of shares.

3. After entering the number of shares, enter the Stock symbol, which for this particular example is X.

4. Now select the Order Type. The different types of Order are:

a. Market Order: This will execute at the current market bid or offer.

b. Limit Order: Will ensure that the order is being executed at a Limit Price of your choice, by executing at a price you specify.

c. Stop Order: Will trigger order to exchange once the market reaches a price of your choice. Stop Orders are very popular during sell-offs, as it makes sure that you are getting at least a price of your preference, thus minimizing losses on your Position.
* As a rule, avoid Market Orders and use Limit Orders instead.

5. The final step is the ‘Time in Force or Duration’ you would like to place on your order type. Since Market Orders can be good only for that particular day, usually, especially when you want to close a position, you have put a criteria such as the GTC (Good to Cancel) Order, indicating that you are waiting for your Limit Price to get executed, even if it takes more than a day to do so.

Points to Consider

• Avoid Market Orders.

• Always place Stop Orders to limit losses especially on established Positions.

• Place GTC Limit Order to suit your Trading Plan. As soon as you enter a Position, place a GTC Order to close your Position.

• Review all your Open Orders on a daily basis.

• Adjust Limit Prices to capture your Target Gain.

• Place Limit Orders to minimize your losses.