When most people first start trading they often start small. As they get better at it, they trade more. They might start with one contract and then move to ten contracts. As time progresses, they reach a certain comfort level with their trading, but are still afraid to take risks beyond that level. As a result, they never trade at levels of 100 contracts or 1,000, so they never experience large profits.
There is a better way in which the object is to try to keep things in constant leverage terms. In other words, you trade the same as your equity increases. By using a Trend Following approach to money management, you are never afraid of getting big. You are prepared, so you know what you will do in advance as your account grows. This is a key to the Trend Following money management.
Mechanical Systems
Risk taking is essential to successful trading, as long as it is calculated risk. When you take a risk it is useful to have a mechanical trading system for several reasons: You increase your diversification, reduce your work load and make your trading life easier. Mechanical trading systems enable you to take a risk without getting personally involved. Although you might not be happy when you are going through a drawdown or taking a loss, at least you're not agonizing over your trading decisions on a day-to-day basis. It's the rare individual who can sit in front of a quote screen and make consistently good trading decisions day after day. Other components of your life will always impact your thinking generally and your trading decisions specifically, unless you rely on a mechanical system.
Trend Following trading is predicated on the fact that human beings are not psychologically equipped to interact profitably with markets. When money is involved, psychological pulls interfere with objectivity. As a result, human beings who have money on the line tend to take their losses too late and their profits too soon. The problem of taking profits too soon particularly affects traders. They often feel a strong desire to close out a profitable position when it starts to move against them. Mechanical systems overcome these psychological and emotional reactions.
