Which time frame Should You Trade?

One of the main reasons traders don’t do well as they should is because they’re usually trading the wrong time frame for their personality. New traders will want to learn how to get rich quick so they’ll start trading small time frames like the 1-minute or 5-minute charts. Then they end up getting frustrated when they trade because it’s the wrong time frame for their personality.

Finally after a long period of time frame unfaithfulness, we felt we were most comfortable trading the 1-hour charts. This time frame is longer, but not too long, and trade signals were fewer, but not too few. We now have more time to analyze the market and didn’t feel rushed anymore.

On the other hand, we have a friend who could never, ever, trade in a 1-hour time frame. It would be way too slow for him and he’d probably think he was going to rot and die before he could get in a trade. He prefers trading a 10-minute chart. It still gives him enough time (but not too much) to make decisions based on his trading plan.

Another buddy of ours can’t figure out how we can trade a 1-hour chart because he thinks it’s too fast! He trades only daily, weekly, and monthly charts. His name is Warren Buffet. You might know him.

Okay, so you’re probably asking what the right time frame is for you. Well, buddy, if you had been paying attention, it depends on your personality. You have to feel comfortable with the time frame you’re trading in.

You’ll always feel some kind of pressure or sense of frustration when you’re in a trade because real money is involved. But you shouldn’t feel that the reason for the pressure is because things are happening so fast that you find it difficult to make decisions or so slowly that you get frustrated.

When we first started trading, we couldn’t stick to a time frame. We started with the 15-minute chart. Then the 5-minute chart. Then we tried the 1-hour chart, the daily chart, and 4-hour chart.

Trading time frames are usually categorized into three types:

1. Long-term
2. Short-term or swing
3. Intraday or day-trading

Which one is better? It depends on....

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