How to organize a trader’s workplace at home
This is a matter of comfort and psychology, as you can better concentrate on trading if you are serious about organizing your work area. Every trader needs a well-organized workplace.
Internet connection
The Internet is one of the key factors for a trader’s successful work; you need a stable and fast connection. If the connection breaks during trading, you will lose the opportunity to close already opened positions, which will lead to catastrophic losses.
Therefore, it is worth preparing for such a development of events – make sure that there is always a spare provider in the form of a USB modem or a smartphone through which you can connect your PC to the network.
Work computer
Trading is not video games or working with video, so industrial capacity is not needed here. However, trading with the “calculator” is inconvenient: it can freeze at any time, and you will miss the moment of entry or exit.
Between a laptop and a PC, it is better to choose the second option. Better to use them in pairs.
When assembling, it is better to take a Core i3 or i5 processor from Intel or equivalent, at least 8 GB of RAM, a video card from the middle or high price range an SSD drive.
The rest does not matter for trading. Returning to the issue of disruptions, I also recommend getting an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) or keeping a laptop with a charged battery close at hand to close deals in the event of a power outage.
Monitor
The monitor plays a special role in the trading process, so it is worth talking about separately. Many are sure that a dozen screens will immediately increase profits, but this is a misconception.
A large number of monitors are needed only by employees of investment hedge funds or those who work simultaneously in several markets, such as bank traders.
For an ordinary trader, 1-3 monitors are enough. But if you tried to work on at least two monitors, you hardly want to work on one.
However, a monitor’s choice must be approached responsibly because it depends on how much information you can get and how quickly you react to the charts’ particular movement.
We recommend giving preference to monitors with a large diagonal – 24″, supporting a 1920 × 1080 Full HD or more resolution.
Armchair
The requirements for a chair are subjective for everyone, so it is difficult to give clear recommendations. In many ways, the choice here depends on how much time you will spend in front of the monitor.
If it’s 30-40 minutes a day, you can take the simplest office chair. If it is 2-3 hours, it is better to purchase an inexpensive computer chair with adjustable height and backrest tilt.
Well, spend 4-5 hours or more on trading. You should think about purchasing a high-quality anatomical chair, which will allow you to comfortably spend many hours in front of the monitor without being distracted by numb legs or a suddenly sick back.
If you are interested, then here is the article: how I chose a computer chair.
Optional equipment
Additional equipment includes a mouse and keyboard, a printer, and specialized devices for traders.
Choose a mouse and keyboard based on personal preferences. The only thing is to find a keyboard, the F1-F12 keys of which will be divided into groups of 4. This will allow you to better navigate without looking at the keyboard and ensure against accidental mistakes.
A printer can be very useful, as it allows you to print graphs to study them more thoroughly, place notes, and build graphical models based on them for future strategy.
In addition to the standard ones, you can also purchase specials devices for trading. These include, for example, special keyboards like TradeMaster, which simplify the process of working with the market.
Dedicated TradeMaster keyboard for traders
An alternative can be devices for e-sportsmen, for example, the Razer Nostromo N52TE gamepad with flexible key settings or its analogs.
Razer Nostromo N52TE gamepad as scalper alternative
It is also very important to place the watch in front of your eyes. Time management is very important for a trader, so you will have to keep track of time all the time.
Trader’s desktop clock
A stock clock is a tool for traders created by the craftsmen from the Stocktime website. They very clearly reflect the continuity of trading in the foreign exchange and stock markets around the world.
A single dial displays the opening hours of all major exchanges on the planet, which allows you to track the market’s movement at any given time. In addition to the working hours of exchanges, the dial shows the periods when one or another exchange is most active.
Access to the clock on the site is open around the clock, but the developer did not stop there, and a widget was released specifically for the Windows desktop, which simplifies the use of the clock many times over.
The Bottomline
The workspace organization must be taken seriously, although you must understand that no matter how convenient and functional the workplace is, the success of the trade will depend only on you. However, a well-organized space will make the workflow much more comfortable.
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