Isn’t it the ultimate dream?
Transform $500 into a million, retiring somewhere idyllic, and spending your days basking in the sun.
Is it achievable? Absolutely!
But traditional advice won’t get you there.
You need to think and act differently.
Today, I’ll share three strategies you can implement to potentially double your trading account. These methods could help you double, triple, or even quadruple your profits in a short time span, all while managing risk sensibly.
So, without further ado, let’s dive in…
Method #1 Scaling In
What’s your next move after successfully entering a trade?
Do you wait and let the price follow its natural course?
Or do you detach and move on?
Have you ever considered placing more trades?
It seems simple, perhaps even common sense, but you’d be amazed at the number of traders who, after successfully entering a trade (a feat in itself), just let it be and allow the price to play out.
The simplest way to enhance your profits, once you’ve successfully entered a trade, is to PLACE MORE TRADES.
This is referred to as ‘scaling in’:
You enter a successful trade and as price moves in your favor, you place additional trades to amplify the total profit.
Scaling in is a quick way to grow a small account, but it’s not as easy as merely buying more once you’re in a profitable trade.
You should only buy more when it’s safe and manage your risk sensibly.
Sound complicated?
Let’s break it down…
Step 1: Get Into A Trade
Firstly, you need to enter a successful trade – easier said than done, I know.
For this example, let’s assume that I’ve entered a successful trade from a supply zone. However, you can use any strategy or technique you prefer.
All that matters is that you’re in a profitable trade.
Step 2: Move The Stop Above Entry Price.
Here’s the critical step:
After you’ve entered a profitable trade, wait for a new swing high (or low for downswing trades) to form above your entry price.
Then, move your stop loss up to the swing high.
This is crucial to avoid any additional risk when we place another trade.
If I just placed another trade without adjusting the stop of the first trade, I’d increase the maximum amount I could potentially lose, because both trades need stop-losses.
By moving the stop on the first trade to just above its entry price, I reduce the risk of that trade to zero. If price rises, it’ll close the trade above the price I bought at. Hence, when I place the next trade, I’m not assuming any additional risk.
So, here’s the golden rule…
DO NOT place additional trades until the stop on the previous trade has been moved above the entry price of that trade.
Step 3: Place Another Trade
Once you’ve successfully entered a profitable trade, it’s imperative you sit tight and wait for a fresh swing high to form above your entry price.
As soon as you spot it, swiftly move your stop loss to align with that swing high.
Why’s this so vital, you ask?
Simple – it’s all about dodging any extra risk when we’re about to place another trade.
In this instance, we observe a bullish hammer candlestick forming soon after the stop has been adjusted.
This signal cues us to scale in and initiate another trade.
Here’s a crucial reminder:
Always enter each new trade in the same manner you usually would.
Don’t deviate by using a different method or placing the stop-loss in a unique location—maintain consistency in your approach.
Step 4: Place More Trades
There’s no cap on the number of trades you can enter using this scaling-in method.
Provided you ensure the stop on the preceding trade is above the entry price every time you establish a new trade, you’re free to enter as many as you wish.
Note: It’s vital to set each new trade at the same amount as the first one; otherwise, you could run into complications and potentially incur significant losses.
Step 5: Take Profits By Moving The Stop
Like most strategies, the optimal way to secure profits with the scaling-in method is by adjusting the stop of each trade when a new swing low (or high, if you’re trading a downswing) forms.
By moving the stop to each new low (or high, in our case), you can safeguard profits while also maintaining your trades if the price continues to move in your anticipated direction.
In our example, there weren’t many opportunities to enter additional trades after the first one had been established.
However, that won’t always be the case…
Imagine the wealth of opportunities to scale in during a significant movement like this…
Method #2 Double Up
Out of the three methods listed here, this one carries the most risk.
If you’re not comfortable with potential losses, you might want to give this one a miss.
The “Double Up” method is fundamentally about increasing your stake.
It’s founded on a notorious gambling strategy known as “The Martingale”. In this strategy, you double your stake after each loss, so the next time you win, you recover your losses and secure additional profit.
If this seems risky, it’s because it is.
In fact, gambling sites promote the “Martingale” strategy because they’re aware it’s ineffective in the long run.
Despite its failure, the “Double Up” strategy differs from the “Martingale” as it isn’t about doubling up after a loss…
It’s about doubling up after a win.
Consider this…
Would you prefer to:
A. Trade consistently at the same amount, resulting in similar gains and losses?
B. Trade at the same amount, but occasionally take a calculated, larger risk to potentially secure a more significant profit?
Most people would opt for B, right?
That’s precisely what the double-up strategy enables:
Leveraging a small amount of money to potentially generate a larger return and substantially grow your account.
How Does The Double Up Method Work?
Now that you have a basic understanding of the “Double Up” method and its origins, let me guide you through how it actually functions.
The method itself is straightforward:
First, make a decent profit on a trade. Then, use a portion of that profit to substantially increase your stake in the subsequent trade.
That’s pretty much the whole process!
So, you start with a trade, earn a profit, and then invest part of that profit into the next trade.
If it’s successful, you can potentially make a hefty profit, which dramatically increases the size of your account.
On the other hand, if it doesn’t work out, you only lose a fraction of your profit.
It’s as simple as that.
Now, the burning question you’re probably asking is, “What percentage of my profit should I invest in the next trade?”
From my perspective, a 40:60 or 50:50 split seems reasonable.
By doing so, you retain approximately half of the profit from the trade, which is still a decent sum if the subsequent trade — the one with a much larger investment — turns out to be unsuccessful.
You’re free to invest as much profit as you feel comfortable with, but in my opinion, it’s safer and more prudent to be conservative rather than going all-in.
That way, you still have some reserves in case of a loss.
Method #3 Trade More Setups/Strategies
One of the easiest ways to accelerate the growth of a small account is to begin trading more setups and strategies.
It’s often recommended to stick to one strategy.
…I concur.
However, I believe it’s beneficial to utilize additional setups and strategies to increase your earnings and balance your performance.
When you solely trade one strategy, it’s easy to hit a losing streak because you’re continuously following the same signals.
By contrast, when you trade multiple strategies and setups — like trading supply and demand along with hammer candlesticks — it’s significantly more challenging to fall into a losing streak.
That’s because each signal is entirely distinct and doesn’t interfere with the probabilities of other trades.
So, which strategies or setups should you use?
Given the vast array of trading strategies and setups available, choosing the right combination isn’t a walk in the park.
In my opinion, it’s best to have one “core” strategy, complemented by a few setups you’re on the lookout for.
For instance, my ‘core’ strategy is supply and demand/price action.
That’s my mainstay and the source of most of my trades.
Besides that, I also monitor hammer candlesticks, both independently and at support and resistance levels (I also keep an eye out for them at Fibonacci retracements — more on this in a future post).
Hammers don’t often form at S & R levels, but when they do, they typically provide potent signals.
This allows me to make more money while simultaneously mitigating the impact of any losing streaks incurred from trading supply and demand zones.
Ultimately, there’s no definitive right or wrong combination of strategies or setups.
The crucial thing to remember is not to overcomplicate things with too many strategies or setups that occur frequently. The more signals you get, the more potential money you can make, but at the same time, the more you can potentially lose.
So, don’t go overboard and juggle three or four different strategies and setups.
Choose one ‘core’ strategy that offers a good number of signals, then have two or three setups (like the hammer candlestick) that provide fewer signals but have a high likelihood of success.
The Bottom Line
It might not be easy, and it may take longer than you anticipated, but turning a small account into a much larger one is 100% possible, and will be a lot easier with the 3 methods I’ve given you today.