Mastering the Trade, Second Edition: Proven Techniques for Profiting from Intraday and Swing Trading Setups

The essential guide to launching a successful career in trading—updated for today’s turbulent markets

“Mastering the Trade is an excellent source for a basic understanding of market action, be it day and/or longer-term trend trading. A programmer will have a field day with the many ideas that are in this book. It is highly recommended.”

—John Hill, president of Futures Truth magazine

“John Carter’s new book focuses quickly on the critical area of trader psychology, a realm that will often separate the trader from his wallet if it is not mastered first. The in-depth trading strategies clearly show how to respond to market moves based on real-world examples.”

—Price Headley, founder of BigTrends.com and author of Big Trends in Trading

“Well written and packed with the kind of insight about the nature of trading and the markets that can surely benefit every level of trader.”

—Mark Douglas, author of Trading in the Zone and The Disciplined Trader

“This is a must read for all new traders, specifically for the psychological aspect of trading. I am recommending it to all of my clients.”

—Carolyn Boroden, FibonacciQueen.com

About the Book:

When it was first published in 2005, Mastering the Trade became an instant classic in the world of day trading. Now, veteran day trader and educator John F. Carter has updated his time-proven swing trading technique to help you succeed in an environment vastly transformed by volatility and technology.

Universally acclaimed for its sophisticated yet easy-to-execute methods, this practical, results-driven guide provides everything you need to make a lucrative career as a day trader—from preparing yourself psychologically for the unique demands of day trading to timing the market, managing risk, and planning future trades.

Mastering the Trade sets aside timeworn basics and rehashed ideas to examine in detail the underlying factors that cause prices to move. Providing the tools you need to make the right decisions at the right times, it helps you enter market shifts early and either pull out before losses accrue or hang on for a long and refreshingly predictable ride. Mastering the Trade covers:


The five psychological truths that will transform you from a mistake-prone novice into a savvy trading professional

Exact entry, exit, and stop-loss levels for the intraday trading of stocks, options, ETFs, e-mini futures, 30-year bonds, currencies, and more

Seven key internals, from $TICKS to five-minute volume—critical for gauging pending market direction from the opening bell

Premarket checklists for analyzing recent market behavior and calculating on each trading day what you plan to do, how you plan to do it, and why

Airtight risk control techniques for protecting trading capital—the most important component of a professional trading career




After spending many years on various trading desks, Carter has developed an intuitive understanding of how the markets work. In Mastering the Trade, he gives you unlimited access to everything the markets have taught him—so you can make an exceptional living on the frontlines of professional trading.