The beginner's checklist: the mistakes that end most accounts
In this lesson you'll learn
- The short checklist to run before every trade
- The habits that end most beginner accounts
- What to do next, after level 1
Before every trade
- Is this setup in my written plan?
- Is it a market and a time I trade?
- Where is my stop loss, and why there?
- What lot size keeps the risk at my % (1–2%)?
- Is there high-impact news soon?
- What is my total open risk after this trade?
- Am I calm, or trying to win something back?
If any answer is "no" or "I don't know", don't take the trade.
The habits that end most accounts
- No stop loss, or moving it further away.
- Oversized positions: risking 5–10% or more per trade.
- Revenge trading after a loss.
- Overtrading out of boredom.
- Adding to losers (averaging down) without a plan.
- Trading the news without understanding spreads and slippage.
- Changing strategies every week.
What's next
You now have the foundations: how prices and lots work, leverage, costs, orders, brokers, charts, levels, risk and a plan. Level 2 builds an edge: market structure, indicators that matter, risk–reward maths, trade management and honest backtesting.
Common mistakes
- Skipping the checklist "just this once".
- Ignoring total open risk across several trades.
- Jumping to advanced strategies before the foundations are habits.
Check yourself
1. If one checklist answer is "I don't know", you should…
2. Which habit is most likely to empty an account fast?
3. What does level 2 focus on?
Key takeaways
- Run the checklist before every trade.
- No stop, big size and revenge trading end most accounts.
- Foundations first: then build an edge in level 2.
Education, not advice. Goldman Academy teaches how markets and tools work. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy or sell, and no lesson promises profits. Trading leveraged products carries a high risk of losing money; only trade money you can afford to lose. · Written by Goldman Academy, reviewed by Faisal