Among the traders I've interacted with, over 80% are part-time traders. Everyone has their own jobs and wants to use their leisure time to trade, aiming to increase some extra income.

However, I've noticed that many people struggle with part-time trading, continuously incurring losses, mainly due to the following three reasons:

(1) They do not allocate their trading time reasonably, sometimes missing trading opportunities because of work, or forgetting to handle orders (stop-loss or take-profit), leading to trading losses.

(2) They have not found a trading system or method suitable for part-time trading, often relying on feelings to enter and exit trades, resulting in losses.

(3) Trading affects their work, such as being preoccupied with market trends during work hours, or feeling down after a loss, which impacts work efficiency.

These three phenomena are very common and are the main reasons for part-time traders' losses.

In today's article, I will explain three trading methods suitable for part-time traders, including practical explanations, types of trades, time frames for trading, and precautions to take.

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1. Weekend analysis, mid-week trading

I have used this method before, akin to a sniper in warfare, who analyzes the target in advance and then patiently waits for the market to enter their range before taking a precise shot.

Specific method:The specific operation involves analyzing 4-5 types of commodities during the weekend when the market is closed. Based on the trend of each commodity and in conjunction with technical indicators, determine the direction in which this commodity will move next.

On the 1-hour or 4-hour chart, follow this direction and use technical indicators to determine an entry position, and directly mark the key position for entry on the chart.

After the market opens on weekdays, the market begins to move, and traders only need to focus on these 4-5 commodities for the entire week. The key positions found in advance are sufficient, and since they are at the 1-hour or 4-hour level, the pressure of monitoring the market will be minimal.

This method is suitable for traders who do not have a very high workload and have slightly more flexible time.

Practical explanation:

Trading time frame:

After the weekend market closes, find a direction on the weekly or daily chart. Once the direction is determined, find the entry position on the 1-hour or 4-hour chart, and trade using the method of entering at retracement support and resistance levels.

Trading commodities:

All mainstream foreign exchange commodities can be used, and it is recommended to choose EUR/USD, GBP/USD, gold, crude oil, and USD/JPY.

I will use a previous weekend market analysis I did as an example for explanation, and you can see the schematic diagram below.The chart above is a daily gold spot price chart. On September 28, 2021, gold began to decline rapidly, testing the support zone near 1720, which is an area of dense trading activity. After consolidating at the bottom, the daily chart rose sharply on September 30 (Thursday), forming a morning star reversal pattern. On October 1 (Friday), the market consolidated at higher levels, and the daily chart closed with a small bullish candle. On October 2 (Saturday), the analysis of the market indicated a clear bullish expectation at the daily level.

After confirming the bullish trend at the daily level, switch to the 1-hour candlestick chart.

In the 1-hour candlestick chart, identify the support levels below as key entry points to monitor in the following week's trading.

The illustration clearly shows that the most evident support level at the 1-hour level is 1746. Therefore, the key entry point to watch during the week is set around 1746. If the market tests 1746 and forms a reversal candle or pattern, enter a long position with the target levels being the previous resistance levels at 1760 and 1776.

In the last chart, after testing 1746 on October 6 (Wednesday), the market formed a reversal pattern, and the order was entered. The market reached the first target of 1760 on the same day, and on Friday, driven by non-farm payroll data, the market continued to rise and reached the second target level.

Notes to consider:

(1) Focus on a few fixed instruments.

Conducting market analysis weekly will make you more familiar with these instruments, and it will also form a coherent trading strategy. Based on my experience, by consistently following an instrument for half a year and doing weekly analysis, you can almost identify the direction at a glance when looking at the candlestick chart.

(2) Do not trade in unclear markets.

If the direction of a particular instrument is not clear on the daily or weekly chart, and you cannot find a direction, it is best to abandon trading that instrument. It is advisable not to trade in markets that you do not understand.(3) Only execute pre-planned trading strategies during the week.

If the market does not reach key levels or does not form entry signals, abandon the trade. Therefore, although focusing on 4-5 instruments, there may only be 2-3 trading opportunities per week.

When the market is closed over the weekend and there is no fluctuation, and traders do not hold positions, their minds are clear, and their mentality is stable. At this time, when analyzing the market, they are more objective and it is easier to find the right direction. Focusing on one key level for one instrument per week, with low trading frequency and low execution difficulty, makes trading more enforceable.

2. Trading on Weeknights

Specific Method:

This trading method involves concentrating efforts on trading during a fixed time period at night, operating on 3-4 instruments, engaging in intraday short-term trades, and using a fixed trading system and capital management rules. Execute trades when signals that match the trading system appear during the trading period, and after the fixed time period, manage the orders and stop trading, then rest without watching the market.

Forex trading session: 20:30--23:30 for three hours. Futures trading is done during the night session of futures, but trading should be concluded before midnight to avoid affecting the next day's work.

Practical Explanation:

Trading time frame: 5-minute candlestick chart.

Trading instruments: GBP/USD, Gold, Crude Oil, GBP/JPY, and other instruments with large price swings (since trading is done in one session at night, it is necessary to choose instruments with large fluctuation spaces to have room for profit).At 8:30 PM, the foreign exchange market enters the American session, which lasts until the early hours of the next morning. This period is characterized by the highest volatility in the forex market, with large price swings and rapid movements.

We have also chosen currency pairs that inherently have large price swings, making this combination ideal for breakout trading strategies. Starting from the daily high and low points, connect the upward or downward trend lines on a 5-minute candlestick chart, and enter the market after the price breaks through the trend line.

The first, more aggressive, stop-loss strategy places the stop-loss directly at the highest point (or lowest point) of the breakout candle, setting a 4:1 risk-to-reward ratio. The second, more conservative, stop-loss strategy places the stop-loss at the 5-minute pivot point, setting a 2:1 risk-to-reward ratio.

If the market continues to trend upwards throughout the day, connecting the points from the daily low upwards can form a very standard uptrend line. At 10:15 PM Beijing time, the market forms a downward breakout. Aggressively, the stop-loss is placed above the high point of the breakout candle, with a stop-loss space of 20 pips. After some consolidation, the market quickly drops to reach the 4:1 profit target.

If the market maintains a bearish pattern throughout the day, with the price once dropping to 1720, connecting the points from the daily high downwards can form a standard downtrend line. At 10:50 PM Beijing time, the market forms an upward breakout. The stop-loss is set at the pivot point below at 1724. After the breakout, the market continues to rise, and the order is successfully closed at the profit target.

Precautions:

(1) Focus on a fixed 3-4 currency pairs.Day trading should avoid the correlation of products, for example, the British pound against the US dollar and the British pound against the Japanese yen should not be traded together.

(2) Trade in fixed time periods.

When the trading time ends, set your stop-loss and take-profit levels, close the software, and stop watching the market.

(3) Draw trend lines in advance and wait for a breakout.

Start drawing trend lines from the daily high and low points to have a standard for drawing. Always draw the lines in advance and wait for a breakout; do not adjust the lines randomly.

By trading in this way, it is as if you have become a full-time trader for the night session. This method is more suitable for those who do not have time to trade during the day and only have time at night.

This way of trading and working can be completely separated, without interfering or affecting each other. Focusing attention on whatever you do is beneficial for trading profits.

3. A 1-hour trading system

I am currently using this trading system myself, which offers 3-4 trading opportunities per week and is also a system I have explained in detail in my course.

The reason I like to use this trading system is that it has clear details and does not require subjective judgment. It only requires monitoring the market according to the rules of the trading system. Once the timing is right, the entry and exit criteria are very clear, and it hardly requires any mental effort.I usually set up alarms in advance, and I can manually enter the trade when the price reaches the designated level, which saves me a lot of energy. Although there are only 3-4 trading opportunities each week, this pace is actually very comfortable for part-time trading.

Practical operation process:

Step 1: Open the chart and, based on the criteria for confirming the trend in the trading system, such as Bollinger Bands pattern, moving average crossover, etc. (the method is quite complex and will not be elaborated on here), one can quickly determine whether the current trend meets the criteria.

Step 2: After the trend meets the criteria, we combine the position of the moving averages and the support of the Fibonacci retracement to find the entry area. There are many details involved, such as how to determine the high and low points of the Fibonacci retracement, how to connect the lines, etc., all of which are taught in detail in the course.

Step 3: Once the market enters the entry area, use the structure of Bollinger Bands and candlestick patterns to find the entry point. The entry pattern is clear, with a very distinct judgment method, and there is no ambiguity.

Step 4: After entering, use the technical pivot points to set the stop loss and set the clear take profit points through a reasonable risk-reward ratio. Once the stop loss and take profit are set, there is no need for further operation; just let the market take its course.

The entire process, each step, and every standard is very clear and definite, suitable for everyone to operate without thinking.

Trading time frame: 1 hour.

Trading instruments: Forex direct and cross rates, gold, crude oil are all feasible, just choose 3-4 instruments from them.

Indicators used in the trading system: one EMA moving average, Bollinger Bands, and Fibonacci retracement.The specific settings of this trading system are covered in my course. If I were to elaborate on all the details, it would take more than 20 articles to explain thoroughly. Therefore, interested friends can simply go to my public account (Eight-Digit Garden) to read the detailed version.