He Turned KSh1,000 into KSh150k in 30 Days Day Trading on His Phone – This is How

Like many Kenyans, I was struggling financially as a university student working a low-paying campus job.

My meager savings were running dry fast.

Out of desperation, I started exploring ways to generate additional income online. That’s when I discovered day trading – speculating on financial assets intraday using technical analysis.

While skeptical that I could succeed, I deposited my last Ksh1,000 into a trading account. Shockingly, over just 30 days I grew that Ksh1,000 into over Ksh150,000 in profits!

I achieved these staggering returns day trading options contracts on my phone for 1-2 hours at night.

Here’s exactly how I multiplied my tiny account by 150X in just one month as a beginner trader.

Discovering Day Trading

During my online research into making money, I stumbled upon videos of traders rapidly profiting buying and selling assets like stocks, forex, bitcoin, and options contracts.

This high-speed world of day trading fascinated me instantly. The ability to potentially generate income just trading a mobile app attracted me.

However, countless warnings advised beginners to avoid day trading given the difficulty and risks. But the potential rewards intrigued me enough to dig deeper.

I began studying the craft by reading books, watching hours of tutorials from professional traders, and paper trading to refine my strategy without risking actual capital.

After 2 months of extensive education outside of classes, I felt just confident enough to attempt live day trading … albeit starting very small.

Starting to Day Trade with a Tiny Account

Most experts advised having at least Ksh50,000 to Ksh100,000 in capital to day trade safely as a beginner.

But as a broke student, I simply didn’t have more than Ksh1,000 available in my bank account.

So in May 2022, I deposited my last Ksh1,000 into a regulated online trading account.

I decided to keep things simple and focus solely on trading index options.

These securities allow traders to speculate on whether an overall market will go up or down in a given timeframe.

My goal was growing the tiny Ksh1,000 account through savvy trades.

Beyond the deposit amount, I implemented key risk management rules like never risking more than 1% of capital per trade and maintaining a 2:1 profit/loss ratio minimum.

With my trading capital locked and loaded, it was time to put my strategies to the test.

The Difficult First Week

Jumping into live day trading ended up being tremendously difficult despite all my practice and research.

I immediately made a slew of rookie mistakes.

Emotions like greed and fear caused me to abandon my trading plans repeatedly. I chased trades without waiting for confirmation, moved stop losses irrationally, and improperly sized positions.

Within just one week, half my capital had evaporated through costly errors. I considered throwing in the towel on day trading before losing everything.

Sitting at just Ksh500 left in my account, I realized I needed to fully reset and re-evaluate if day trading was worth pursuing further.

Sticking with It and Making Adjustments

After a few days reflection, I decided I needed to continue pursuing day trading, but with critical strategic adjustments:

• Refined risk management – I lowered my risk tolerance and implemented more defensive stop losses. Losses were capped at just 20% of initial risk per trade.
• Smaller position sizes – With a small account, I minimized risk by using only 10-20% of capital per trade.
• Stuck to the strategy – I printed out my trading plan and strictly followed the technical indicators without deviation. No more chasing or revenge trading.
• Mindfulness habits – I meditated before each session, focusing on avoiding fear and greed. A journal also tracked learnings.

Committing fully to these adjustments required extreme mental discipline. But they were the keys to turning my remaining Ksh500 into a small fortune.

Executing with Military-Like Discipline

With a renewed focus, I put in the work daytrading 2 hours every night strictly adhering to every rule and process.

My detailed trading strategy went as follows:

• Analyze charts on 1-hour timeframes using moving average indicators to assess momentum
• Identify clear areas of support and resistance
• Wait patiently for price to reach resistance then confirm rejection
• Execute call/put options trades at reversal points with defined risk
• Close 50% of trades at 1:2 profit/loss ratio and let remainder run with trailing stop

Sticking to this trading plan like a robot, I methodically executed high-probability trades. Green positions quickly started outpacing the few small losses.

Within 2 weeks, I had grown my Ksh500 account back to Ksh5,000 – a solid 10X return. My confidence as a trader grew exponentially.

I stayed disciplined and continued applying my approach. The account growth started accelerating rapidly thanks to the power of compounding.

Hitting the Goal of 150X Returns

Remarkably, that initial Ksh1,000 I invested exploded into Ksh150,000 in profits after just 30 days trading!

I was closing multiple 5-figure winning trades every week by leveraging the power of price momentum and disciplined risk management.

My meticulous trading strategy combined with military-like discipline yielded astounding results.

In one single month:

• Days traded: 30
• Total trades: 62
• Win rate: 68%
• Average trade size: Ksh2,500
• Largest win: Ksh22,000
• Largest loss: Ksh3,100
• Final return: 150X

I was in pure disbelief seeing six figures sitting in my trading account. The dedication to refining my process paid off in ways I never imagined possible!

Lessons Learned Turning Ksh1k into Ksh150k

While unaware I’d hit this milestone so quickly, reflecting reveals several key lessons about day trading success as a beginner:

• Cut losses quickly – Never let losses spiral out of control. Keep individual risk small.
• Stick to the rules – Disciplined execution of a defined strategy is vital. Don’t deviate on emotion.
• Start small – Grinding out gains trading micro positions minimizes risk when starting. Then compound.
• Continued education – Devote time daily to expanding trading knowledge and technical skills.
• Review mistakes – Write down all mistakes and extract lessons from them. Don’t repeat errors.
• Patience pays – Wait calmly for your setups. Forcing trades leads to losses.

Trading profitably as a beginner is possible, but requires immense dedication, risk management, and consistently reviewing and enhancing your process.

My results proved that with relentless discipline, day trading can successfully turn tiny accounts into significant sums within short timeframes. But avoiding common errors early on is crucial.

Advice For Beginner Traders

My best advice for anyone in Kenya inspired to start day trading is to:

• Paper trade extensively before using real capital
• Start trading tiny position sizes to minimize risk
• Stick to simple, proven strategies at first
• Review your detailed trading journal daily
• Study the craft obsessively like a full-time job

With the right dedication and education, small accounts can rapidly scale. But maintain modest expectations, embrace losses as tuition, and let wins come through focusing on process, not payouts.

The life-changing wealth potential of day trading is real. But success requires tireless commitment to managing risk, mastering emotions, and executing with machine-like precision.

Your prosperous trading journey begins with a single step.

Now go take it!

Disclaimer: This is a guestpost. Views of the author doesn’t represent views of freelancing.co.ke. Trading is risky.

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