Paper Trading

Paper trading is simulated trading: you record what you would have bought or sold and track the hypothetical outcome, without committing real capital. It is useful for learning a platform, rehearsing a strategy, and forward-testing an idea on live data. Because there is no real money — and therefore no real fear or greed — paper results can overstate how you will actually perform, so pair it with a journal and the same fixed risk rules you would use live.

In plain English — Paper trading means placing pretend trades — on a simulator, a spreadsheet, or by marking decisions on a chart — and tracking the results as if they were real, but with no money at stake. It is a safe way to learn mechanics, rehearse a plan, and build screen time. The catch is that risk-free practice never feels like the real thing.

Before trading a new setup, you paper-trade it for two weeks, logging each simulated entry, exit, and the reason — then compare the paper expectancy and your discipline to how you behave once real money is involved.