#596: How to Pass Prop Firm Challenges with Andrew Mitchem & Etienne Crete

Online Forex Trading Course

How to Pass Prop Firm Challenges with Andrew Mitchem & Etienne Crete Podcast: Find out more about Blueberry Markets – Click Here Find out more about my Online Video Forex Course Click Here to Attend my Free Masterclass Book a Call with Andrew or one of his team now Click Here to Watch Prop Firm Masterclass #596: How to Pass Prop Firm Challenges with Andrew Mitchem & Etienne Crete In this video: 00:05 – Passing a prop firm challenge. 00:19 – Talking prop firm challenges with Etienne Crete. 00:45 – Horror stories from traders starting a prop firm too early. 02:08 – How to start trading on a prop firm account. 03:13 – How to pick a prop firm. 06:10 – How much should you risk per trade. 08:10 – Treat a demo, a live and a prop firm account the same. 10:25 – Have a proven strategy first before getting on a prop firm account. 15:28 – Does the prop firm have the markets you trade available? 17:15 – How to find us and how to join us at The Forex Trading Coach Passing a prop firm challenge. Andrew Mitchem If you're on a $10,000 prop firm, you know, you you're risking quite tiny amounts, but that's fine, you know? But just go very, very small because just don't get stopped out and you'll eventually, you know, if you're trading good enough, you'll eventually get to that profit target. Talking prop firm challenges with Etienne Crete. Etienne Crete Sitting down today with Andrew Mitchem. we want to do an episode specifically about prop firms and what it takes to become a funded trader, but also kind of scale things up. And you get to the next level of performance to scale it up to, we can make more money trading with more capital. So Andrew welcome back on the podcast. Continue here. Etienne Crete Let's start with this. I actually get people who reach out to you and kind of ask you about prop firms and how they should go about it. What's your first train of thought into what is the right time to go for prop firm? Horror stories from traders starting a prop firm too early. Andrew Mitchem Okay, I find that so many people tell me stories. In that kind of horror stories, they jump in too quick. And I think people aren't doing it realistically. They jump in because they see it as maybe I don't have enough money myself. And it's a it's a good way of potentially earning funds and, and commissions, etc., but they don't have any, background into trading properly themselves. Andrew Mitchem You know, they don't have a strategy, the confident in them. And they have proven themselves first. And I think that's the pitfall that too many people jump into. Etienne Crete Definitely like trying to get capital before you are profitable trader. Andrew Mitchem Yeah. I mean, I just tell people maybe you look at it and, you know, 6 to 12 months time, be real about this. Yes, look prop firm can be absolutely fantastic once you know what you're doing. But spend some time upfront to learn the process of trading. Forget how much money you make. Don't even look at money. Andrew Mitchem Just understand the process of trading. You know, low risk, etc., low drawdowns, because ultimately that's the thing. It's going to get you through a pot firm. And if you don't understand that hitting that drawdown criteria is what's going to make you lose your money. Etienne Crete How do you someone interested in the process? Because a lot of people are going to, of course, focus on the outcome, trying to get the result, how do you get them to, first of all, follow the process? But they kind of have to be interested in then involved in it too. Andrew Mitchem How to start trading on a prop firm account. Andrew Mitchem Yeah, it's a tricky one because everybody wants the results and everybody wants the money. I suppose all I can do is probably a little bit like is keep going on and on and on with the same story, because ultimately that's the best way you're going to get a result. You know, you almost got beaten into people was like, please don't waste your time away or waste your money, focus on the process of knowing how to trade or just make sure you're consistently profitable. I do suggest to people that when they start, use a demo, you know, for a reason, be profitable on that. Go on to a small live account. Be consistently profitable on that, then maybe a slightly bigger live account, and use all those like that experience and those emotions that you're going to have. Andrew Mitchem And get that right first before going on to a prop fund, because otherwise you're just spending $500 and wasting you money. Etienne Crete In terms of platform, there's a lot of choice. Are there? You can think, of course, so many different names is one that's been around for a longer time, some that are newer and more competitive or kind of nicer offerings. How do you actually get to pick the prop firm and then maybe have some thoughts on this? How to pick a prop firm. Andrew Mitchem But yeah, no, it's I suppose you want to look at potentially, you know, a company's been around for a long time. That's always, I suppose, a good starting point. But the other one is I like, personally, I like prop firms that have slightly bigger drawdown allowances and, the some of those that I personally use that have two stages of a challenge before you go to live money, a lot of them would have like a 10% profit target and maybe like a 5% drawdown. Andrew Mitchem I think that's it's a little bit of a tight criteria for a lot of people. Whereas I'm now using prop firms that have a maybe like a 10% profit, 10% drawdown. And then you go on to another stage where you have to maybe make like a 5% profit again, within a 10% drawdown. And then you go to real money. Andrew Mitchem So yes, it might take longer, but having that bigger drawdown just allows a little bit more wiggle room for you as a trader. And I also think it's really important that people don't have a prop firm that has a time restriction. I, I really would avoid that. When you see these prop firms that say, you've got to do this, you know, 10% within 30 days. Andrew Mitchem And then realistically that might only be, say, 20, 20 trading days, you know, then the market conditions aren't good every day. So, you know, they almost forced you to gamble. So, I would have something that doesn't force you on a time restriction to get to your profit target. And also something allows a slightly bigger drawdown. Etienne Crete I think the, the time roll is mostly gone for a lot of performers. Most don't offer this and most don't have this anymore as a rule, because people are really tired of it. I think the rule that now is kind of simplify for people is the, the trailing drawdown. So the more you profit, even a few trades are open, but not close yet. Etienne Crete That counts as your highest like profit level, your highest watermark. Then the jobs calculate from there. So you could have a trade that runs like really fast and comes back and then that hits to your drawdown level. Andrew Mitchem Yes. So I suppose a lot of that then comes back to, as I mentioned, to try and have a prop firm that has a little bit bigger drawdown. To give you that flexibility, but also don't rush to pass it. And probably, you know, the way that obviously everybody fails on a prop firm is they hit the drawdown and get stopped out or, you know, they get closed. Andrew Mitchem So making sure that your risk for trade is very, very low, I think is crucial as well. You know. Yes it may. Let's say you're doing on your own normal account. It might take you a month, but let's say half that risk again and it might take you two months. It's like, well really it shouldn't matter. Just pass the thing within the drawdown is the is the most important point, not how long it takes you. How much should you risk per trade. Etienne Crete How do you calculate the risk for a trade that you should go with? Is it the specific number that you always follow, or is there some math behind it? Or what do you tell people to focus on? Andrew Mitchem For me, I'm just talking purely me personally. I mean, what people do is entirely up to them. Of course, I personally risk only a quarter of 1% of my account on a trade, and if I split that position into two, which quite often I do, you know, like if I'm taking a buy trade, I'll take a market order and a buy limit just the way that I trade. Andrew Mitchem I'll have like an eighth of 1% of my risk on each of those two positions. So in other words, if both positions got stopped at, I lose only a quarter of 1%. So, you know, you need effectively four whole trades to go wrong to lose 1%. You know, so yes, it will take me longer to get to the profit target because naturally my gains will be smaller as a percentage. Andrew Mitchem But the chances of me being stopped out and blowing that I can really quite like small. Etienne Crete And then I'll let people have this issue of they say, oh, well, of course you can do this because they have a big account. But what about guys who have the small account they trade? Well, maybe $10,000 might be able to take all the trades with 0.25%. How would they go about it? Andrew Mitchem They can still do that. I mean, if you're on a prop firm, you know, with a I mean, most people that I so speak to are slightly higher amounts on a prop then, but yeah, like, I suppose if you're on a $10,000 prop firm, you know, you, you're risking quite tiny amounts, but that's fine. You know, 1% is $100, so you're risking $25 per trade on a $10,000 account. Andrew Mitchem It's still the same risk percentage. I mean, I think if you went down to 10,000, you might have a little bit more difficulty with real, accurate position sizing. But just go very, very small because just don't get stopped out and you'll eventually, you know, if you're trading good enough,