New Traders’ Biggest Mistake When Starting Out

Larry Benedict
|
Dec 12, 2025
|
Trading With Larry Benedict
|
4 min read

Managing Editor’s Note: Our colleague, Jeff Brown, says he’s been waiting his entire career for this AI breakthrough.

He believes a new, ultra-powerful AI is coming. Within the industry, it’s known as the “Holy Grail.”

It’s the breakthrough that takes AI from the world of chatbots and turns it into the most powerful growth driver America has ever seen.

That’s why he wants to help investors get ready. On December 18, at 8 p.m. ET, he’ll describe what he sees coming… and the best ways to profit when this breakthrough hits.

If you’d like to hear what he has to say, then be sure to RSVP for his upcoming event with one click.


I’m sure most of us are familiar with how some of the tech titans started out…

Usually, it was a genius tinkering away in their garage, school, or lab, scraping together whatever cash they could to buy their next batch of computer parts.

From humble beginnings, companies like Apple and Microsoft grew their market value into the trillions.

While they had good timing – after all, they were able to ride the start of entirely new industries – it wasn’t the only reason for their success.

Otherwise, hundreds (if not thousands) of other tech start-ups would still be in business today…

Their success wasn’t about funding either… Plenty of well-funded companies never make it.

Ultimately, their success came from creating a sustainable process and sticking with it, combined with an unwavering passion to continuously improve.

It’s a similar story with trading…

The Biggest Misconception in Trading

It’s easy to think that you need a ton of money when you’re starting out. If only you had a bigger trading account, you’d make it as a trader.

But there’s nothing further from the truth…

All the money in the world won’t help you if you’re just throwing it in one direction or another on whims and fads.

In reality, the first thing new traders need to work on is finding a system that works for them. Look for a process that you can repeat day in and day out.

Start by picking just a couple of stocks (or sectors and indexes) to trade and learning everything you can about them. That way, you’re not distracted by all the other possibilities.

Next, work out a clearly defined trading strategy… from your entry to your exit. You need to know where you’re going to exit before you place your trade.

Focus on developing a profitable trading strategy and not the size of your profits.

Because ultimately, the size of those profits will grow as you develop as a trader. But you have to make sure you can make it long term for that to happen…

Every Mistake in the Book

When I first started out, I cleaned out my trading account many times before I figured out how to successfully trade.

I made a lot of common mistakes – like putting on multiple positions and trading way bigger than my account size could justify. I just couldn’t help but chase every move.

Even if I’d started with a lot more money, the result would’ve been the same…

I needed to establish good habits before my account could start growing.

I finally started improving by choosing a fixed amount per trade and trading one thing over and over until I knew everything about it.

Then, at the end of every day, I would run through every trade and work out how I could do better. Sometimes I thought about them so much that it was hard to switch off at the end of the day!

By shooting for lots of small profits – rather than betting on outsized gains – I was able to develop a trading system that works.

Each of these habits made me into the trader I am today.

Too many traders want to get rich quickly. They think that if they can just nail a couple of big trades, then they’ll be on their way.

But, to be successful, you need to do the opposite…

Even if you aim to make $50 or $100 a trade, that’s all that matters at the beginning. If you can do that consistently, your account will grow.

You can start building up to bigger trades once you’ve developed a system that works for you.

After all, trading is a game of percentages…

The money you risk on any one trade, the amount you make or lose – it all comes down to percentages. The only thing that changes is the amount of dollars in your account.

If you focus on these percentages and not the dollars, your trading results (and account) will take care of themselves.

Happy Trading,

Larry Benedict
Editor, Trading With Larry Benedict


Want more stories like this one?

Reading Trading With Larry Benedict will allow you to take a look into the mind of one of the market’s greatest traders. You’ll be able to recognize and take advantage of trends in the market in no time.