There are several types of trading styles that persons seeking to profit from short term trades in the market may wish to use. Here is a brief description of the most widely used short term trading styles.

• Day Trading

Day traders buy and sell stocks throughout the day in the hope that the price of the stocks will fluctuate in value during the day, allowing them to earn quick profits. A day trader will hold a stock anywhere from a few seconds to a few hours, but will always sell all of those stocks before the close of each day. The day trader will therefore not own any positions at the close of any day, and there is overnight risk. The objective of day trading is to quickly get in and out of any particular stock for a profit anywhere from a few cents to several points per share on an intra-day basis.

Day trading can be further subdivided into a number of styles, including:

Scalpers: This style of day trading involves the rapid and repeated buying and selling of a large volume of stocks within seconds or minutes. The objective is to earn a small per share profit on each transaction while minimizing the risk.

Momentum Traders: This style of day trading involves identifying and trading stocks that are in a moving pattern during the day, in an attempt to buy such stocks at bottoms and sell at tops.

• Swing Traders

The principal difference between day trading and swing trading is that swing traders will normally have a slightly longer time horizon than day traders for holding a position in a stock. As is the case with day traders, swing traders also attempt to predict the short term fluctuation in a stock's price. However, swing traders are willing to hold stocks for more than one day, if necessary, to give the stock price some time to move or to capture additional momentum in the stock's price. Swing traders will generally hold on to their stock positions anywhere from a few hours to several days.

Swing trading has the capability of providing higher returns than day trading. However, unlike day traders who liquidate their positions at the end of each day, swing traders assume overnight risk. There are some significant risks in carrying positions overnight. For example news events and earnings warnings announced after the closing bell can result in large, unexpected and possibly adverse changes to a stock's price.

• Position Trading

Position trading is similar to swing trading, but with a longer time horizon. Position traders hold stocks for a time period anywhere from one day to several weeks or months. These traders seek to identify stocks where the technical trends suggest a possible large movement in price is likely to occur, but which may not be fully played out for several weeks or months.

• Online Trading

Online trading is not really properly described as a trading style. Rather, online trading is simply a term that refers to the medium used to enter and execute trades. Online traders, which can include long term investors, as well as day, swing and position traders, use either an Internet connection or a direct access online trading platform to access and execute trades with Web based brokers.

• Divide your Risk Capital in 10 Equal Parts.

As part of the Successful money management, it is always advised to divide your Risk Capital (which you can afford to lose) into 10 equal Parts and at any given time none of your Single Trade should have more than 3 parts of your capital in it even if you are in a winning position. At the same time always keep some spare money for any Buying Opportunity, which may come any time.

Many Traders get stuck with stocks for want of liquidity. Always rely upon Stocks which have reasonably high volume over a period of time. High Volume are always advised for easy Entry, Exit and Stop Loss. In low volume stocks the spread is too high and chance of Stop Loss limit getting failed is too high as there would be no Buyer or seller at your Stop Loss Level.

Successful traders always keep their Trading Plans ready before entering into any transactions. One must prepare a Watch List or Probable candidates for Day's trading and remain focused on the movement of those stocks only. For example a Stock 'X' is on verge of a Bullish Breakout from any pattern or stock 'Y' has declined substantially after an initial sharp upmove or stock 'Z' is close to an important support level. Successful trader would concentrate on the movement of those stocks only and enter the trade as soon as stock 'X' gives the anticipated breakout or stock 'Y' starts an upmove or stock 'Z' breaks the support level to initiate a trade for quick gains.

This is the most common mistake committed by Traders, particularly after a Streak of winning Trades. This mistake Generally not only wipes off all the profits, but puts traders in heavy losses. In order to remain in market while making consistent Profits, under no circumstances, traders should go beyond their Risk Capital.

If you consider you are a smart trader who can make profit on every trade, you are 100% wrong. Always be flexible and accept the fact as soon as you realize that you are on wrong side of the trade. Simply get out of the trade without changing your strategy during the market; it may cause you double losses.

The business of Trading is excellent as long as you are making profits. Unlike other business your losses can be unlimited and rapid if market does not move as per your expectations. While in other businesses you may have other remedial measures available but in trading it is you only who has to control it. Traders have large egos particularly after series of successful trades and their tendency to enlarge commitments in overconfidence may cause major financial set back. There fore it is must that trader must take a portion of the profit and put it in separate account. This is absolutely must for long term stability in the market.

• Trading for excitement & thrill Not for profits.

Many traders consider stock market as casino and trade for thrill and fun only. As soon as one has a losing trade, he wants to quickly make back the lost money. He thinks about the other things he could have done with the money, regret taking the trade and want to recover as quickly as possible. This in turn leads to further mistakes. Be patient and wait for the next high probability opportunity. Don't rush back in.

• Trading with a high ego.

Many individuals who have remained highly successful in other business ventures have failed miserably in trading game. Because they have a fairly big ego and thought they couldn't fail. Their egos become their downfall because they can not except that they would be wrong and refuse to get out of bad trades. Once again, whoever or wherever has any one come from does not concern the markets. All the charm, powers of persuasion, number of degrees & diplomas of business management on the wall or business savvy will not budge the market when you are wrong.

• Four 4-letter words that will kill you! HOPE--WISH--FEAR--PRAY

If you ever find yourself doing one or more of the above while in a trade then you are in big trouble! Markets has own system of moving up & down. All the hoping, wishing and praying or being fearful in the world is not going to turn a losing trade into a winning one. When you are wrong just use a simple 4-letter word to correct the situation-GET OUT!

• Trading with money you can't afford to lose.

One of the greatest obstacles to successful trading is using money that you really can't afford to lose. Examples of this would be money that is supposed to be used in any other business, money to be paid for college/school fee, trading with borrowed money etc. Ultimately what happens is that when someone knows in the back of their mind that they are risking the money they can not afford to lose, they trade out of fear and emotion versus logic and no emotion. If you are in this situation It is highly recommend that you stop trading until you earn enough to put into an account that you truly can afford to lose without causing major financial setbacks.

• No Trading Plan

If you consider yourself a trader, ask yourself these questions: Do I have a set of rules that tell me what to buy, when to buy and how much to buy, not just for the next trade, but for the next 10 trades? Before I enter a trade, do I know when I will take profits? Do I know when I will get out if I am wrong? These questions form the first part of a trading strategy. There simply cannot be any expectation of success if we can't answer these questions clearly and concisely.

• Spending profits before you make them.

Nothing is more exciting then getting into a trade that blasts off and puts you into a highly profitable situation. This can cause major problems however, because this type of trade puts you in a highly euphoric state and leads to daydreaming about the huge profits still to come. The real problem occurs as you get caught up in the daydream and expectations. This causes you to not be prepared to get out as the market reverses and wipes off all your profits because you have convinced yourself of the eventual outcome and will deny the reality of the situation. The simple remedy for this is to know where and how you will take profits once you enter the trade.

• Not Cutting Losses or letting Profits run

One of the most common mistakes made by traders is that they let their losses grow too large. Nobody likes to take a loss, but failing to take a small loss early will often result in being forced to take a large loss later. A great trader is not someone who has never had a loss. Great traders have made many losses. But what makes them great is their ability to recover quickly from a string of losses. Every trader needs to develop a method for getting out of losing trades quickly. Research and learn to apply the best methods for placing protective stoploss orders.  The only way to recover from many (small) losing trades is to make sure the winning trades are much larger. After a series of losing trades, it becomes difficult to hold a winning trade because we fear that it will also turn into a loss. Let your profitable trades run. Give them room to move and give them time to move.

• Not Sticking to your plans & Changing strategies during market hours

If you find yourself changing your strategy during the day while the markets are still open, be mindful of the fact that you are likely to be subject to emotional reactions of fear and greed. With rare exception, the most prudent thing to do is to plan your trading strategy before the market opens and then strictly stick to it during trading hours.

• Not knowing how to get out of a losing trade.

It's amazing that most of the traders don't have any clear escape plan for getting out of a bad trade. Once again they hope, pray wish and rationalize their position. It must be kept in mind that market does not care what you think. It does what it does and when you are wrong you are wrong! The easiest way to keep a bad trade from going really bad is to determine before you get in, where you will get out.

• Falling in love with a stock (Just Flirt).

Many traders get fascinated by just a stock or two and look for opportunities to trade in those stocks only ignoring the other profitable trading opportunities. It is because they have simply fallen in love with a stock to trade with. Such tendencies can be suicidal as for as trading is concerned. It may cost any one dearly.