One of the main conversations that a lot of people have been having over the last few weeks are about New Year’s resolutions. Every year, people all over the world set themselves goals for self improvement over the coming year. For Traders, self improvement is even more important given the performance orientated nature of this field. So, if you find yourself struggling for a New Year’s resolution but are keen on improving your trading performance, then how about setting yourself the challenge of reading the following 10 books over 2018? In no particular order, here are the Top 10 Trading Books For 2018:

Market Wizards

This book has achieved legendary status as one of the most insightful, comprehensive guides for traders. The book is a compilation of interviews hosted by Jack Schwager and features some of the biggest names in finance from massive traders through to hedge fund titans. The insight and advice offered in this book make it invaluable for anyone involved in trading, no matter what their level.

Flashboys

Written by iconic writer Michael Lewis, this book is a gripping investigation into the rise of high frequency traders and their role in the increasing the “flash crash” phenomenon that has been ripping through the markets like an earthquake. The book features interviews with several members of Wall Street firms and gives an inside look at how investment banks and other institutions used HFT systems to their advantage. Ultimately, the book is a really entertaining look into one of the areas of financial markets that is less-understood by the average trader.

Trading In The Zone

In this now classic book, legendary trading psychologist Mark Douglas explores the central importance of having the right mindset and how trader psychology can be make or break for a trader’s success. The book has become a staple for all traders looking to up their game and improve their mindset. This book is a must read for all new traders who find themselves struggling with the mental side of their game.

Reminiscences of a Stock Operator

This book tells the story of trading legend Jesse Livermore who lived and breathed trading, famously making a fortune before losing it all. The book has been praised by traders of all levels as being invaluable for the wisdom it dispenses from a technical level through to insightful points on investor psychology and behavioural finance.

Black Swan

This book, which is admittedly more advanced than the books on this list so far, was written by philosopher and statistician Nassim Taleb and explores the impact of highly improbable events known as “black swan’s”. The book deals with the problematic nature of anticipating such events as well as people’s tendency to attach simplistic explanations to such events retrospectively. This book is a fascinating read for traders interested in further their understanding of advanced concepts.

Fooled by Randomness

Another book by Nassim Taleb, this time dealing with the nature of randomness and how it affects people’s lives as well as the markets. In this book Taleb explores peoples understanding of causality and the need to explain events while focusing on elements such as survivorship bias and skewed distributions. Once again, this is a fantastic book to get traders thinking about the markets on a higher level and can be particularly useful when it comes to developing strategies and helping traders interpret data correctly.

High Probability Trading Strategies

This is a far more technically-based book and will be especially interested to traders who are interested in learning a new approach to the markets. During the book, trading legend Robert Miner details thoroughly several different technical trading strategies walking through each from entry to exit. The book has been praised for delivering solid, effective trading strategies in a through but engaging manner.

Trend Following

This book is a must read for anyone interested in learning the technique which has often been called, by traders of all levels, the most profitable approach to trading. In this book Covel takes a detailed look at trend following exploring what creates trends and why following them is the most profitable way to trade. The book is especially interested as it provides the track record of hedge funds using this approach (at time of writing) to give an indication of the performance that can be achieved.

Trading Price Action Trends

Another heavily technically-based book, Al Brooks details his specific day trading strategies that he uses to consistently profit from the markets after giving up his ophthalmology practice to become a day trader. Focused predominantly on the 5 minute time frame Al details what various candles and different candle combinations mean and looks at various day trading strategies including trend following, range trading and breakout trading. This book is a must for anyone who focuses on the short term charts.

Trade Your Way to Financial Freedom

In this book, trading psychology legend Van K Tharp outlines a proven 14 step process for developing a profitable trading system. The book doesn’t outline a specific strategy to follow but instead gives traders the tools and guidance to help establish their trading plan. Importantly, the book deals with the psychological biases that can sabotage system development and talks about the importance of marrying your personality with your trading goals and style.

So, there you have it; 10 trading books to read over 2018 that will help bring your trading up to the next level. See how many you can get through over the year and if you have any other favourites that aren’t on the list, feel free to let us know.

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