Bracket trading is one of the many methods of trading the market that's taught by BetterTrades, the nation's leading provider of stock market education material and seminars. The concept of bracket trading involves setting predetermined entry points for a stock purchase, one price if the stock goes up and another price if the stock price falls.

Bracket trading is the primary strategy used by Bettertrades instructor Ryan Litchfield, who helps students learn the technique at his two-day Trader's Forge workshop. By setting up a bracket trade, a BetterTrades student is removing the emotional element from a trade. It permits an investor to think in an impassive manner, rather than allow their feelings get in the way of sound judgment.

When a BetterTrades student gets involved in a bracket trade, they conduct the appropriate level of technical analysis and produce two target prices in which they will enter a trade. Since a stock can either go up or down or stay the same, a BetterTrades student is looking for some sort of movement, which is necessary if a trader is going to potentially make money from a transaction.

By entering the stock in a price bracket, a student looking for bettertrades is defining the parameters at which the trade will be entered. If the price of the stock does not break the price established by the bracket, a trader will not get involved with the transaction. If the price of the stock does meet the price established, a trader will become involved. To make the trade even less emotional – and more mechanical – a trader can place an order with their online brokerage that will put them in the trade under predetermined conditions. If the conditions are not met, the online brokerage will not enter them into the trade.

Once entering a trade, a BetterTrades student will then establish the appropriate exit points. This is just as important as getting into the trade, as it allows a trader to set up the price targets for the upside and the downside. By setting up a downside target, a trader is mentally telling themselves how much they're willing to lose before jumping out of the trade. (Remember: every trade won't be a winner.) These targets should also be placed into the online brokerage account, which prevents a trader from holding onto a trade too long in hope – usually false hope – that it will come back and head in the appropriate direction.

Bracket trading, as taught by Ryan Litchfield, helps a trader establish discipline when it comes to the stock market. The ability to remove the emotional aspect is so important, which Ryan drives home repeatedly during the course of the Trader's Forge. A key aspect of the two-day program is learning how to use the bracket trading with the most effectiveness. Students who attend the Trader's Forge will leave with the equivalent of 10 months of virtual trading experience after they endure the intense two-day program. It's a great option for anyone who wants to learn a solid strategy for trading the stock market.