Ignore trading advice on social media because most of it is built to pull you in, not to teach you. It shows only the shiny side — profits, account balances, an easy life — and it goes straight for your weak spot: you need money. The result is that you learn a field where many people lose, from a place where you can't tell what is real.
What does social media actually show you?
You most likely discovered trading through Facebook, Instagram or TikTok. Those platforms show the side people wish for: cars, travel, comfort. Even someone sitting between four walls can build an image of a life they don't live. Imagine what someone selling you something can do.
In the episode Step Away From Social Media, Mohamad points out that the problem is doubled: you are learning a field where many people lose, from a place where much of what you see is fake. Why would you expect a different result?
Why did a money headline pull you in?
Think back to the first trading video you watched. It was probably something like "turn a little into a fortune", "the magic indicator" or "the bot that never loses". It worked on you because you need money, and the person who made it knows that. It's a marketing move that grabs the very reason you're here, then sends you to a link in the bio.
- Starts with the account balance and the numbers.
- Promises fast multiplication.
- Sells ready-made trades or an indicator that says buy and sell.
- Ties trading to money in your mind before understanding.
- Starts with knowledge: a level, an analysis.
- Explains why they entered and why they exited.
- Shows you their thinking, not their balance.
- Convinces you that learning comes before profit.
You saw an account with millions in it. Did a single dollar of it reach you?
Scary jargon: who's hiding behind it?
Early on he joined a channel that posted ready-made trades. Just before a big release the owner wrote: careful, price is moving fast, "the big players" are in. One phrase was enough to make him panic. He pulled his stop without knowing what he was doing, and the account was gone.
Those vague names don't explain anything. They create a mood, and they give the channel owner something to hang every loss on: "they hunted the stops". The reality is plainer. The market has financial institutions, central banks and large firms, and they have names. Someone who learns understands how price behaves instead of fearing ghosts.
There are no fixed rules there
Ask how much capital you need to start and you'll hear contradictory answers: one person says a small sum, another says many times that. Why? Because each one names the figure that fits their audience and their product. Trading has fixed rules, but you won't find them where everyone says whatever suits them.
- An indicator that tells you to buy and sell: it might catch your eye, but it can't decide for you.
- Three methods mixed together: confusion, not experience.
- Endless news and analysis channels: noise that fills your time and empties your head.
- Comment sections full of praise: they tell you nothing about the quality of what you're learning.
The tactics have moved on, too. Once plain lying was exposed, some started posting a losing trade to look "different from the rest". Learn to tell apart someone who explains a loss to teach you from someone who displays it to sell to you.
Why does social media leave such a lasting mark?
A man came to him after years in the market, learning from scattered videos and going nowhere. He said: I don't know how to forget the old information. Every time I try to apply the new, the old comes back at the same moment. That is the real cost. Wrong information doesn't leave your head easily, and it returns when you're under pressure.
That's why Mohamad says that in this case your losses aren't only your fault; a big part comes from where you learned. Knowledge is what pushes fear and emotion out of the decision. When knowledge steps in, there's less room for feelings.
How do you get out of the noise?
- Know what you're looking at
Treat any content that leads with money as marketing until proven otherwise.
- Follow less
Unfollow the channels that fill your day with trades, headlines and praise.
- Pick one source
Someone measured who shows you their thinking and analysis, and learn from them lesson by lesson.
- Rely on yourself
Use what you learn to make your own decisions. That's the next step, in Why You Should Trade on Your Own Analysis.
Stepping away from social media is the first of the means in How to Start Trading the Right Way. You can begin with the free awareness series, then learn with an ordered curriculum at the Academy.
Common questions
Can I learn trading from TikTok and YouTube?
You can discover the field there, but don't build your learning on it. Most of what's posted is marketing that shows wins and hides losses, and it won't give you a coherent method.
Why do some traders show off their accounts and profits?
Because it attracts people who need money. But looking at someone else's balance adds nothing to yours, and it tells you nothing about how they think.
How can I tell trading content is marketing, not teaching?
If it starts with money — numbers, balances, fast multiplication — it's marketing. Teaching starts with knowledge: a level, an analysis, a reason to enter and exit.
Why is it hard to start over after learning from social media?
Because the old information stays in your head and comes back at the moment of decision. Clearing it takes time and patience, and it's possible once you commit to one sound source.
