The stock market is not a gamble if you play it right. There are always signs whether it be charts, financials, new products, etc that can give an trader an edge. Lazy people gamble, smart trader gather information and make informed decisions. Here are things you should take into consideration before trading.

Never place market orders (those with no specified buy or sell price) before the opening of the trading day

Strange things can happen at the opening bell, so you may find yourself paying much more than you intended on the buy side, or you may receive far less than you expected on the sell side. This is always a risk with a market order, but it’s most acute at the opening, when orders tend to pile up from traders reacting to last night’s (or this morning’s) news. If you must trade at the opening, protect yourself with a limit order.

Always check the “bid size” and the “ask size” for any exchange-listed stock before entering a buy or sell order.

A good real-time quote system will tell you not only the last price of a stock, but also the bid price, the ask price and the number of shares being bid for or offered at those prices. When the bid size is larger than the ask, it’s a sign of underlying demand for the stock , so don’t hold out much longer if you were planning to buy. By the same token, a large position on the ask side implies there are lots of sellers eager to get out. 

These are other tips you need to wrap your head around and learn.

* If  you day/swing trading, it may require 1-2 years to be profitable.
* You need to have clear trading strategy.
* There is no 'magic' strategy to trade. It takes patience, discipline.
* You will make many mistakes before you become profitable.
* You have to learn from your mistakes.
* Keeping a trade journal will help.
* Discipline and money management are vastly under-rated. Without knowing/understanding these, any trader will be doomed. This is HUGE to remember.
* There are many places online to learn trading. 
* Simple trading systems are best.
* Many different indicators will lead to more confusion/paralysis.
* Avoid illiquid counters. They are easy to manipulate.
* Watch Tim Sykes video lessons! He doesn't make videos for no reason. You guys need to watch until you understand what he is trying to get across..
* Daytrading/intraday trading will take a long time to master. However, once you do so, you will make regular income.
* Trading is about mastering greed/fear, being objective. 
* Hard work is under-rated. A lot of chart-time is necessary to understand charting.