The 2026 Trading Roadmap: PropIQ Reveals the 4 Critical Habits That Create 8X More Successful Traders

That’s the definitive conclusion from Funded Trading Plus’s new, exclusive dataset, PropIQ, which reveals the four non-negotiable habits separating successful traders from unsuccessful ones.

The firm, Funded Trading Plus, has analyzed an unparalleled dataset spanning over five years of live activity across 100s of thousands of accounts and 10s of millions of trades, paying out millions of dollars to those who succeed. They’ve used this data to define success: passing an evaluation and/or making at least one withdrawal.

The findings are stark. If you want to thrive in 2026, you must stop doing these things:

1. Stop Scalping: Time is Your Edge

Key Insight: You are up to 8 times less likely to be a successful trader if you hold a trade for less than 30 minutes.

This pattern suggests that ultra-short-term trading, scalping, is primarily driven by poor strategies or excessive risk-taking on micro-moves. Successful traders approach the market with patience, giving their well-analyzed setups room to breathe and validate.

2. Risk Less Than You Think

Key Insight: Successful traders tend to risk 1% or less per trade. Unsuccessful traders tend to risk more than 2%.

This is the ultimate discipline barrier. Trading is a marathon, not a sprint. The traders who treat their capital responsibly by limiting risk exposure, regardless of how confident they feel, are the ones who consistently stay in the game long enough to compound their returns.

3. Non-Negotiable Stops

Key Insight: Traders that don’t set stop losses are significantly more likely to fail.

The data confirms the oldest rule in trading: protect your downside. Failing to use a stop loss is a psychological trap that turns small losses into account-killing drawdowns. Stop losses are the bedrock of reliable risk management.

4. Hunt for Opportunity Across Markets

Key Insight: Successful traders trade two or more markets on average, while unsuccessful traders focus on just one.

When a trader forces trades on a single instrument (like a favorite stock or FX pair) simply because they want to trade, they often lose. Success is found by scanning multiple markets and only executing when the ideal setup presents itself. Trading multiple symbols is about hunting for quality, not just volume.

Build Your 2026 Strategy on Proven Data

These findings: Trade Duration, Risk Per Trade, Stop Losses, and Number of Symbols Traded are the core principles driving success in proprietary trading. They prove that repeatable, disciplined behavior matters far more than asset class (which FT+ data shows is less important) or how many trades you have open at once (which shows no correlation).

This is why you should trust us: Our educational program is built directly from the analysis of millions of real trading data points, not theory.

The best part? Our comprehensive trading education program, built around these verified PropIQ insights, is available free of charge to every trader who opens a simulated trading account with Funded Trading Plus over $50k. You simply have to add the code “PropIQ” at checkout.

Stop guessing what works and start trading with an edge backed by data.

Learn the four critical habits to maximize your trading potential in 2026. Purchase your simulated trading account and access our free educational program today.

New to Forex Trading?

If you need to brush up on the fundamentals before tackling an evaluation, download our comprehensive, free guide, Forex 101, written by Andrew Lockwood, Head of Trader Education at Funded Trading Plus

[Download Your Free Forex 101 Guide Here]