If you are wondering if you can succeed at forex trading and don't want to have the full risk involved with a full forex account but want something more challenging than a demo account, then forex brokers are offering an essential service you should consider. Let's take a look at it.

Firstly, a demo account is of little or no use in proving that you have what it takes to make money in forex trading. The reason for this is there is one essential ingredient missing - the pressure of trading real money. Forex is a pressure game and that feeling is created by having real money at risk.

Today there is a new service offered by forex brokers called a protected account.

These accounts act as a bridge between a demo account and a full forex trading account.

Here are its salient features:

- You start with a small balance.

- You trade a set leverage for the duration of the account (even if you are in debit) which is normally a few weeks.

- At the end of the period any profits are yours to keep.

- If there is a loss then the broker covers it.

This means you get plenty of practice, you have a set risk and you have the incentive of knowing any profits made are yours to keep.

This gives you the experience of trading real money and limited risk.

These accounts will give you a far better chance of finding out if you have what it takes to succeed in forex trading, than a demo account.

A demo account is really only useful for learning the mechanics of trading and nothing else.

Keep in mind forex trading is not just about having a method - it's about having the discipline to apply your method.

Its lack of discipline under pressure which causes the bulk of forex traders to lose.

Keep in mind if you don't have the discipline to apply your method, you really have no method in the first place.

Forex brokers over the last few years have started to provide a lot of services to help traders maximize their trading experience and this service is a good one for all novice forex traders to consider.

A protected account gives a more authentic trading experience than a forex demo account and with limited risk, is an option all novice forex traders should consider.