Just as there are thousands of stock trades that happen each day, there are thousands of reasons to start trading. There are many people that trade because they are looking for financial gain. However, there are also some people that just enjoy the whole process and want to participate in the market economy. There is also a great deal to be learned from trading stocks as you have the opportunity to really see how the government handles commodity regulation. Trading stocks is also a great way to learn how successful companies develop and grow. Today, there are two ways that stocks can be traded. They can either be traded electronically or using the traditional floor exchange. Naturally, today's technology has prompted a push towards electronic trading. Surprisingly however, floor trading still remains as the most popular way to trade stocks. These two methods follow the same principles, but the process in which they are executed differs.