Five Steps to Trading for a Living

For the past five years my sole source of ingee has been profits made from trading on the forex market. Over that time period, many people, perhaps somewhat envious of my ability to earn money from home without having to report to a boss, have asked me what it takes to trade for a living. How can one arrive at a point where one feels confident enough to leave ones regular employment, strike off on ones own with no guarantee of a regular paycheck, and put what might conceivably be ones entire savings up to that point at risk in the markets?