Thanks for your comments, my disappointment isn't with the dollars, it's my inability to follow such a simple trading plan. I am not sure how I am going to fix this problem but I will. Until then I will continue to do prep in the morning and post trades afterwards. For today
This is what I wished I had done today SLA as I see it. I know I said I would post a chart of what I actually did but I would have to print a 15 sec chart with 21 trades that lost me $25 after commissions . Clearly trading a 15 sec chart is not the way to go. I have been following a few threads on meditation and behavior modification, hopefully they will help me execute better 1. price failed to break above the LSH and was below the DL 2. sold @ 7.25 3. covered @ 2.75 brk of the SL this should have been a SAR 4. brk DL sell 3499 5. exit short this was another SAR you could see the HL forming in RT so its not inconceivable exit would have been sooner, allowing entry where instead I exited 6.bought at the highs easy to see the small hinge in hindsight 7. sold @ 93.75 with a quick exit 8. price failed to trade above 98.25 and was trading below the DL sold @ 94 9. exit the short
There will be days when the market is fast. 15 sec ret entries will look brilliant. Then there are days like today when you pay a high penalty for betting on speed. So instead of bouncing around from tactic to tactic, would it not be better to gain a deeper understanding of the underlying? When is a market likely to move fast? Why? What are the markers (in addition to Demand/Supply Lines) that indicate so? It is work. But I imagine that once one has it, travelling through the territory is like flying like a crow instead of laying down the back pack, opening up the maps and trying to determine whether one should take the 15s or not.... This is a question for me as much as it is for you fellow traveller
Looking at the daily chart, Price is rallying and is above the mean the areas I will be watching today are the upper channel line at 3560-70 the midpoint of the entire range is also 3570 ,and 3480-90 with a small bullish bias
4-21 price formed a hinge in overnight trading which just fizzled out, however 3542,3530 and 3521 the high low and MP of the hinge may be something to be aware of at the open. I am trying to eliminate having a bias so I will identify markers of buying and selling as I see them. The UL of the TC is 3550 + - which is only 20 points away. the mean 3480 +- is reachable given the size of the swings over the last 2 weeks. My trading plan is based on SLA ,with a particular attention to a relaxed mindset and more patience. If I feel this slipping away I will stop trading and go into observation mode
Maybe the next time someone asks us what we do, it seems like a good description of what we do that we are very good wait-ers more than just traders! There is a phase of SLA where we are trying to overcome hesitation, etc., and at least for me I seemed to be trading a lot -- and that might have been the purpose of it. At the end of the time Db would say he took 2 trades. The implications are kind of cool, of being a trader and telling people we are a professional waiter... and a very good one!
4-22 price is OB using the TCs on the daily chart from the march highs The trend on the 60 min is up although there was selling pressure at 6:00am. If price is to resume its decline it shouldn't advance to much farther. The levels I am watching at the open 3561.75 and 3545.75 it is 8:10 as I'm writing this so with no bias let price guide you.
I wasn't sharp mentally today, I felt prepared and I think I was seeing price unfold but I didn't take advantage of it. I am in my defense doing Niko's scratching and reentry routine so that may have distracted me, but with more practice it will get better. 1. price opened and gave longs a RET 2. price formed a DT when buyers ran out of gas and or sellers pushed harder there was a nice REV trade here 3. RET for a short 4.price halts its decline at 57 breaking the SL and giving longs a RET at 9;48 not shown 5. we have HHs and a possible long 6. trading range and for once I didn't drive myself crazy trying to trade it! 7. Price made a HH and RET for another long In hindsight this looks so cut and dried it didn't look quite as clean in RT even though I felt like I was seeing it