1. Hope has no place in trading. In a superior system valid for today, the expectation of the trader should be that this trade may win or lose, but X times out of Y, it will win, so today's results really don't matter much in the life of the system. 2. I really don't care. It is always nice to see several winners in a row, especially before a long weekend, but probability of my systems make no such promises, so it matters not to me how this trade ends. 3. Back to probability. If you trust the system of your own creation, there is no fear but that your system will break. And that will not be shown in one trade. 4. There is no control of your money once you send it out into the web, to be manipulated by other traders and boxes. It is that manipulation that we all depend on for volume and, therefore, volatility. If, by control, you refer to hard stops in place at all times, yes I agree. With the exception of scalping, however, such stops have no influence on price action. 5. Again, hope has no place in trading. Hope is an emotion, with as much place in trading as tits on a sterile woman.
I'm thinking about what I need to see in order to apply certain further actions from me. If A happens, then I apply B. If c happens instead I apply D and so forth. Just basically running down the checklist of things I've determined necessary to either hold, add more or exit.
Before you even enter a position you're supposed to have analyzed your potential losses and possible outs first. After actually pulling the trigger, I immediately enter the stop loss order. In the back of my mind, i've already prepared myself for the worst outcome. Does wonders for lessening stress/anxiety. Just remember... a well thought out entry point = 2 separate orders. One to get in, one for stop loss.
I did not want to respond because I felt my answer would be too much of a cliche but what the heck, I'll do it anyway, I basically double check to make sure the stop(s) and target(s) were all placed correctly then I sit back and relax. If you trading with an edge, there is no need for hoping, you either trust your positive expectancy or you do not, and if you don't you should not be trading it. No Heat