You shorted there because you ignored the volume coming into the market this morning(covering and getting long)and the volume dry up as the low were reapproached. Then if you use channels you could see clearly we were approaching the low end of a channel that had been setting up for over a month. Not to mention that we have not even had a squeeze yet to get the short positions out. This one will probably be pretty dirty. Could see 850+ no problem.
Also ignored my analysis... Also trying to pick bottoms and tops.. As I missed the 822 long, was not flexible enough to pay up and decided to fight the markest from then on...
Clearly I am not updating trades often here.. I have decided periodically will update progress as I feel some pressure maintaining a public journal.. Main reason for updating to perhaps add to the stats of Trader success/failure.. Also to keep the few that have given me a hand posted on how I am progressing... or not. Account showing green shoots??? Hope they are not the kind they say the economy is showing.. If so I am doomed. What have I learned last 2 months or so in ES trading?? I am much more suited to 15 min and 60 min trading... The more I trade, the worse my results as all my losses are usually from hacking myself to death on the 3 min chart which I have politely shown the door. Also going to 2 contracts while playing the 3 min ESPECIALLY disastrous the prior week. This will surely vaporize the account. I still keep a small 5 min but do my best to use it for reference only.. What helped this week? Taking painful "good loss" trades. In the current choppy market you HAVE to take the extreme trade when you see it. VERY PAINFUL to take BUT insanely comfortable shortly after. The patience to wait for and the fortitude to take these "good loss" areas key and if religiously done the potential unlimited. ES trades amazingly within trendlines and price levels. (835, 845, 855, 865, 875, 885... see a pattern?). A factor could also be that volatility has dropped and I tend to do better with lower volatility. Ongoing problems? I gave up over 20 points due to pointless stop outs (2 points)!! Still trading with "some" fear but the value of confidence cannot be understated. Still... one good week (especially one that began from so low) means nothing.. just like the economy beating negative expectations.
Ran across your journal this morning and have thoroughly enjoyed reading it. The dialog between you, Trackstar and some of the other contributors contains useful insights that I hope to incorporate into my own trading. Thank you... Best regards
Retire45, might I suggest you switch to the NQ until you've mastered your setup. The NQ has fewer spike bars that often find 2 pt. stops. Also, the NQ seems to trend a bit better than ES much of the time. Either will blow up your account quickly if you aren't deciplined or have a good plan. I too, suggest using a simulator until you have mastered you setup. Bracket trader is one that is free and works well with TWS data.
Having a good week right now speaks volumes Rashid. Volatility makes trading the ES drastically easier. In fact your stop becomes almost negligible. Right now I continue to be forced to take profits early than I would like because I can see that the market doesnt have the momentum or sometimes volume (friday) to push any further. What I have noticed is when the ES has volatility it goes one direction without any retraces significant retraces. If you have a slightly optimal entry you can just sit tight and cover after 2 or 3 supports have been breached. Still fantastic to see you have a big week!! Congrats!!!
Not the first time I've heard that.... Fully agree NQ seems steadier plus it can be traded in smaller chunks with the lower margin requirement. Frequently I am on one contract ES and wish I had 2 but 2 on ES can be lethal for an account this size... but then I have to relearn all the price levels.. As for the Simulator... I hear you but the closest I may come to that is 1 NQ contract.. I feel I have seen the worst... Thanks for the concern