other - automation. also sticking to the plan. that has helped my discretionary side. i have alerts go off and when levels are hit, i look at the chart for MAYBE 1-2 seconds, and decide right away. if i don't KNOW WITHOUT A SHADOW OF A DOUBT not to take the trade, then i don't take it, period. worked well so far.
I started managing my emotions, which usually manifest as strong feelings in the gut and which usually prevent me from doing the right thing (such as cutting short a loser instead of holding on and hoping for a breakeven exit).
As stupid as it sounds, the only way to be consistent is to do the same thing each and every time under the same market conditions. If you have a set-up or "system", enter your position at the same entry point/signal each time. if you change your entries or criteria constantly, how could you expect to get consistent results....
I would like to add here that it is important not to keep all 'eggs in one basket'. I can relate very well to holding onto an overextended position if it is the only one and all funds are tied up in that one trade. Spreading your risk by opening multiple positions using that same proven criteria should make it a lot easier to cut a losing position and look for another favourable scenario.
this is a good point and i want to elaborate on something. i know i am not the only one who has done this - in the beginning of my trading days and up till about the past six months, i would be on a roll. just unstoppable. then, all of a sudden i would try to fix what wasn't broken. i'd start changing inputs and messing with new things thinking it could only get better. then this eventually would self destruct me into a new low on the account balance. why do we as traders do this? is this a human nature sort of thing? trying to fix what isn't broken, and then breaking it even further.
Some? How 'bout practically nobody. Take T28's recent thread on using the MACD: "Where do I enter?" "Where do I exit?" "What should my stop be?" "What should my target be?" And so on.
The biggest thing that's helped me be consistent is to trade multiple, non-correlated strategies. September is a perfect example. Two of my systems had rough drawdowns. One of them is my bread and butter, accounting for 60% of ytd p/l. Two other systems, one of which has been pretty consistent, and the other, which had sucked most of the year, performed well. A few discretionary trades from a 5th strategy did well and I ended the month up. Not great, but decent considering the first two weeks of sept were my worst of the year. Every strategy and system has it's ups and downs, but if they are truly non-correlated they will combine to smooth out your equity curve. However, it's hard enough finding one positive expectancy strategy, let alone several of them. So it comes down to hard work- again. Something most people just aren't into.
Consistent success for me required at least two decisions: hold each trade for max potential profit, and likewise accept what the market has to offer at any moment in time. I use a filter chart to gauge directional strength / lack thereof. When price action appears to be making a directional push, I hold trades for bigger gains. When price action is sideways in the filter chart, I crowd trailed stops. When filter chart is muddy or neutral, I physically remove myself from the keyboards. When filter charts are 100% directional and I'm in a trade, I likewise physically remove myself from the screens to let that trade breathe. ** Consistency is not a destination or climax... it is more a state of existence traders must cling to as we manage ever-changing markets and ever-constant emotions on a daily basis.
btw <b>lescor</b>, I really enjoyed your post on another thread in this forum about teaching your sister-in-law to trade. Absolutely wonderful story! Great to hear she is up +/- 500% since inception, and I know plenty of men right here (and elsewhere) would be thrilled if their wives could manage anything like that. So much for the curmudgeons who eschew anyone making more than +5% to +50% annual in trading. I presume she did that with stocks, which is much more impressive than via emini futures to boot. Nice story... please send our collective congrats from all of ET to her
well, the first question to ask yourself would be "what's my edge?" if you don't have a quantifiable answer then you better stop trading.