Thanks for all the ideas and opinions presented (even though I'm not sure what saxon22 refers to as "cars"); I'll definitely have to consider some of them and see what works for me. I only trade US large caps and ETFs so my position size is, at most, 200 shares and I will only have one position open at any time. icarus618, I'll consider your wash drill even though I am trading with my own money.
i'm not sure this is related, but i do find that the more effort/hours i put into my trading day, paradoxically, the less profit i make. its like i/ve got it in my head, i have to work hard for this money.....i do my due diligence, etc. but am flabbergasted at how fast you can be up in your account. i find studying the night before, looking for support/resistance is best. as i trade off one minute charts, it often gives me a good idea when the end is near...ie. lower volume, lower ranges....but is only a rough guide am learning that i will have to settle for a rough estimate only when extracting profits. i ideally, a trailing stop also helps, but then you have to understand the range of your underlying. i also liked what some one said about expecting a larger return....i did that to-day as i gave back about 3/4 of my earnings...so when my last trade was on, i was determined to make as much as i could. also, if you've had a winning streak/loosing streak matters.
Austin, you didn't read his spreadsheet closely enough. He did have a series of entries that took him into 16 contracts before he started exiting at a profit. Saxon22 - fascinating trading. Thanks for sharing your blotter.
There is one magic word..... DISCIPLINE How you get discipline? Practice, practice and more practice....
trading is a funny business, it's almost like you have to allow yourself to take profits because you deserve them! i definitely wouldnt say trading is easy... but i think often times people make it harder for themselves. i believe you must trade like it's 'easy' and remember the market will always be there and new opportunities will be there everyday m-f 9:30-4:00 so chill out, take your damn profits and stop leaving so much on the table. do it like it's easy.... (even though its not) also if you believe you can not take your profits.. then YOU CAN'T
why dont you put a trailing stop on and just sit back and see how it makes you feel inside? maybe light a candle that smells like lavender or some bullshit. Walk away from the screen and accept the risk you took.
I dont know, but its supposed to relax you. Sometimes I walk by body shop in the mall, I imagine what I am smelling right then is lavender. or some bullshit.
Hi saxon22, I have to admit I have a similar trading style to you. The problem I have is when I get caught in a runner that never retraces, consolidates instead and I take a huge loss. Looking at your trades, I see you had an unrealized loss of about 12k before your 16 contracts bounced back. What would you have done if it went even further down without retracing? Do you have any absolute stop loss point? Thanks!