Not so much stress today but anxious at times. Stress is a trade killer. So i really try to manage it. Exercise , rest, diet. getting back into meditation. I try to stay calm during day with deep breaths and breaks and remind myself to relax and just focus . You either lose a set allowable amount or you make $$. it's just 1 trade out of 1000's of future trades. no big deal, right ? ANd i remind myself i'm not trying to catch every move, that will drive you crazy, just trying to take my set ups, trade well and make money. I almost sound like i know what i'm talking about. now i need to back it up with more consistency.
4 trades , +2.00 pts. all in about the first 2 hours hard time getting a read on the mrkt today. felt choppy and a little more volatile. The LOD afternoon b/o kept failing and gave me a bit of decision fatigue. sat out last half hour. now i see a couple clues that will make the read easier next time, i think. Possibly should have been a little more aggressive mid day. i think there were entries i just wasn't reading quite right. I think i also have a tendency when i see chop to sit on my hands too much and take a few extra breaks. Good to realize that as next time i can be aware of my focus slipping and remember that chop doesn't last forever. There can still be good opportunities. looking forward to a volatile and profitable october.
Today proves that one can be profitable w/ a low win %. Well almost profitable. After 7 losing trades - 8.50 pts. Last trade + 9.00. after commish down a bit. Not my preferred way to trade but i like my ability to pull the trigger. My willingness to take a bullet is still a problem. One trade in particular i had a very good entry then bailed when it wasn't working after a few minutes. The trade was still valid so i should have stayed in and it would have been an easy big winner. I think in order to get to the next level i need to trust my ability more, that is, gain more confidence through more experience. I also need to continue to be aware of my mistakes- currently exiting too soon- and make more of an effort to overcome them. In this case maybe a timer would be helpful.
hey, Thats a good realization, conviction in your decisions. Rest is all about risk a management. Remember that you need to capitalize on your winners by adding to them as they validate themself. Dont be afraid to add a few cars after your trade moves nicely in your direction. Managing risk via size is the ultimate trick in making real money. Guru
been reading the journal the whole time man. Looks like you are continuing to improve, especially psychologically. The fact that you're recognizing what you need to work on is a very good sign. Keep going at it. Lets see the charts too!
thanks JP, I've been thinking about proper way to add to a position. Esp. given the volatility and big moves i need to be ready incase i actually get in the position to do it. I'm not sure i trust myself to add to any position but probably the ones where i'm already positive a specific # of pts. Logically the mkt doesn't know or care how much i'm up but psych and $ mgmnt wise it makes sense. Still playing w/ it. jas
You know what i start doing when i get in a trade ? I start watching the bid/ask quotes on the right side of my chart (not shown). I think it's taking my focus away of S/R and the MA yet sometimes i think it helps. Another thing that i think happened was the scale on my chart at the time was too narrow so it was looking like i was close to my stop. In actuality the current price was further from my stop than i was thinking i was seeing. It makes sense in a weird kind of way. So yeah thanks i need to stay calm and objective and see everything.
Only thing that matters is price....looking at ur charts settings...average range of a candle is abt 2 points...a trend or a trade will be only meaning ful over a few candles..!!! Thats rufly 6-8 points. Stop geting in an out of 1 or two candles...ur trading scared. Face the facts. Be realistic....it will take 4-5 candles in opposite direction of the trend to change the direction of the cable...even then price will be in ur range of entry/stop for few minutes...focust on price...let price to reveal its cards...