I know. I know. My mind doesn't see them once i get in a trade. I keep trying to make this harder than it should be.
cables=MA this one will probably run 30 pts more but decent pts for me and i managed to hold through the indecision go or fail stage (not sure why i'm posting so much today. guess i feel chatty. good lessons in the charts too i think)
that last trade ran another 14 after the exit. + 7 on the day, 4 trades Given the volatility i need to be striving for bigger targets. I'm trading conservatively mostly (i rationalize) due to last weeks poor trading. I really need a decent week to get my head back on straight. So far so good. Next i'll work on once and for all my problem of exiting too soon.
good job man just remember to size up on days where gap up is around 1% or more in futures as those trend better. other days keep it to minimum conracts. Size is the ultimate key to manage risk. As you will learn soon. GL
thanks JP. I should start thinking about where i can add rather than where can i take profits. Not that i'm ready to start adding to positions but it's a good mindset and may get me to hold winners longer on the good days. 2 trades -4.25 today. A little forced. Stopped trading early as today looked to be chop. Mostly it was . A couple decent moves late in day it looks like. Next week i expect limited trading. Having work done at our house so at most will get to trade first couple hours only. Last time i wasn't around for trading (August) the markets had some huge down moves. Hopefully this time i don't miss much
I'm back. Only had 2 trades last week if i remember correctly. (Traded from home so don't have record here) A BE and +1.00 Today 1.50 pts on 5 trades. I'm approaching the 1 year mark for my ET journal. I expect going forward i will be posting less. It seems to me that it's becoming rather repetitive which doesn't provide much further education for others. I also don't want this to become a self indulgent forum for me to whine about my lousy trading. Having said that, i like the public journaling and have got some fantastic feedback from other traders. So i will continue posting a couple times a week to document my progress and share any breakthoughs/ideas that may help others. Soon i'd like to post on what i've learned over this past year and what i need to do to get consistently profitable. Just to be clear i am not at all discouraged or frustrated w/ my trading currently. I'm in this for the long haul and feel ready to push it to the next level.
A good day for review. Areas i believe I've improved on over the past year (but will always be working to improve further): 1 I understand the nuances of my set ups much better. 2 I read price action better. 3 Manage my stress levels in trades better through awareness and breathing. 4 Understand my weaknesses better 5 I have more patience and less chasing of trades Areas I need to improve on: 1 Holding winners 2 Holding winners 3 Take all set ups 4 I need to learn to trade strong trend days better. I miss an entry then never find a place to enter. It always feels like chasing. As far as holding winners; i think i finally realize that on "normal" days exiting for 3-8 point profit before a sharp retracement generally works fine. On strong trend days like today the fear of retracement is unfounded. I need to trail my stop well above S/R areas. This is all rather vague yet i think i'm slowly getting it. This is the area i need to conquer and will be working on more specifics. And JP , damn if i had simply used the 20 ema on my 1 minute everything would be beautiful. i posted this chart in Instyncts NQ thread also. Embarrassing really.
Its a journey ... just full of fun...so don't forget to nJoy it A little sarcasm - Whats with you and flat chested trades..i mean flat ema's.. ??? Seriously.... Its like you are playing hide and seek between flat parallel candles. Peekaabooo... I am in and then i am out...!!! Great that you have started to see the difference between Normal and trendy days... Next step would be to take advantage of that with not only holding the trade longer but learning to Add size. That will be the final plunge.... mark my words... that day you will say .... zen...zen.....zenn.....Shit m gonna be rich....!!
My thoughts are you ALSO need to add a framework/context to your trading. This can be achieved in different ways. You need to find what you like and what works for you. Examples you can check out are: market profile, pivots, openning high/low, etc Having such a context will help you with your trades. Personally, it has changed my trading for the better. Good luck!