Similar day trading patterns often repeat on daily basic. For example, you might not see setup 1 or 3 happens today but you're likely going to see setup 2, 4, 5 or 6 taking place. It's a matter of discipline to wait patiently and apply all the rules to trade once a setup appears. So I agree with you that discipline is the only edge in profitable day trading once one has done enough homework to come up with strategies to trade. Assuming one has also implemented risk control mechanism in each setup.
Btw, my PNL graph in Augsust looks like a roller coaster with a tiny gain overall. I often get distracted while taking care of other businesses and I should not chase a setup after missing entry point. Your PNL chart looks much better than mine. Good work.
While Wednesday was rough, I finished strong this week. As mentioned previously, my growth is slower than I want, but I am making progress. Once I reach $1,500 I can trade with up to 3 contracts at a time. Today had a very tight range just 1% below the all time highs. We may yet break out and satisfy the bulls. Below are some of my trades today. When we are in a tight range I go back into scalping mode, and I am satisfied with lots of small gains. The trades below are representative of the whole day. These show a $31 gross profit. Less about $6 in commissions = $25 profit on these trades. (Yes, the brokers LOVE me!) I get lots of flack from the swing traders and the day traders who take just 1 to 3 trades a day and who insist on a 2:1 or greater reward:risk ratio. But it doesn't bother me. I just wave the cash in their faces and smile. $25 is $25 (or $250 E-mini equivalent). There are many days where they are waiting and waiting for a trade, and I have met my goal and am done. BASE HITS BABY! (But to be fair, as mentioned previously, I am still trying to learn to hold longer on trend days, and I am humble when these same guys get 6 to 10 ES points on one trade.) And here is the updated progress spreadsheet and graph to complete the week:
@sstheo,how were you able to overlay the cumulative delta on the Line on Close chart? I've tried it several times on my MultiCharts and Sierra chart platforms but was not able to do that.
Hi Bobiz. I am adding two different versions of the same instrument together. To make it look like mine-- 1) Add the normal prices to a blank chart. I use Line On Close for this chart. Using ESZ9 for this example. 2) Add the Cumulative Delta chart to the same chart. Also Line On Close, but a different color. After step 1, highlight the chart and hit "Insert > Instrument." Select ESZ9. Click on Settings and click "Show Delta" at the bottom (and make sure "Cumulative Delta" type is selected): 3) Then on the Scaling tab, highlight "Screen," then make sure "Overlay Data Series" checked. 4) After all the correct selections, hit OK at the bottom right. This is what you get: 5) Now simply DRAG the bottom price line on top of the top priceline: Important observations: Set up like this, the CDelta chart will always be touching the high and the low of the screen. The numbers on the right are only for the real prices, and the CDelta chart is only relative to the high and low within the time-frame you are showing. The moment you change the scaling on the chart, the CDelta will look very different. So it takes time to get used to things. I watch all 4 main indicies trying to see relative strength and weakness. The Cumulative Delta is often WRONG, but it is right more than it is wrong. The moves up or down in CDelta are USUALLY reflected in prices 1 to 15 minutes later, depending on the time frame you are using. I rarely take the CDelta buying and selling aggression as the true future move, but if I see CDelta going down, I will NOT buy (for example), so more than anything, it keeps me out of bad trades. Let me know if you need more help with this. p.s. Referencing my 4 charts above, notice the BIG move down in CDelta on ES and YM at the end of the day on Friday? HMMMM. This gets me thinking "short on pops" the next day.
OBSERVE the market open. Cumulative Delta wins again. That was a 200 point drop at the Sunday open. The opening prints are untradable, but if you had noticed that CDelta at the close on Friday you might have been able to put in orders or just traded a micro position short.
Sorry to hear it. Even just one Micro can sure inflict a lot of pain with runaway markets in this Twitter- and Tariff- infested world.
Hi sstheo,I've just seen your detailed response now,and can't thank you enough. I've now inserted and overlayed the cumulative delta on my 9m ES chart (which is the only asset that I trade for now),but still need to understand how to use the cumulative delta to probe price action context,and determine the relative strength or weakness of the asset. Any assistance in using the cumulative delta to better understand the surrounding market structures and only trade in context of underlying orderflow will be appreciated.