God how I hate it when I blow up - it happens. Correct me if I am wrong, but my understanding is that you are going for a point with a one point stop. If so may I suggest an application that will enter your order, place a target stop, and a stop loss order all with one mouse click. In addition it will also trail your stop loss as it goes! Instant discipline!!! The problem is that the only apps I know of only work with IB's TWS...sigh. I use Bracket Trader - it works very well, and it's free.
Thanks Publias, bronks, KB96 and tampa for the encouragement, offers of help, housing and advice. All joking aside, I will have to sit down and formulate a trading plan which I find the hardest thing to do. Once it's in writing, I usually stick to it, but I'm a great procrastinator. tampa, my problem today was not stops but rather failing to quit after being down $X. The fact that I hadn't defined $X yet is another sad story.
you were doing great, and you let one bad day shatter your confidence. the only thing you did wrong is you kept trading with a big loss. write this on the WALL with a marker: CIRCUIT BREAKER -$1000. also, for each consecutive losing trade, sit on the sidelines for 1 minute, 2 minutes, 4, 8, 16, etc.. use that time to figure out what you did wrong (if anything), do some pushups, take a nap, etc.. now get back in there TOMORROW and get your confidence back!
CaroKann, you make good points as usual. My confidence took a hit but it is far from shattered. As for getting back in tomorrow, look at your signature
subie, I am worried. Needless to say, I am not inside of your head, but you just gotta get back on the bicycle. Obviously. from looking at your trades on the good days, you know how to do this. And you also know what went wrong on the bad days. But you can't fix the problem unless you actually implement the fix - i.e. put it in to practice! How am I supposed to have a decent day if I am fretting over you?
Tampa a couple days of reflection never hurt anybody, markets will always be here tommorrow... Just don't let reflection turn into inertia Mr. Sub!!! PEACE and good trading, Publias
Subie wrote: "...markets will always be here tommorrow..." Not if the Commies take over! I say trade, before it's too late!!!
news flash; there are no true 'Commies' left, the internet & wireless cell phone change all of that, now back to regular trading program.
Two of the very best traders I have ever known are Russians. Certainly not communists. On the other hand, they left Russia to come to America. (But economics was not their motivation). RS7