I am very happy about todays trades. It was another losing day, but I am very much at peace with the trades I made. 9:47 1272.00 10:04 1280.00 These where a couple trades that I wanted to take, and probably would have had I not been held back by the strict rules I made for myself this morning. 1263.50 -2.5 S 10:16-10:18 This one was my fault. I saw the pullback, waited, set to get in if it broke down at 1265.00 (a bit low, but I wanted to be sure). Then I blinked, and when I looked again it was at 1263.50, so I hit the short. I was not very happy with myself for missing my set price, then rushing in while it dropped, something I hate to do. But as it turned out I bought it just when it went back up a few points. I had set only a 2.5 point stop, and it went back up 3 points (to 1266.50) before dropping again (though only slightly, it was a bit of a choppy drop after the first 18 point dive). I'm debating going to a 5 point stop, that's what I had when paper trading, and it seemed to work best. I just don't like the risk at this point, but then I may lose 2 trades for $100 when one could be a $100 loss and the other a $200 gain (as in today). This seems like another issue of looking at the short term, while ignoring the long term. Only with losses rather than gains as yesterday. 1257.50 -2.5 S 10:37-10:39 This trade I was definitely trying to get in to early. I remember thinking to myself that this market was going to break this steep trend on one of these pullbacks. Had I waited at least for a bar to close down, something to confirm it going back down other than just hitting the trendline. 1259.50 +1 S 11:14-11:20 In looking back I don't think I had enough evidence of it dropping to get in, so it may have been more luck than anything that I got in so close to the top here. In any case, it was a great trade, except that I moved my stop the second a couple points were made, even though this move about copied the last and I should have been expecting at least a little chop, not a straight dive. Now I probably still would have gotten out when it was pulling back up to 1259.00, rather than holding for the whole drop, but it still would have been more than just a point. I think fear was an issue here, fear of taking a third loss for the day. 11:40 I set a limit buy at 1257.00 to buy at the top of this move (after it hit once), only wavered at 1265.50 before dropping though. 12:04 I was tempted to buy the pullback from the anthrax scare, it looked pretty obvious for at least a few points, but i'm not going to risk playing news for a little while. It also would have been a scalp, so I'm glad I didn't play it for that reason alone. 12:26 Again, I wanted the price to come to me, but I was about .50 to high. It didn't turn out to be a very good trade in any case though. Points -4 Trades 3 W/L 1/2 Profit after Comm. -$94.40 Summery 1. I found that the rule I made this morning of having 15 minutes between trades was very helpful. After the first loss, I very much wanted to get back in, again out anger that the market had taken my stop by .50, I wanted to prove that the trade was right and not let the market win. But I still forced myself to wait, and had I jumped back in I can see that I probably would have lost again in the next pullback. It seems most emotions caused by one trade, can be subdued by waiting, then allowing you to trade again thinking clearly. 2. I think I agree with you AAA, I think keeping it at the first 15 minutes is plenty. I have had a number of good moves in the morning also, and it seems my problem of determining the type of day can be somewhat eased by more morning research. Of course if there is something else unusual (50 point gap) that happens, I'll be sure to sit out longer. 3. I'm not sure that it does much good posting paper/missed trades as they are, as I now know, not at all close to reality. I just found it interesting that for the most part they were all good trades. I will have to keep an eye still on the fear of missing trades. Well, I think that is all I can post for tonight, very tired. I am excited to start another day tomorrow also. After three days, I am now down in my account $150 even. It seems $50/day is quite a good deal for the knowledge I am gaining though. And I'm sure it beats a $1000/day seminar that it seems so many people take. Ben "I have set the Lord always before me, because he is at my right hand I will not be shaken" psalm 16:8
Why pick a trading analogy where you fight against yourself? Fighting against yourself is the definition of internal conflict. Why not pick an analogy where you use your skills to win such as a game of skill like chess or golf or an analogy like hunting where you stalk your prey? If your goal is discipline (which it sounds like) then understanding your limitations is probably a better way to go rather than fighting against your impulses. I think the saying that ultimately we trade our belief system is apropos.
oversold STOC trade, if you put on MACD I'm pretty sure you could find some divergent trade. Note: work in choppy day only.