if u draw 2 trendlines on your chart ,u can see a downtrend,you could just short it each time it gets to the top line and put in a 1 point trailing stop til it nears the bottom line and close on the bounce. I assume that the strategy u r using was for the last week or so,not the last 8 years,u sound like u have very little confidence,and u should fix that first,without it it would be hard too succeed at any job. Just about any strategy will work if u know how to trade. Get a little sound activated tape recorder for about $40 and talk every time u trade,i'm buying here because...im getting out here because..at the end of the day go back and listen with an open mind and you will see what you are doing wrong, if you can't fix it,then stop trading,youngtrader is in highschool and making $6k a month,his dads a trader and he,s adopted a successful attitude towards trading,u need to do the same.
Okay, as long as consistency is a problem, then you will have trouble with profits. 2. Markets are dynamic, not static. A one point stop loss may or may not be appropriate in this environment. 3. If you get stopped out, don't be afraid to get stopped out again. If the market goes in the direction that you thought it would, pull the trigger. 4. This is opinion. Profit targets are good, but how about leaving some on the table in case the market far exceeds your projection? 5. You need to understand trends. If you do not push a trending market, it will be hard to be net positive, because the markets do not trend that often. That's all I have to say with the information you have given me. Best Regards Oddi
I tested out range bars 5,10,15 and 20 setting(went back to tic charts). Based on my stats using the 15 to 20 range a 1 point stop is very tight,so I imagine on the 50 you will get stopped out alot. Is the 1 point stop based on your limit of how much your willing to lose per trade or your stats. Going back over that trade if you had set the stop 1 tic above the high or low of the entry bar would you have still been in the trade. My friend a profitable trader who trades 15 range bar on the ER2 uses 15 tic stop or 1 tic above or below the entry bar. In saying all this I try not to let my hard stop take me out. Example hard stop 15 and exit average on losing trade 8. Good luck and good trading
I have nothing more to add, except that I would find a way to get a job at a trading firm where you are surrounded by people that make a living in the markets trading them. Imagine that when you were born, your survival depended on you being able to walk and talk from the get go. The reason we survive is that we have parents that give us the time to learn to walk and talk without having to worry about anything else. Plus, they mentor us with infinite patience. That is the situation you are in - you are a newborn learning to walk and talk with non one to hear the language from, and no one to prop you up when you make mistakes. On a positive note, you appear coachable. Don't underestimate that. Good luck to you. nitro PS Your trading "experience" may actually be detrimental to finding a job at a trading firm. You may find no wants to hire you when they learn that you have traded before. That may seem counter-intuitive, but it isn't and one day you may understand. Many firms want a clean slate, a "nimrod" if you will. FYI. Do what you will with that information.
"I have never understood how people trade with support and resistance. It seems so subjective." I thought the same until I lengthened my time frame. There are two ways to trade any market and the difference between a ROOKIE and a PRO is that rookies wait for the reversal and PRO's are taking profits as the reversal is taking place. If we're going to play in the big leagues, we have to stay objective but we have to trade like a PRO. If you decide to start taking swing trades (much easier), pick your spots, trade them light and loose and turn the intraday charts OFF. Watch the daily and weekly charts and save your eyes. It's way too easy to let this intraday volatility cloud your mind. T http://actionpointsta.blogspot.com/
I am going to have to agree with all the other posters that said your stops are too tight. 1pt stop in the ES will get taken out a lot, it's just the noise. Try looking for larger intra day moves. Maybe you can use your range charts for entries but watch a higher time frame for exits. Obviously anything more than a 1pt stop in your time frame would open yourself up to a negative R/R ratio. So you will have to adapt. Try testing a 2pt stop and look to take trades at support/resistance areas. Find out when chop happens and try to avoid it.
I think swing trading(much easier I believe as well) is not even considered by many daytraders. I myself got to caught up in daytrading because that is how I started rather than finding the best way to trade for my skill set. I lost my edge in daytrading and went to find a new edge which was fruitless. Now I'll focus on longer time frames (daily and higher) where I can trade many different markets and have a full time job w/ benefits and can live a more normal existence and can plan for the future. Hats off to the daytraders here on ET who can make the big $ intraday but for most that is a costly dream not worth pursuing.
If your problem is psychological, I.E. you know how to make money but you self-sabotage, I would recommend trying to find a therapist/trading coach who can help you gain better insight into why you hold yourself back. If your problem is that you have no valid method, and you've been doing this shit 8 years, this is quite clearly the WRONG business for you. Apply the persistence you applied to trading to something that you have the mind for and you will be very successful.