A week of sim trading, then a week of real trading. Market orders and reversals. Open to close. No stops. The sim trading was characterized by consistently disappointing performances, careless omissions and reckless mistakes. I reasoned that problems would iron themselves out once I transitioned to the real thing. They didnât. I thought a temporary abstention from ET would give me clarity. It didnât. Now thereâs really no difference between sim-trading and the real thing as far as Iâm concerned. If anything, my real trading was permeated by a bland indifference which wasnât present beforehand. A kind of gross insensate detachment, like sitting in a favela lighting hundred dollar bills. Thursday, I went from double the ATR intraday to about break-even by the close, largely through a stubborn attachment to the What-Must-Come-Next that didnât. Fridayâs blundering clumsiness was an even louder message that I was unequipped and ill-prepared. A lackluster week had ended in disgrace. Itâs readily apparent why the majority of IR posters stick to an entry/exit mentality and presumably use stops. Mistimed reversals can be very costly. Mistimed reversals during parabolic trends can be devastating, particularly if followed by a late return to the right side of the market. Two such trades can evaporate an entire dayâs worth of gains. So I regressed to sim-trading today, and after the numerous cautionary experiences, pared back the trading frequency and enforced EOB action. And another sub-par, sub-ATR day.
The Day Trades marked on the chart. <img src=http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/attachment.php?s=&postid=2268583>
I understand the markers didn't come out too clearly, so I've changed the colour of the short trade markers and added text markers. <img src=http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/attachment.php?s=&postid=2269359>