The Evolution of an E-mini Trader

on your trades you say you had a good entry, yet they were losers. that is not a good entry. yes, ultimately you may have had the direction right but your timing was off.

by saying you had a good entry but no follow through, you end up feeling good about yourself but aren't being critical enough of your trades. you are entering the market in poor locations. that was your problem today.

not trying to be rude, just constructive criticism. trading is like real estate ... location, location, location!

 

I agree that losing trades do not mean you had a poor entry. Also, A winning trade dousnt mean a good entry.

Many times over the years I have made profits on stupid trades. Whenever you make a profit on a stupid trade, it reinforces a bad habit and you get hit several times before you hopefully learn your lesson.

hasnt anybody ever held onto a losing trade that you should have exited and have it come back to be a winner. How about picking bottoms and tops because you figure you know more than anybody else, and it works! next thing you know your proud as a peacock and doing it over and over again and losing a boatload of cash waiting for the same miracle that helped you before.

Prove your strategy works and then stick to it with your life.

 

Huios,

This reply is based on your Trade 3 and Trade 4...

I've mentioned this before. I see a major problem with your Price entry and/or exits via the 3min chart.

Here's the problem. What ever chart interval your using...use it.

What's the point of using 3min chart if your entering trades in your signal candle at the 2min 15sec mark (example only) with 45secs remaining for the candlestick to change or reverse it's signal.

Simply, stop being trigger happy or stop being too scare your going to miss something.

You must let your signal candlestick complete and enter the trade as soon as possible in the next candlestick.

Here's an example story: A guy uses the 30 min chart. The 10:00am - 10:30am est candlestick interval (1 candlestick) looks interesting but no trade signal.

Then at 10:32am...he sees a bullish candlestick with 28mins remaining before that candlestick completes itself at 11:00am est...thinking this interval will complete as a trade signal...he jumps in early.

So he goes Long...3 mins later...at 10:35am est...the candlestick price reverses and heads south...by 10:59:59am est the candlestick is 8 points below his Price entry and he's stopped out for a loss.

Huios, this is basically what your doing.

Your entering and exiting in the same 3min chart interval.

If your signal is in interval 1...then your entry should be the open of interval 2.

Your getting a signal in interval 1 before it completes...then the price changes and your exiting for a profit or loss in the same interval 1.

Now...had those candlesticks been wide range with some volatility...I can understand why your entering and exiting within the same interval.

Is it possible your using some sort'uv fixed stop that's in conflict with your interval of choice (3min chart).

For example...going back to the guy with a 30min interval choice. He would probably be exiting and entering his positions within the same candlestick if he was using a stop of 2 points or less.

I myself will exit a position in the same interval...but only because of sudden increased volatility that I feel may change the candlestick into a wide range body or maybe my stop was based on the High or Low of the previous candlestick (never use the close of the previous candlestick).

M.A. Perry
a.k.a. NihabaAshi

 

Huios,

You hit the nail on the head. You have to much shit on your chart. KISS principle. I have 1 indicator and no lines whatsoever, no volume and no ma's. Remember this when you place a trade you have a 50/50 chance. Its how you manage the trade thats important. Watch price action. It tells you everything.

Chin up, there is light at the end of the tunnel.

 

@M.A. Perry
a.k.a. NihabaAshi


Niha, great technical advice for a systematic entry procedure on your last post. i felt the need for something like this in my head, but could not get to the piont...THANX for this thoughts to work with.

trading

 

Hey krt,

Rude, not at all.

I agree with cta-trader and Magna. Looking back at these last 4 days trading real $$$ again, these days have not been the best days to start out on. I am starting trading in a time when my system, basic trend following, would be in a drawdown period. That bites.

8/15 - basically a 10 pt range with some big spikes. Yes, I missed a few entries that would have made me some points, but overall, not my kind of day.

8/16 - a tough 15 pt range day, not counting the morning spike down. Again a few missed entries.

8/19 - trend day of 20 points. Here is when the missed entries really cost me.

8/20 - 10 pt range day.

My system works on the trend days of 25-35 pts, like 8/14, that 40 pt run in the afternoon.

The problem is determining whether the day is going to be a rend day or not, before the bell. LBR has some ideas that I am trying to incorporate outside my trading day, NR7's and the like.

H

 

Just love your subtly.



H

 

so you just need a systen before the system to filtering out the trend days...

come on, thats just a flight reaction IMO, dont get me wrong...just look at the daily chart and you will get a pretty good impression on what to expect in the session ahead. and if its not going to be as expected, that just a signal in itself.

trading

 

huios,

i guess everyone prefers those wide range days (me too). but if we check back to 97 when the sp500 traded around the same levels like today - the avg. daily ranges were much smaller than they are today. if market ever returns to those conditions (which are maybe more "normal" then todays) - things won't get easier.

but on the other hand - what is "normal"

good trading to you!