The market will always give you every opportunity to turn a potentially large gain into a small one..... dirty, filthy market!
I TRY to have a different approach, I either want to be stopped out or exploit full profit that I set rather conservatively after having analysed the range I am going for. Of course that part is subjective, but in my opinion it is conservative, basically next area of confluence.
Next time, don't publish your trade in a big proclamation by starting a thread on ET. Just do it. To borrow a phrase.
I think your posts are great, and I'm not trying to discourage that. I'm just suggesting that this particular thread may have put pressure on you that wasn't helpful. I made a transition from scalping to swing trading and it was challenging (self discipline) but not impossible or life altering. You model your market, set your stop-loss and profit targets, and live by it. That's why they have GTC OCO orders in the futures markets. And when I take a profit - the market will certainly keep running. I expect it. But I am taking my piece out of the market and I'm moving on to the next opportunity. If someone needs to buy a bottom or sell a top in order to satiate his ego - then this is just about the worst job to be in. If you need certainty - get a federal government job. I wish everyone good fortune !
Thanks! I'm not into top or bottom calling endeavours, just when you see what I spotted on daily and the charts being this extended following the pandemic major dip, you sorta scratch your head and think to yourself - I think this could be at least an intermediate top.
I've personally never been in a trade that I couldn't second or third guess. You take the very best risk/reward you can model. It's self sabotage that you have to eliminate. And at least from my own experience, that usually comes in the form of inserting your own discretion into a mechanical trading system.
Happens to everyone bud. That is why I don't favor targets beyond first obvious zone of interest, often between 38-50 fib of range I'm trading.
Exactly... if I'd followed my mechanical rules re lod stop vs early discretionary exit I'd be up well over an extra 1k today. Good point