Complacency in trading.

[newwurldmn]

1. journal your emotional state every day. Make yourself say “I’m being complacent”

2. create a checklist. Print it out every day and check off each step. Put it in a file folder at the end of the day.

If you can’t do these two things consistently, you are hopeless in fixing this issue.

No. I would rather say that the issue I'm talking about here in this thread is that I may even stop using the statistical model and go free wheeling instead.

Day 1 - Ample analysis/preparation and careful trading.

Day 15 - Getting relaxed and may skip analysis/preparation altogether.

I've automated everything I can at this point, I think. I'd love to add an indicator for a more objective measure and to give me objective entry/exit points, but so far I haven't found anything that's reliable enough.

 

[Bad_Badness]

Psychological things didn't work at all.

I think this is a key point. The solution you mention is direct, concrete, you feel it in the mind and body. A great reset and motivator. The stuff that is all in your head, is too easy to sidestep. and people go around in circles.

My partial "solution" is reducing the mental overall load from the start using modern tools, so I can put all my efforts into making the best entry and exit consistently.

The analogy would be moving into the 5th floor unit. Manual traders read charts and spend a lot of real-time interpreting and reevaluating them. This is like walking up the stairs with boxes. Others like me, use the code to do as much evaluation as possible, and present the critical results (positive & negative) to me in the form of visual and audio signals. This like using a hand truck and the elevator.

There seems to be a masochistic thing that traders, especially men, do. It is, as if some how you just need to be tougher, stronger and show no weakness. The more work, the better! They think "Work harder" instead of smarter because coding is "too hard" which is ironic, imo.

 

[Laissez Faire]

Some really good stuff here on the last few pages. Thanks, guys and gals.

 

[NCC1701]

Some really good stuff here on the last few pages. Thanks, guys and gals.

you keep funding small accounts? what is your day job?

 

[Laissez Faire]

you keep funding small accounts? what is your day job?

Yes. I have a mundane engineering job which only pays modestly, so I'm not able to fund larger accounts. And that may even be a good thing.

 

[NCC1701]

Yes. I have a mundane engineering job which only pays modestly, so I'm not able to fund larger accounts. And that may even be a good thing.

Obviously good you haven't lost bigger accounts. Was trying to think about what used to happen once I felt too good about things, usually overtrading and taking risks that I would not have taken previously as I felt like a market genius.

I am back trading after leaving for many years. More patience, calmer, and with a better overall life right now versus then but I can't play the alternate scenario so I do not know how life might have been had I been successful previously. I guess I would offer this, don't ever give up the day job until you have enough cash and passive income to survive continued failure, then maybe you will get sick of the pattern and evolve into what you want.

 

[Laissez Faire]

Obviously good you haven't lost bigger accounts.

For sure. They do add up over the years, though. My latest accounts have been liquidated around breakeven, though, as I promised myself to never let an account dip below my initial stake. This latter one I liquidated for around a $2K loss, so nothing dramatic.

I'm far more disciplined these days, so there's no doubt improvement. I'm sure if I funded a $100K account back in the day it's possible I could have lost it all.

Was trying to think about what used to happen once I felt too good about things, usually overtrading and taking risks that I would not have taken previously as I felt like a market genius.

Yes.

I am back trading after leaving for many years. More patience, calmer, and with a better overall life right now versus then but I can't play the alternate scenario so I do not know how life might have been had I been successful previously. I guess I would offer this, don't ever give up the day job until you have enough cash and passive income to survive continued failure, then maybe you will get sick of the pattern and evolve into what you want.

Sounds good.

I've been full-time two or three times. Great learning experience and an opportunity to get a ton of research done in addition to actual trading. But I was in no position both financially and trading wise to be a full time trader.

However, it have put me in a position where I should know enough to be able to trade part-time alongside a full time job. The plan is to scale down my day job at some point if I can get anywhere with my trading, but quitting it completely won't happen anytime soon.

 

[Laissez Faire]

So, I funded a new small account that I started trading the 13th of March and I nearly tripled it since then over 21 trading days with a few bumps along the way. This is day trading e-mini futures. No swing trades.

I think I may have solved the issue of complaceny by simply arriving fresh for every new day or week.

In the past, I would erroneously think that if I were ahead I had a cushion of profits to lean on and as such could allow for larger drawdowns or larger unrealized losses playing with profits.

Now, my focus is on daily profitability and what I earned yesterday or last week is history. I'm also very cautious and know very well how easy it is to lose money in this game and do my best to not get too confident in my analysis knowing it's all probabilities and maybe even luck. At the same time, I do press my winners and have taken home some big winners while limiting the downside.

Maybe, I have a paper thin edge. We'll see.

 

[volpri]

Discipline is doing WHAT needs to be done, WHEN it needs to be done, HOW it needs to be done, through paying attention to DETAIL, and doing whether you “FEEL” like it or not.

 

[volpri]

Discipline, in the long run, is fodder for champions. Without it a lucky champion will soon run out of luck. Think of olympic champions that were great but lacked discipline and soon were no longer champions.