Discretionary Equity Trading Journal

While, I usually do not like trading too much the first 30 minutes, because it can be an overly volatile casino. This morning happened to be a morning that gave me a few really nice setups that I fully capitalized on. I am still not feeling 100%, but am ok calling it early today simply because I had an outstanding day.

~$2400 net

Caught NFLX on long and short side and while it feels like it may go lower here, I am going to take my significant profits, because I need to focus on healing. Also caught shorts on STZ and RAX and a little ACT. Executed to plan very nicely, so going to rest up with a smile on my face enjoying the rewards of having the right stocks on my screen and executing. This was actually one of my best days ever.
 
Today is exactly the type of trading that I am trying to avoid. I was not patient enough to wait for my setups. I knew that PETM was feeling like it was going to have a pull back. However, I pulled the trigger too soon and got a bad fill. Got squeezed for a big loss. Then missed the opportunity to get short when it could not break 69, and ended up getting short right before it squeezed back up again past my pain threshold. To make matters worse, I manually exited the position, only to have my buy stop hit right before the stock collapsed again.

Total loss about ($1500)

Complete breakdown of trading principles and fixation on PETM cost me nice trades on a few other stocks that were moving. In addition, now that PETM finally broke out, I am no longer in the game because my max loss was hit.
 
Good luck, sounds very similar to my trading. Are you prop or retail? PETM got me as well today but lulu made up for it.
 
I am prop. What sucks about PETM today was that it was a lack of discipline that really created the losses. Chasing, not waiting for the pull back, etc. Then being past my loss limit, I was not able to get involved with other stuff that I had on my screen.

The largest benefit to discipline is not only in avoiding the big losses and making risk/reward decisions that make sense, but in being able to still be around when good opportunities do arise.
 
Despite being positive, today was a very poor trading day in terms of execution. I let myself get stopped out of PETM several times despite knowing it was trading up, didn't reverse when it made a clear short-term high, and instead of making a significant profit in the morning, let myself get significantly negative trading it. In addition, I was too preoccupied with trading PETM and let my size get too high so I missed early NFLX and AMZN shorts, and then didn't have enough capital available to participate on their significant secondary moves. There were a few other trades I missed in various other stocks by hesitating, being too preoccupied with one stock on my screen (PETM), and by not having enough free capital left over to allocate to trades.

Enough about the negative. As for the positive, after the morning in PETM, I felt like the stock was still very strong, and built up a large position, which I held through all of the midday volatility and noise, and caught a good portion of the afternoon breakout to make me net positive for the day.

$500 net for the day
 
Crushing migraine today and almost an all nighter last night with a crying baby, so I am not really up to give it 100% today. Caught a very light long in AAPL . But, missed my entries long for TSLA reversal and shorts in most stocks on my screen, because I am struggling keeping my eyes open.

Calling it a day $200 net
 
Fantastic day today, on both the profit and on the execution to obtain those profits. Today was unreal. Usually, I have a pretty high percentage win rate. Today was unreal though. I put on so many trades and didn't take a single loss. Tagged Z on the way up, on the way down, on the way up, and then on the way back down again. Tagged NFLX, ACT, and AMZN for nice shorts, and CELG for a nice long.

Net $4,400
 
Good day again today. Could have been a little better with the execution. Made a decision to hide my P&L again while I trade, since it still impacts my psychological mindset seeing the plus and minus, causing me to focus on the profit and loss instead of the trade set ups themselves. Caught TSCO for a short and then a long, and caught NFLX for a short and a long.

$2000 net
 
Have a lot of errands to run today. Happy with my executions for the most part today. Caught a nice short on INFY and a nice long on AMZN. I was very happy with my AMZN trade, because initially I got a bad fill and was stopped out for a loss, but when it held and showed strength, I got back involved at a good price and was able to take it for a nice pop. Took a small loss on LO, but was happy with my execution. Didn't get back involved with LO, since I am calling it a day to run some errands.

$1000 net
 
My nanny is out this week, so I am doing double duty of watching a toddler, while trading. Therefore, I am trading a little light this week, and will be calling it an early day today.

I am not extremely happy with my executions today, but I did do a few things well.

I am upset that I hesitated on pulling the trigger on MYL when it reversed. On the positive, I waited for it to give me another safe entry, and took it for an ok trade, just not as much as I should have captured by getting involved earlier.

I traded FB horribly today. Got stopped out 3 different times today, all on the long side, and missed the nice pop when it finally broke out. I should have been a lot more patient about letting the stock come to me for better entries that I could have then held through. My final stop out, I let me previous stop outs effect my trading, and to minimize the damage I put my stop too close, even though I had a decent entry, leading to me just missing out on the breakout by a penny. I did not have a good reason for my stop placement being there, and this breakout would have more than compensated me for my other two stop outs.

AMZN, I got involved too soon and held it against me too long before getting stopped out. However, I got back involved when it held and took it for a nice trade.

Not a great day of trading in terms of execution, but still net positive, which I will take. Calling it a day now so I can focus on my real job this week of taking care of my toddler in my nanny's absence.

$1000 net
 
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