I'd like to become a better trader

  • Thread starter Thread starter PO
  • Start date Start date
P&L for today +$589 (which is a respectable 7 points per contract before fees on a 6 point range day)
I've reduced my size today to 2 contacts from 3 after the loss yesterday to feel more comfortable trading.

Mark have said that I shouldn't judge my performance based on my p&l alone, so I would give myself a B- for discipline.

The mistake I've made today multiple times is to cut my profitable trade short before reaching the target because I wanted to lock in the money I've made.
 
I'm afraid that after I've made money today I will once again become overconfident and start breaking my own rules. I need to realize that one day doesn't make a trend. And the reason that I made money in the first place was because I followed my rules!


My main goal for tomorrow is not making money, but to be disciplined.
 
I've learned some bad habits and it will take time to unlearn them.


1. Always have stop loses.
2. Dont' trade congestion and flip trades around. Don't force trades, follow the market.
3. Realize that stop loss doesn't only mean for a trade, but also for a day. 600$ a day so far is my daily stop loss and I need to follow this too.
4. keep my trades on until the target is reached or conditions of the trade changed drastically.
 
Quote from Best Loser:

if your question is up from when I started trading on and off 3 years ago, then the answer is not, if since I started the journal, then see above.

don't look at me as a guidance, everybody is different, I know people who make money consistently and I know many more who lose it consistently.

so don't quit your day job just yet :) unless you have enough money to support yourself and for trading for at least 1 year.

And anticipate that it will be much more difficult and stressful then you think, especially emotionally. So if anybody asks me if they should be a trader, I would say if you have a good job and you don't mind it that much, then stick with it.
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your price "above" is for 3 days or 4 days, as for other traders and stuff... they are not my barrometer. At this time you are the sole barometer of my future, though you didnt volunteer for this it is a weight that is on your shoulder, in all seriousness the reason im trying to get an idea for you is that you were on top of the post list, and you keep daily detailed journals that one day hopefully ill be able to undestand but mostly cause you put in effort and recognize when you make a mistake, so if indeed you are profitable then going back and making sence of your journal will be a great learning experience. your not a statisict like 90% loose money, your a guy that takes things seriously as if i take this rout i will
 
Quote from Best Loser:

I see your point, but I think i should give ES a bit longer of a try before I start switching and trading other instruments, because even if my methods work on them, it still take time to learn their price action, where to put stops, retracements, when to exit, etc.

so, for now I'm going to concentrate on ES.
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I'm not asking you switch trading instruments NOW.

I made a suggestion you should AT LEAST determine via backtesting if the Emini ES is the best choice for you. Thus, lets pretend you discover that Emini NQ produces the best results...you can continue trading Emini ES.

However, if/when you get to the point of deciding that Emini ES has beaten you...you will at least know that when you return to trading after taking a break from trading what trading instrument you should be trading (Emini NQ) instead of putting new efforts back into something you have proof via your backtesting results and real trading results is not a suitable trading instrument (Emini ES) for you to trade.

Regardless, as a strong reminder, Emini ES is one of the toughest games in town to trade and if your backtesting results reveals you should be trading something else...such a fact plus your discipline problems that could be the result of trading the price action of Emini ES puts you at an enormous disadvantage against the professional traders that trade the Emini ES.

Never get married to a trading instrument.

Quote from Best Loser:

...I shouldn't judge my performance based on my p&l alone, so I would give myself a B- for discipline.

The mistake I've made today multiple times is to cut my profitable trade short before reaching the target because I wanted to lock in the money I've made.
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Excellent and congrats...good job today.

Mark
 
We have opened outside previous day range, these gaps have a lower probability of filling, so no shorting now, plus very small congested range so far.

YM is leading today, probably will test 12300, so bullish bias for now, but If I see strong signs of reversal, I will change my mind.

have order pending:
buy 2@28.25, stop 27.5
sell 2@ 34.5, stop 35.25

I was thinking about buying @1330 with a stop just below AH low, but didn't pull the trigger for some reason, may be I was hoping to get a better price, but this was a good set up, good R/R.

But there will be many more opportunities. I don't need to get stuck on one and take other trades with a lot R/R to make up for the missing trade.
 
NQ 2400 hit, dow 12300 hit.
what's next from here? probably some consolidation and continue the run up. There is no need to expect the sell off. so far the trend is up. ES 1340 next?
$tick about 0 all morning - short squeeze. 34.5 didn't have any resistance power to it, so 1340 is a likely target and it will make a 10 point range day.

But going long is a bit tricky here, need to see more consolidation at some level or a retracement. I don't like just buying vertical moves because there is no way to put a good stop loss.

Need to be patient and wait for a good set up.
 
Quote from Best Loser:

long 33.5, stop 32.25 - > vwap touched. ORH should act as support now
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stopped out, I got impatient and went long to soon, then tried it again and stopped out again. I needed to wait for a confirmed bounce, but I was impatient and didn't want to miss the up move again.

my trading is horrible today. Missed a long in the morning, got stopped out of my short and now trying to go long to make up for this. But the trend has changed for now.

long 2@32.25, stop 31.5. Now we do have a 1-2-3 bounce that I was supposed to wait for.
 
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