Quote from Hamb-ltrd:
If I have a plan when do I know that it gives me an edge?
If your research tells you that you produce a profit of $xx per year or month and you trade your plan, then you should expect results similar to your plan.
When do I know that the results are due to the plan and not a product of chance?
When your real time trades show the same characteristics of your back tested results. Characteristics could include: win/loss ratio, avg win/avg loss, # of trades per period, stop loss amounts, P/L, holding period per trade.
If your plan gets you into 50 trades per month and at the end of the month you look at your statement and see that you traded anything that moved, then your results are a product of chance and not due to your plan.
Consistency? The market changes face constantly the plan has to be adaptive. When do I change the plan? When do I know that it stops to work and needs to be changed?
If you change your plan more often than 4 times a year, you don't have a plan with an edge.
How I protect my capital? Risk management and money management. I will never be sure what the market will do. I will always see it as âIt looks likeâ meaning âthe odds areâ¦â
It is true that no one knows what the market will do, but you have the choice to take a $20 loss, $50 loss, $200 loss, or let it run against you for a $1000 loss. It's up to you. You're in control of your loss amount. Are you man enough to accept a small loss?
Itâs a tough game isnât it?
It's only as hard as you make it.