January Trading Journals
- Thread starter Hitman
- Start date
Uptick:
I was watching S and TGT. TGT was trading near the figure and then poped to .35 cent, I had this feeling that I "missed" something and I was in the mood to get it back. When RLX went up I took S from consolidation at .30, and that is the kind of trade I would take every single time. Dow was holding above 100 and I thought there would be a second leg. RLX about to break the open and that for me is a bread and butter set-up knowing that at the very minimum I should break even on the trade.
What killed me was taking KSS, after I took KSS, S started to pull back (I was in the money by 15 cents) and I hesitated. Then he printed .20 immediately and was showing .10 and by then I knew I was hosed. However, when RLX pulled back I was looking at HD (second biggest cap) which was super strong, and I was thinking WMT will eventually join the party.
Up until that point, I can stlll make a case, but as the index collapsed I refused to get out and bought 3 other RLX's for a bounce as I thought RLX would bounce off previous intraday low, the problem was that I could not pare out KSS/S at good prices and I held 400 (originally I took just 500) KSS all the way down for that "it is gotta squeeze" syndrome, afterall futures looked strong at the time and I thought KSS was choppy and worst case scenario was stucking in the same range. When WMT broke into a new low I knew I was smoked and I gave up early morning's work.
You can call it frustration, or "too much" conviction, it was my biggest mistake of the game. I had an acceptable day with $450, I wasn't happy with it, and when it dipped to $350 I was like "I gotta pare those out and try to finish above $400", then at $300 I was like "damn let me wait for a small squeeze because I don't think this thing is going to tank all the way in", you get the idea, by the time I was at unchanged, I was like "holy crap let me get out before I am down for the day", and that was low of KSS and around where I got out before a big squeeze finally hit.
This is why I said discipline can not be taught, every once in a while you are guaranteed to lose it, to some degree. It is the typical "is it a pullback or a reversal" syndrome, and the difference is while I did not add to my loser, I bought more for the sector which is the same thing.
I was watching S and TGT. TGT was trading near the figure and then poped to .35 cent, I had this feeling that I "missed" something and I was in the mood to get it back. When RLX went up I took S from consolidation at .30, and that is the kind of trade I would take every single time. Dow was holding above 100 and I thought there would be a second leg. RLX about to break the open and that for me is a bread and butter set-up knowing that at the very minimum I should break even on the trade.
What killed me was taking KSS, after I took KSS, S started to pull back (I was in the money by 15 cents) and I hesitated. Then he printed .20 immediately and was showing .10 and by then I knew I was hosed. However, when RLX pulled back I was looking at HD (second biggest cap) which was super strong, and I was thinking WMT will eventually join the party.
Up until that point, I can stlll make a case, but as the index collapsed I refused to get out and bought 3 other RLX's for a bounce as I thought RLX would bounce off previous intraday low, the problem was that I could not pare out KSS/S at good prices and I held 400 (originally I took just 500) KSS all the way down for that "it is gotta squeeze" syndrome, afterall futures looked strong at the time and I thought KSS was choppy and worst case scenario was stucking in the same range. When WMT broke into a new low I knew I was smoked and I gave up early morning's work.
You can call it frustration, or "too much" conviction, it was my biggest mistake of the game. I had an acceptable day with $450, I wasn't happy with it, and when it dipped to $350 I was like "I gotta pare those out and try to finish above $400", then at $300 I was like "damn let me wait for a small squeeze because I don't think this thing is going to tank all the way in", you get the idea, by the time I was at unchanged, I was like "holy crap let me get out before I am down for the day", and that was low of KSS and around where I got out before a big squeeze finally hit.
This is why I said discipline can not be taught, every once in a while you are guaranteed to lose it, to some degree. It is the typical "is it a pullback or a reversal" syndrome, and the difference is while I did not add to my loser, I bought more for the sector which is the same thing.
Have you ever tried to trade the day without an open view of your p&l???
You are making descions based on it as if the market knows how much you are up or down...
I asked Stockk and Hitman the same questions and have made a few posts explaining the individual expectation of each individual trade. Yes, psychology matters, we all know that. But adjusting your trading strategy midway through the course of the trading day for the purpose of ending the day in the green is letting fear affect your trading. The same is true when you are down midway through the day and you become extra cautious because you don't want that medium loss to turn into a big loss. Odds are you will perform worse because you are trading outside of your normal trading strategy.
If you say the reason you slow down or are extra cautious is because you recognize that midday drawdown does indeed affect your trading, then you should stop trading for the remainder of the day, not try to prod on through.
Also many of these analogies to sports games are invalid because scoring in trading is cumulative. If football standings were determined by cumulative points at the end of the season (rather than W/L records), you won't see teams sitting on the ball to run out the clock.
When you have the advantage and can execute your game plan properly, then do it! Don't adjust your game plan and make psychological excuses for it. This is why teams like the St. Louis Rams and Steve Spurrier's teams throughout the years are feared by other teams. They see an advantage and execute their game plan to maximize their gain against that advantage when other teams would just go more conservative. This applies to both offense & defense.
That's my 2 cents.
You are making descions based on it as if the market knows how much you are up or down...
I asked Stockk and Hitman the same questions and have made a few posts explaining the individual expectation of each individual trade. Yes, psychology matters, we all know that. But adjusting your trading strategy midway through the course of the trading day for the purpose of ending the day in the green is letting fear affect your trading. The same is true when you are down midway through the day and you become extra cautious because you don't want that medium loss to turn into a big loss. Odds are you will perform worse because you are trading outside of your normal trading strategy.
If you say the reason you slow down or are extra cautious is because you recognize that midday drawdown does indeed affect your trading, then you should stop trading for the remainder of the day, not try to prod on through.
Also many of these analogies to sports games are invalid because scoring in trading is cumulative. If football standings were determined by cumulative points at the end of the season (rather than W/L records), you won't see teams sitting on the ball to run out the clock.
When you have the advantage and can execute your game plan properly, then do it! Don't adjust your game plan and make psychological excuses for it. This is why teams like the St. Louis Rams and Steve Spurrier's teams throughout the years are feared by other teams. They see an advantage and execute their game plan to maximize their gain against that advantage when other teams would just go more conservative. This applies to both offense & defense.
That's my 2 cents.
I am not Protrader / TradeRX... please define alter ego
I feel that Protrader / TradeRX asks intelligent questions and makes pertinent points... yes, his remarks lack sensitivity, but the issue is that he is one of the few participants that puts me on the defensive through his comments... I respect his capability to do so... I have developed a perverse respect for Protrader / TradeRX and his whacky humor over time... don't ask me why, I can't explain it. It is a weird, inexplicable, love-hate relationship.
<b>Have you ever tried to trade the day without an open view of your p&l???
You are making descions based on it as if the market knows how much you are up or down...
I asked Stockk and Hitman the same questions and have made a few posts explaining the individual expectation of each individual trade. Yes, psychology matters, we all know that. </b>
I wonder if we have a cultural thing at work here. I suspect that both Hitman and Stock are of Asian origin. Perhaps they will correct me if I am wrong.
In my experience (and I do hope this is not racial stereotyping) Chinese people in particular seem to be very superstitious by western standards, believing a lot more in luck, for example, than we do.
If they are from a different cultural background it is perhaps unfair for us to impose our views on what behaviour is right and wrong, particularly if it contradicts deeply ingrained thought patterns resulting from their cultural origins.
I am not far removed from Americans, just above the border in fact, but I recall management training courses given by Americans that left all of us Canadians cold. The reason being that Americans seem to embrace all types of touchy-feely psycho-babble concepts in the workplace which we Canadians were unable to relate to and which would make us feel silly and uncomfortable if we tried them. So cultural background does make a difference in how we see issues and how we behave.
You are making descions based on it as if the market knows how much you are up or down...
I asked Stockk and Hitman the same questions and have made a few posts explaining the individual expectation of each individual trade. Yes, psychology matters, we all know that. </b>
I wonder if we have a cultural thing at work here. I suspect that both Hitman and Stock are of Asian origin. Perhaps they will correct me if I am wrong.
In my experience (and I do hope this is not racial stereotyping) Chinese people in particular seem to be very superstitious by western standards, believing a lot more in luck, for example, than we do.
If they are from a different cultural background it is perhaps unfair for us to impose our views on what behaviour is right and wrong, particularly if it contradicts deeply ingrained thought patterns resulting from their cultural origins.
I am not far removed from Americans, just above the border in fact, but I recall management training courses given by Americans that left all of us Canadians cold. The reason being that Americans seem to embrace all types of touchy-feely psycho-babble concepts in the workplace which we Canadians were unable to relate to and which would make us feel silly and uncomfortable if we tried them. So cultural background does make a difference in how we see issues and how we behave.
Magna
Administrator
From a previous post of mine made to Candle on 11/15/01:
For someone who is getting more and more zen-like as the months go by, I'm surprised that the many incarnations of tradeRX tick you off so much!
Hmmm, almost seems like the devil needs God...and God needs the devil. When Commisso asked if ProTrader1 is Candle's alter-ego he may have been onto something (not literally, but metaphorically).
For someone who is getting more and more zen-like as the months go by, I'm surprised that the many incarnations of tradeRX tick you off so much!
Hmmm, almost seems like the devil needs God...and God needs the devil. When Commisso asked if ProTrader1 is Candle's alter-ego he may have been onto something (not literally, but metaphorically).