My journey to profitable trading: NQ price action journal

[VV Cehpei]

I placed 3 trades today.

1st trade - I located some short-term support so I went long. This was another perfect example like yesterday of getting in at a good spot and not having any signs telling me to exit, but I do anyways taking a small gain.

2nd trade - I exited this trade in error. This was another trade that looked like it was at some minor short-term support so I went long. I was trying to change the price of my stop on the DOM and I heard the audio 'order cancelled', and it got me out of the trade too! I don't know what I did, but whatever it was, it wasn't what I expected. So at that point I crystallized the 1.5pt loss I was sitting at.

3rd trade - I still liked the setup after my error on the second trade, so I re-entered. I was a little upset at myself for making that error, and I was impatient with this trade too. The truth is that going into it I was only looking for a few points, because it was getting to be late in the day and I didn't trust the markets to push for a new high. I went for a 5 to 10 minute walk and came back in to see that I could take 2.5 points, so I did. The psychological frustration that letting that gain slip away from me and having to post a loss was enough to make me just want to take the few points and call it a day.

Today's results:

3 trades:

1st: +1.50pts
2nd: -1.50pts
3rd: +2.50pts

Net P/L +$38.66

First trade:


2nd & 3rd trade:

 

[NoDoji]

Keep in mind the only time you focus on DOM if you are trading tick charts. Any time frame focus on a chart

I agree. When you're in a position and you watch the DOM you tend to want to protect any profit that appears. Focusing on the price action on the chart gives you the clarity to see when it's time to lock in some profit or maybe scratch a trade. I hide my P/L on the DOM which, as silly at it seems, keeps me relaxed while trading.

 

[VV Cehpei]

Hey thanks wilddog and ND!

And ND, that's a great idea covering the P/L, and I think that might really help me too. Even though I have it set to points and not currency, watching the P/L is very distracting and kind of unnerving for me. So I think that will be help me to calm down and relax if I just minimize the DOM and keep the P/L out of view and watch the charts only while I'm in a trade.

All my decisions are based off what I see on the charts. But I'm definitely going to try to just take my P/L out of my view and see how much more relaxed I am. Thanks again for the help and pointers!

 

[VV Cehpei]

Well I'm happy to end the week on a positive note. I placed 3 trades again today. I was lucky to exit the third trade when I did, because a few moments later the markets turned south!

Today's results:

3 trades:

1st: +3.50pts
2nd: +2.50pts
3rd: +1.50pts

Net P/L +$138.66

First trade:


Second & third trade:

 

[NoDoji]

Well I'm happy to end the week on a positive note. I placed 3 trades again today. I was lucky to exit the third trade when I did, because a few moments later the markets turned south!

As I read this and looked at your last trade, I heard the voice of my (informal) mentor who used to post on my journal regularly, "Why are you fighting the trend? Expect continuation!"

The third trade was pure bottom-fishing. It was a good entry level (the measured move target based on the previous push down), but the easy money is in the direction of the trend. Shortly after your exit, there was a short signal (bear channel breakout), and a shallow pullback to the breakout zone. This set up a with-trend short for a measured move target of 10 points. If you're busy trying to pick tops and bottoms as a counter-trend trader, you're distracting yourself from the bigger profits in the direction of the trend.

Notice also that the bear channel pullback high was to the tick of the 10:40 ET swing low. This is the sort of technical precision that makes a well-defined trend a thing of pure beauty. There's no luck involved, just experience with trends, how they continue and how they reverse.

I never listened to the experienced traders on my journal back then because I thought I knew better. What a shame for me as I spent the better part of a year re-inventing the wheel these guys were handing me.

If you can train yourself to trade this way, the profits will start falling into your account. In the words of Al Brooks "It will seem unreal but it is very real."

 

[VV Cehpei]

Hey ND, thanks for the chart, I appreciate you taking the time to make that!

It sounds funny, but I didn't really mean to trade against the trend today. My main focus going into the day was to identify a few areas that I considered to be support, and my plan was to see if the markets sold off to those levels, then I'd go long.

The first trade was just a little scalp that worked out, but the second trade my thoughts were I was playing a bounce off of some support. At the time, I suppose I failed to really acknowledge that I was playing a bounce off of a lower high. I think I was too focused on how much the markets would pull back that I didn't realize that LHs were setting up. And that makes the third trade even worse then. I guess even though at that point it was clear the intraday trend was down, I was still kind of hung up looking at the 60 min thinking that we'll hold at one of these levels for a push back up.

But your point is well taken, and I agree. I really do aim to try to trade with the trend for the most part and to make life as easy on myself as I can. If I sometimes seem to do things my own way, with me it's not because I think I know better, it's just a little stubbornness, or a bit of reluctance to do things that will take me out of my comfort zone. But I know from previous experience in different types of 'behavior modification', doing things outside of my comfort zone and keeping an open mind is the only way I'll grow and change.

I do tend to like to try to pick good entries and I guess I could be a called a bottom picker at times, but at least my aim is to do that in uptrends. I'll try to pick the bottom of pullbacks, but other times I'll wait for a 'proper' setup like the long I took after the FOMC meeting, the one that you told me I could have held for 10 mins. But I'm trying to be as open as I can be, and I certainly appreciate any and all advice or tips that you give me. And I'll do my very best to apply the things that I'm learning to my trading. I really want to succeed at this, and I really do believe that I can.

Thanks so much for following along and for the advice! Have a great weekend!

 

[VV Cehpei]

Week 6 results:

17 Trades

12 Wins

5 Losses

Mon: +$17.44
Tues: -$126.34
Wed: +$67.32
Thurs: +$38.66
Fri: +$138.66

Net Weekly P/L +$135.44

In the interests of accurate accounting, last week my account was charged $15 for a CME fee.

NT stats: I have the NT stats, but I can't seem to upload any more pics to ET for some reason.
Edit: It worked this time




Equity graph:

 

[VV Cehpei]

A few things I'll mention going into this week.

After I've had time to look over Friday's trades, I realize I need to do a much better job of identifying the trend and trading with it. I didn't realize how obvious that it should have been until it was pointed out to me by ND and I had some time to think about it.

I need to remember to trade what I see, not what I think should happen. The market, nor anyone else really cares what I think it should do.

I think to be honest, part of what may seem like reluctance to change my ways may stem from a lack of confidence. Right now, I have some confidence placing the short, few point scalps like I have been doing. But, on the other hand, I don't have as much confidence or experience in playing the bigger moves and identifying and trading with the trend. So I think that part of the issue is that I have that 'fear' that if I change what I'm doing, I'll lose money. But that won't stand in my way though, but it does make me a little hesitant. And it's not because I don't believe that it's a better way, it's that I don't have that confidence yet in my ability to put that all together and trade it.

So, I think going forward what I will do is to aim to take some larger (5-10pt) moves this week and be much more aware of the trend and make sure I trade with it.

But, I'm also going to continue, at least for now, with trying a few small scalps here and there when I see an opportunity.

Edit: lol...I just realized that some people may be laughing right now at me calling a 5-10pt move a "larger" move! haha. Well, call it what you like, that's what I'm going for this week!

 

[VV Cehpei]

I placed one trade today, and I did get fairly lucky.

As the market started to sell off a bit I was looking at the early AM lows of around 4066 as a level to test.

We were already at 4070, and then the market rose 3 points, so I decided to enter short. I didn't think that we would put in a nice lower high and that it might be a quick drop or just a grind down, so that's why I was a little hasty in my entry.

Well I was lucky, because when the market rose 3pts for me to enter, it kept on going for nearly 5 more, and it came within .5pts of my stop before reversing. I was also a little lucky a second time, because I had a 6 pt target set, and I was going to go out for a walk to leave it to see what it would do. Well thanks again to ND for the idea of hiding my P/L, because I stayed and watched the trade instead, and was lucky enough to get out before it would have sharply reversed and went back up and taken out my stop.

After this was over, a nice LH was setting up a bit after 10:10EST roughly. I was still a bit 'emotional' after just getting out of my trade, so I decided to just relax and watch for a bit. Well as it turned out that's the short I should have taken!

But in the end, I'm perfectly ok with missing that move for now. There will be 25 point moves from now until I'm too old to see my screen, so in the grand scheme of things it doesn't mean anything. But if I was a year or two into my trading then I would be upset for missing that move, but at this stage I think I made the right decision by sitting out.

Today's results:

1 Trade

+4.25pts

Net P/L +$81.22

chart:

 

[VV Cehpei]

One trade again today. I'm done for the day now too.

Well the initial drive was up today, and I was waiting for some sort of pullback or spot to enter. It looked like we were going to push at least to test the high again and I liked the set up, so I went long. We pushed through very slightly, and I took 4 points.

I was thinking at the time if we continued to move up significantly, I'd enter again if I found some weakness.

Edit: I should mention that the HL I should have got in on was around 9:48am EST.

Today's results:

1 Trade

+4pts

Net P/L +$76.22

today's chart: