TF trading/scalping journal

Yes great, but 2 things: At this time I´m not yet on my desk and 9:33 is for me too early to jump in any trade.
So early the movements are too fast for my stop loss and mostly I can´t find a entry that suits my stop loss. So I go in when trends have established or making a reversal...
 
The action is usually between 9:30am - 11am. So I always try to go with the signal between this time period. The move will either stop you out almost right away or it will hit target pretty quickly.

Otherwise, you get stuck in the lunch drift like now where you are praying for 1-2 point target.
 
Like you said ... Sideways.

Wrong day for me. I was many times unsure and many times the trade went in front of me away. TF was strong when the market was weak and weak when the market was strong. Volume very low. VIX also way too low.

-30$+comm for the day

Acc I think at 950$
 
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...Handle123 - Blew Up my account? Mhh a few times. This now was at 1800$ and ended up 2 days later at 200$. I have a fulltime job(another 3 years) but at the moment I cannot afford to give more than 600$ to it. But Yes you are really right this could be a big problem for me only 300$ out of the margin. I have to deal with...
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Hi,

You actually acknowledge your not properly capitalized to be scalping. Yet, you continue trading with real money.

Why :confused:

You will never get it right like this because your other job is that safety net as a crutch to compensate and encourage you to continue not approaching your trading the right way.

What's wrong with working two jobs...saving your money for a few years and then try again while properly capitalized and with LESS handicaps because under capitalized traders are usually cutting corners in other areas of their trading...creating other problematic areas in their trading.

Last of all, December is one of the toughest times of the year to be trading the Emini TF futures for under capitalized traders trying to scalp. I've will never understood why many under capitalized traders start trading with a new account or refunded account in December. I would understand if you're profitable and there's greed that's pushing you to try to milk more profits out of December. Yet, that's not the case for you. Thus, stop trading and enjoy what's left of the holidays, get another job and save your money...

The markets will be still here when you're ready to trade in a few years.

P.S. You should review the trade journals by the ET member jinxu and many others...very similar involving the problems while under capitalized while trading the Emini Futures. All with the same result. :(
 
It takes a lot of screen to be consistent at this game. There are many things you don't notice initially that the market does but notice later on through screen time. Paper trading does provide that screen time while it doesn't hurt you. Paper trade until you are consistent and to where you can't exactly remember the last losing day you had on paper. Then you know you are ready to take the next step. Also when you do take the next step. Understand that because it's real, more emotions come into play. You need to be disciplined in keeping them in check. That's the problem I deal with all the time. I do well with paper so I turn back to doing the real thing. Paper trading helps get the mechanics of trading down and real trading involves getting emotions in check. It's about taking steps in the right direction first. We all want to jump in and start making money right away but with anything in life, it's not easy and you have to work at it. Yes, baring some huge catastrophe, the markets will be there when you need it. You can come back to it when you are fully ready.

You have a day job which is good but you also need to put forth a lot of effort to do this for the long term. I don't have a day job so I'm able to more time and effort into this venture. Be ready if need be, to spend time on the weekends studying charts & your old trades. That's what I do. I print out charts at the end of the day. I have a folder of them now that I can refer back to when I want to see patterns or mistakes I've made in the past. Every mistake I've made has an explanation. Some of it just comes down to simple stuff like not waiting long enough, getting scared and exiting, or misreading the chart. I've just spent 10 hours over the Christmas weekend, researching, reading, and studying the material. Whether it will pay off remains to be seen. Emerse yourself with this. Eat, breathe, and sleep this stuff if you want to be good. You just have to ask yourself how bad do you want it? Those who do it non-chalant and sparingly, become the 95% who give up and don't make it.

I'm not expert here but if you really want to get a hold of me, give me your email if you can't access your PM (private messaging) here. Good luck.
 
Thanks much for your time and your straight answers. I have read some threads from users that have traded with small accounts too, but for example between jinxu and me there are worlds. I have aprx. 3-4 years screen time and much knowledge about the market(technical). Not to compare with the 5% of here, who are absolutly professionals.
And Yes december is really tought. I know, but this is my 4th December and I have to "just watch" and If I´m 100% confident I trade. But the most of the times the trade goes in my direction and I were 2 seconds to late. Then I say "very good work to see this coming, but there are still more chances to get".

I have to be more open to you. I´m from Germany and working all the day till I come home and move to my station and try to trade.
If you can imagine that it is very hard to wake up 6´clock going to work till 16:30. Then 17:00 sitting on the trading-station till 22:00. And then fall to bed.
If I look honest at me, I do not give 100% for trading and I know it´s not working. I also have to spend some weekdays for relaxing. Pressure is really hard like I felt yesterday.

I KNOW that:
I should do more for research and studying chart before trading
I should go over my trades after the day and analyze them
I should have more money on my account to get a way better money/risk management

... Can You say me what would be your account size you are comfortable with trading the 1 contract TF with a 500$ margin? Thanks

I will give the best in the future. Today is the last day were I´m going to survive!!! Next week I´m on a vacation. I´m very happy to clear my head this time and have some with fun with friends in the snow.
I have to add for yesterday, that I had a really tought headache( I have to get a lock on my PC for this ) Trading isn´t possible with a headache.
 
+230$ / 6 winners / 0 losers

Okay that was it for me today. Goal reached - I´m above 1000$.
These last days were soo thin. I actually noticed that I feel very bad about channel trends ... sell the top, buy the low, grrrr... . No lower lows, no higher highs Arghhh....
I really love technical analysis but with channels I have a bad feeling. This is a really big thing I need to have a closer look at, but what indicators suggesting a sideway trend in an channel other then drawing the channel with 2-3 lines?

I also really would like to hear your comfortable account minimum when trading 1 TF future with a 500$ margin.
So I go on vacation for a week. Have fun and be careful out there.

A very Happy New Year to you and your family,

Alex
 
-40$ / 1 winners / 2 losers

It seems it is was the wrong day for me to start the year.
Very ranging into bands since late morning not my strong point.
Very few good changes in trend, so I couldn´t trade much.
I havn´t took a good risk management on the last 2 losing positions, big fault.
 
-30$ / 2 winners / 4 losers

Ahhrgg, damn day. Another day where we are so slow at the market, ranging...
The Big picture needs to get a clearlier outlook to come back for day-trading. Commissions are eating up when the market isn´t moving.
 
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