what the f@!# is wrong with my trading?!

[dg2000]

Originally posted by ddefina
Did your system make money and you didn't? Or is it your system wasn't profitable during July?

the system had an expectancy of +.11%. that means per trade i averaged a .11% gain. so it did make money....but really, after commissions it didn't.

 

[dg2000]

Originally posted by LoneHand
Besides the emotional thing, I looked your spreadsheet quickly, and if I am not mistaken, you only played LONG side of the mkt? and last month was a strong downtrend before the turnaround, just do what you did for another month (keep playing the long side with your stops), see what happens.

Good Luck

actually, you're incorrect here. i'd say at least 50% of the trades were shorts. you can tell which are long and short by looking at the entry and intial stop. if the inital stop was lower than entry, it was a long trade. if the initial stop was higher than the entry, it was a short. you will also see that all my longs were in good uptrends and all my shorts were in good downtrends...but my trading still sucked. ?????????

 

[dg2000]

Originally posted by T/A_Bo
I too am a swing trader, and about 3 months ago was not happy with the results from my swings, so I tweaked my money management rules a little and have been cleaning up ever since.

thanks for the response. would you be willing to show an example of one of your trades?

 

[T/A_Bo]

would you be willing to show an example of one of your trades?

UST, oversold and showing reversal signs. Went long off the wiggle, stop under LOD. Exit as the easy money is made from the double top retest. Risk .50, reward +.52.

 

[T/A_Bo]

SPC again oversold, showing reversal signs.

Possible breakaway gap, so I waited 30 min and bought a break to new highs. Stop under lows. Again, once it was obvious the easy money was done, I exited on a time stop as it based. Did I leave some on the table? Yep, but I'm after the easy money in a choppy enviroment, so mission was accomplished.

Risk .45 reward .47

Good luck and Good trading,

-Bo Yoder

 

[Magna]

Originally posted by T/A_Bo
I exited on a time stop as it based.

Bo, would you expand upon this concept of "time stop" and how you implement it. I regularly wrestle with letting my setups play out or closing them (profit or loss) after xxx number of minutes if they haven't moved much.

 

[T/A_Bo]

Bo, would you expand upon this concept of "time stop" and how you implement it. I regularly wrestle with letting my setups play out or closing them (profit or loss) after xxx number of minutes if they haven't moved much.

When I enter a trade, I have a clear opinion based on my experience that lays out what the stock should do. If the stock gets weak kneed as SPC did, 8 times out of 10 I’m going to be unhappy with it in a few bars. So I exit while the levels are thick, and I have a no slip situation. Bank what gains I have and move on.

Good Luck and Good Trading!

-Bo Yoder

 

[Gordon Gekko]

Originally posted by T/A_Bo
I too am a swing trader, and about 3 months ago was not happy with the results from my swings, so I tweaked my money management rules a little and have been cleaning up ever since. The market is constantly changing, a trader must be a shape shifter as well.

bo, may i ask what you tweaked? just curious..

thanks

 

[T/A_Bo]

I'm tape reading my exit, not as willing to hold the wiggles to a target area.

-Bo

 

[uptik2000]

.45 to .47
risk to reward

is that a typical ratio you use? seems kind of dangerous