If lightning strikes on the ground at location "X" but you thought it should strike at location "Z" who is wrong? You.

The markets are like the bolt of lightning striking the ground. It is nor right nor wrong. It just is.

Open two accounts. Take offsetting positions in each of them. Observe that one will be in profit, one will be in loss. Hopefully this cures you from the paranoia that "they" care about you. Yes, liquidity runs are made, and yes, it's to trap traders and find liquidity. But it's not for you -- just for you and others who thought like you did at the time.

But let's back up. The market's job is to facilitate trade. Orders to sell and buy are placed. This moves the market. Algos, who are the dominant force in the market now, do make 'predatory' moves in order to seek liquidity and profit; but, largely, they are merely there to fill orders in response to market conditions. For example, a large fund has an automated system that will sell a holding if the stock drops below its 200D MA. The algo may be a simple VWAP algo ... it may be something like "sell to fill above VWAP; if the market gets below the VWAP by X%, sell at the market (to fill the order even at unfavorable prices)" ... it has a job to do and will do whatever it's programmed to do, to fill the order. That's it. This particular algo is not out to get you.

As a practical rule of thumb (1) place your order to buy or sell, and (2) note where your stop would be. Now (3) cancel your order, and (4) place your order where your stop was going to be as observed in #2.

But... there is way more to it, then wild chaotic untamed invincible Power... THIS THUNDER, strikes after you, because you are toll and stick out; this Thunder strikes after you when it sees that few like you have hidden under the roof or in the basement - and will go after that roof not in a Straight line, but along the Way will Clear few dozens/hundreds other ‘victims’ - on purpose; and this Thunder is not a thunder, but a modern Gladiator’s Arena where the stronger, wittier, fastest, mightiest and sometime luckiest will Survive. Not a good metaphor.
Also, the definition: M is an Auction where Sellers and Buyers meet to discover price and execute trades. So benign.
The Truth is: it’s a Slaughter House with Attractive Flickery Fake Advertising and Hooks and Giveaways... to instantly turn and show their (Demonic) real Face. It’s not a Thunder- it’s a Tinder, for rekindling desire and hope in gullible people and take their money. That’s Day Trading.
Investment is another Game.
But of course, nobody forces one to visit this Slaughter House.

I'll have some of whatever you're on!

We see the world, not as it is, but as we are. If I believe the world to be full of racists, I'll see them everywhere. If I think the world is a hard place to make a living, I'll have that experience. If I see life as a constant wonderful opportunity to grow, I'll frame obstacles as learning experiences.

So, how do you view the markets? If you view it as a slaughterhouse, fake, hooks, demonic, etc.. then you'll have that experience, every time you trade -- sounds kind of icky, and not a fun way to do business or spend your time. As someone said: "we all get what we want from the market." For many people, that's confirmation of their opinion that it's an awful, corrupt place. For others, it's confirmation of their opinion that it's too hard to make money in the market.

You can feel how you want and believe what you want, but the inescapable truth that you will always come back to, even if you don't realize it's happening, is that in trading, and in life for the most part, you create your own experience. This is my last post on this thread, as I've dealt more than my fair share of blows to the proverbial dead horse! I'll leave you with this thought from the great PTJ:

"Why not make your life a pursuit of happiness rather than pain?"

Hi, I may be a little late to the conversation but I just came across it. I'm sorry to have to tell you, but you just don't have a strategy that is reliable enough to withstand the ever changing markets. And I'm not trying to put you down, or be meen. I say this because I lived it myself. Everytime I thought I had a method that would work and I would have a little success with it, it would stop working and kill me. I also thought "they" must be looking at little ol' me and are out to get every last penny of my money, so I understand you completely. But I reiterate, this is the result of not having a strategy that has been tested and proven to withstand the market changes. I have been looking at markets for over 12 years, and never made any progress, until recently. The difference is I came across someone with a tried and tested strategy, proven over time, 25 years of time actually. I'm not selling anything, and I don't make any money from this, I'm just a satisfied customer- happy I finally found something that's real and actually works. John, the developer of nexgent3 dot com, runs a live training room every morning, he's big on training! He does not function as a trade calling service, but he does show his charts and show you how to apply his technique to live markets, everyday. There's a great community of veteran experienced traders, as well as newbies anxious to learn. You should check them out. If you want any more info, feel free to DM me and we can chat further.

P.S. Your comment that you were convinced the best way to succeed was to withdraw money everytime you got to 1000-2000 in your account- that's another sign you don't have the right strategy. At nexgen there are plenty of traders (and I know them personally) that have large accounts- tens of thousands in them- and they are VERY VERY successful consistently! I'm telling you- the right strategy is EVERYTHING

Best of luck,
Dan

Mind sharing a chart so we get a better idea of the setups?

Like I said, I have nothing to gain from this. He has a free evaluation period- no credit card no commitment required- go see for yourself... don't take my word for it. I know there's a lot of skepticism out there, I was one of them!

Later, busy trading now, and making money! $$

ok here goes, I've never done this before so I hope I get it right...

there is A LOT going on in these charts, so I hope you don't expect to understand the whole strategy just by looking at a couple of charts. For a better explenation, he has some intro videos on his website (nexgent3 dot com) that are accessible by all. And of course, the best thing to do is sign up for the free demo and actually get the software on your computer, watch all the training videos, and come to the live classes to see for yourself.

Hope this helps...