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This is good advise, so I will follow it...


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This is good advise, so I will follow it...

  #21 (permalink)
 
VinceVirgil's Avatar
 VinceVirgil 
Toronto, Canada
 
Experience: Advanced
Platform: NT
Broker: TD Ameritrade, Dorman/Zenfire
Trading: CL,ES
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Start of a new week...

Simplifying what I am doing...a couple of simple indicators...1 more week of of focusing on my trading strategy. Everything I have read of the advanced traders suggests that keep your own council on trading, keep it simple, plan your trade, follow your plan. Entry and exits and position sizing is more important than strategy...etc. A ton of information to take in.

Been at this for just over a month. Learned quite a bit, and I find myself more and more absorbed into trading. I am reading a couple of books, have searched the internet for some information, but I am keeping away from the financial press. I find it puts too many confusing thoughts into my head about where the dollar should be, whats happenig in Europe...etc.

Better still, I am slowly getting a grasp on the language, which is a big part of the battle. Can trading really be this easy? Or is it really very difficult, and I am making it out to be too easy? Am I naive to think that I am one of the 5% that can run a successful trading business?


trade tonight when London opens...if i can stay up that long.

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  #22 (permalink)
 
VinceVirgil's Avatar
 VinceVirgil 
Toronto, Canada
 
Experience: Advanced
Platform: NT
Broker: TD Ameritrade, Dorman/Zenfire
Trading: CL,ES
Posts: 1,752 since Aug 2011
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Made a couple of mistakes today...well, more than a couple. trade the 6E

Studied on the weekend, reviewed a couple of webinars...big Mikes on elusive price action. Good stuff, not really ready to apply it yet.

I think I am expecting too much of myself at this very early stage. I have been paper trading for about a month, just long enough to realize how much I dont know. Last friday I applied mikes advise to only take 5 trades a day, determined to follow my strtegy 100%. Over the weekend, I gave a lot of thought to dicretionary trading, and to feel the dire tion of the market. instead of following my own rules this morning, I made a couple of changes. i already made 1 change, of the 2 I allowed myself for 2 weeks.

made a couple of order mistakes. Went short when i meant to go long...2 times. maybe I drank too much coffee this morning ...gave me the jitters.

Took 1 extra trade over the 5 I restricted myself too because I was anticipating a move off LL for the day. in fact, I was anticipating the move since 9 EST. Didnt count the 2 wrong mouse clicks, but now, i should have. After all, a trade is a trade is a trade. Too late...for today, but not for tommorrow.

want to end on a high note, so i can say that today was a positive. In fact, we all learn more from our mistakes than from our successes. Dont dwell on them, BUT, dont forget about them either.

Result for this morning

Screen time from 7:50 am to10:30 in trade mode.

8 trades including the wrong mouse clicks (2), which I will count as a trade in the future. i am not the first one to do that, for a fact. But, as Tharp says, reduce errors.

Every trade went against the SMA 40, when my rule is to never trade unless the SMA 40 in direction of my strategy.

Looking at my chart now, all my signals are to go short at 10:30....good for 50 ticks and still falling! But...no trades left for the day.

Hindsight...always 20/20. As well, those that fail to look at history are doomed to repeat it.

Score card...8 trades, 4 winning trades, 4 losing trades for 50% efficiency. Winners barely covered my 4 points, but I had to close down the 2 mistakes I made as well. One didnt cost me, except commission, the other gave me a tick, so that was winner too. but account is down 225 for the day.


Removing my 4 target. Looking for bigger gains Going to set a target for the trade based on recent daily action alone with a maximum profit and stop based on recent price action for the day. My second change for the 2 week period. No more changes till Friday.

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  #23 (permalink)
 
VinceVirgil's Avatar
 VinceVirgil 
Toronto, Canada
 
Experience: Advanced
Platform: NT
Broker: TD Ameritrade, Dorman/Zenfire
Trading: CL,ES
Posts: 1,752 since Aug 2011
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Traded against my rules today. But hear my reasoning. trying to prove to myself that my strategy is sound...so I am fighting it. A battle of wits with myself. At my trade station before 8 am.

Trade 1 long at 8:36 looking for 6 ticks.. stopped loss at -12 ticks Maybe its going lower

Trade 2 Short at 9:05 it goes higher, close out trade down another 10 ticks.

Trade 3 9:40 thin volume, but most of my signals are long. Not real confident, so when it stalls, I bail...Down 3 ticks

Trade 4 OK, now I have everything lined up for a short at 10:00 am. take it.. hits my target in less than a minute. Its great to hear Target Filled when it works the way you anticipate.

Trade 5...now i figure it is definately going lower, so I short to take another 6 ticks...I think I am in for a run and? Stopped out. -12

A reversal at 10:10....Funny thing is, my strategy tells me now to go long....but I have my 5 trades...no more this session.

score card...5 trades, 4 losers, 1 winner on 1 contract. down 29 ticks on 1 contract.

Down 387 dollars today.

At this rate, I am going to blow up my account in less that 12 more sessions. Wont have the time to make any more changes

Are people actually successful at running a trading buisness?

Someone has to be...where is there a successful trading journal that i can read?

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  #24 (permalink)
 
VinceVirgil's Avatar
 VinceVirgil 
Toronto, Canada
 
Experience: Advanced
Platform: NT
Broker: TD Ameritrade, Dorman/Zenfire
Trading: CL,ES
Posts: 1,752 since Aug 2011
Thanks Given: 2,144
Thanks Received: 9,223

6 trades

4 winners, 1 loser 1 draw.

32-11-0=21 ticks.

1 contract on the 6E +262.50

first positive day since last Friday, so far...will see again as Asia opens.

traded last night at 2:00 EST couldnt sleep anyway....

I am more aware of my trading. Had 1 bad entry on my loss. The trend did go against me, but the bad entry cost me a few extra points. Got in to soon...without confimation. And I was not confident in the trade like the other. The losser felt wrong, same with the even trade. Trying to evaluate "was I confident going into it, or not, or am I having these feeelings only after the fact?" Going to write down my condidence level going in to the trade at that moment I hit the mouse...A B C degree of confidence.

A Very confident...no doubt

B Somewhat confident..worth the risk

C oops

I know this isnt very scientific, but how does one quantify phsycology in absolute terms? We are looking for rules, when trading is more about principles. I have read it many times, its not the indicators in absolute terms, but rather the softs of trading....entry points, areas of potential support and resistance and, most important...mind set.

Still taking these baby steps. I really dont want to be in a hurry lose my money. but its really not about P and L now is it? Charts and indicators are only___% of successful trading (insert your own number here)

It really is that simple...

HERE ARE MY CHARTS.

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  #25 (permalink)
 
VinceVirgil's Avatar
 VinceVirgil 
Toronto, Canada
 
Experience: Advanced
Platform: NT
Broker: TD Ameritrade, Dorman/Zenfire
Trading: CL,ES
Posts: 1,752 since Aug 2011
Thanks Given: 2,144
Thanks Received: 9,223

Had my lunch handed to me...stopped out on 3 trades...down 30 ticks on the day. Bailled on the other 2 to break even when I thought the trend had stalled.

All in less than 15 minutes.

My technicals were sound...after all, the chart reads that I should be shorting. And downward trend it was. BUt even though the chart painted the correct direction, I am still unprofitable today.

Its my entries. Getting in at the wrong price at the wrong moment...looking for 8 to 10 ticks I am trrading not to lose as oppossed to trading to win. i am not feeling very confident, even though I did fairly well yesterday.

Need to reveiw some phsychology techniques. Need to trade in the zone.

What does efficient trading feel like? strategy, entries, exits...when it comes together...

A little more research is in order....

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  #26 (permalink)
 
VinceVirgil's Avatar
 VinceVirgil 
Toronto, Canada
 
Experience: Advanced
Platform: NT
Broker: TD Ameritrade, Dorman/Zenfire
Trading: CL,ES
Posts: 1,752 since Aug 2011
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Thanks Received: 9,223


bluemele View Post
6 ticks TP and 24 tick stop.....

You may want to reevaluate that.


Read a bunch on stops, but to my mind, instead of a large stop, I look at the recent daily action on the chart to set it. I only set it large not to leave it, but to give me room should I need to close it manually because the trend is agin me.

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  #27 (permalink)
 
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 VinceVirgil 
Toronto, Canada
 
Experience: Advanced
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Broker: TD Ameritrade, Dorman/Zenfire
Trading: CL,ES
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5 trades this morning...

2 winners, 3 losers...down 137.50

Going for small gains, and trying to set stops big enough so that my stop dosnt get hit. i am getting more comfortable on my entries, but that isnt quite translating to profits this past 5 days.

Looking back, I had only 1 marginally successful day. The rest I feel I could have doen much better. Emotions got the better of me, if I were to say one thing about this last week.

Had a rule 5 trades max in the morning....3 trades max in the evening for max 8 trades a day.

Total trades were 36...but made a few entry errors that I didnt count...but will next week.

I am putting in a lot of work at my trading business. It is easier for me to think of this as a business. Holiday in Canada on Monday, so i dont have to work at my real job.

Definition of a real job?

A job that you get paid for, whether you are any good at it... or not.

Heard that on a sales tape... Thats proubly the main appeal of trading to me. Its all you, you cannot blame anyopne else for your failures. As it is all on you. So, man up, and take full responsibility for them.

And dont complain...there are no failures, just one more way something dosnt work.

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  #28 (permalink)
 
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 VinceVirgil 
Toronto, Canada
 
Experience: Advanced
Platform: NT
Broker: TD Ameritrade, Dorman/Zenfire
Trading: CL,ES
Posts: 1,752 since Aug 2011
Thanks Given: 2,144
Thanks Received: 9,223

Was Canadian holiday yesterday, therefore, I didnt spend much time at my station. But I did review some information, and i looked into a couple of things i have been doing over the last couple of weeks.

I am not being discerning with my entries. i am most often just going with the market, and I beleive that is a mistake. i want more control over my entry price, so I am going to do that.

Also, I am only going to trade a single chart...the 5 minute. It occurred to me that i really dont have a clear undcerstanding of the indicators i am useing, and their importance. In fact, I am simplifying my approach. Going to go for fewer ticks and less trades. reviewing what i have done the last 2 weeks, i was looking for bigger moves, and I seem to be more wrong than right. Smaller goals with a more diisciplined approach and lower expectations are the key for me. The advance traders here speak about many interesting concepts, however, for every hour I spend in a webinar, I gain 2 or 3 good takeaways.

Still only trading 1 contract. gonna keep that. Trading the 5 min chart in the 6E and going to look at the ES as well. Big swings in both those markets as of late.

Going to follow only the EMA 20 as my lone indicator. I only had the 5 others to make my chart look less empty anyway. I had a bunch of indicators, but I was only trading off the EMA(20). I was a envious of some of the charts I saw that look like Jackson Polloch paintings, and i wanted mine to look like abstract art as well. I'll save the art for my living room. I think I am over having my chart as art.

I was trading like this anyway. Everything wlse was giving me a signal to go, but if the EMA(20) was against me, I didnt take the trade.

I am fortunate to have found futures.io (formerly BMT) and the wonderful resourses. It is a credit to BM, and I am grateful for this excellent tool. it it trully a graduate course in trading.

What I did well was I was disciplined in my approach to trading and I was successfull in reducing my trades significantly. I didnt do everything as I had planned, but even tho I made mistakes, i wrote down everything everyday in my journal so much so that i feel i am making progress.

Want to study price action more over the next 2 week period.

Only using the 5 minute chart and 1 indicator, until i have a thourough understanding. this is a big change, but I realized that i was using PerryG method, without knowing what all the indicators really meant. And if thats the case, that I dont understand them fully, its really only a black box, and i might as well automate trade as oppossed to discretionary. And i can only discretionary trade. i am a lousey programmer (even though i minored in Comp Science) I had fellow students that could code in their sleep...my brother is like that. i am not, so why try.

Going for smaller ticks on my trend trades. 3-4 ticks only.

Only trading 1 contract. 85-90% on trades.

Better risk management to set stops. Stop will be based of recent action. But because i am only going for small ticks, to keep my risk manageable, will need to have tight stops. I beleive this will force me to only enter a trade where I am very confident in taking.

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  #29 (permalink)
 
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 VinceVirgil 
Toronto, Canada
 
Experience: Advanced
Platform: NT
Broker: TD Ameritrade, Dorman/Zenfire
Trading: CL,ES
Posts: 1,752 since Aug 2011
Thanks Given: 2,144
Thanks Received: 9,223

First day trading only 5 minute chart.

Sat in the Al Brooks webinar about price action and the 5 minute chart yesterday. saw part of it few months ago, but I had no idea what he was talking about.. But I did get that there is lots of information on a 5 minute chart.

Anyway, too many concepts to fathom. I think I will get this book on price action. His information is sobering, but his approach to trading strikes a chord with me.

Also I credit Big Mike, as it seems his method focuses on price action and position sizing, with helping me come too this epiphany.

Also PerryG for emphasizing the size of a position rather than ticks. After all, 1 tick on 10 contrcts = a pretty decent part time job.

But, it isnt easy. In fact...it is very hard. Al Brooks used a golf analogy. There a big difference between knowing how to play golf, and being good enough to do it for a living. And...golf is like trading in that it takes 2 good shots (trades) to amke up for 1 bad shot (trade). And bad shots are going to happen...it is inevitable...the result of human imperfection.

But, thats what makes it interesting. After all, if you never made a mistake, ever, where would be the enjoyment in that? Lets take bowling. If you rolled game after game after game 300 everytime, how long would it take before you never wanted to bowl ever again?

So, how did I do today? 6 trades

2 + 0 + 3 - 4 + 4 +3 = 8 ticks

on trade 4 where I lost 4 ticks, made an entry error. and corrected my self in less than 5 seconds, but I lost 4 ticks

Missed some really good trades because I limited myself to 5 previous 2 weeks.

Rules for this 2 week period.

Max loss for day 8 ticks. last 2 weeks that got ahead of me.

Trading strickly on price action using EMA20.

Only enter on the market during big moves. Otherwize, 1 tick above or below previous close on the 5 minute bar.

Worked ok today. Will see how i do tommorrow.

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  #30 (permalink)
 
VinceVirgil's Avatar
 VinceVirgil 
Toronto, Canada
 
Experience: Advanced
Platform: NT
Broker: TD Ameritrade, Dorman/Zenfire
Trading: CL,ES
Posts: 1,752 since Aug 2011
Thanks Given: 2,144
Thanks Received: 9,223


been fooling with paper trading today, angling for the day I go live on my account. So much to still learn, and I am digging into price action, looking at the chart to see the highest percentage of successful trades.

Trading on price action really appeals to me because the approach is simple, elegant, yet is very deep, if you become a true student. The pure simplisity of what i am looking at on the chart is a revelation.

I got a copy of Al Brooks book on the weekend, only because i sat in on his webinar. Just fooling around on the sim, trying to learn the proper technique for trading To me proper chart reading is only 40% of successful trading.
The rest is position sizing stratagies, proper entry size and risk management. I am not saying anything new here, but these words really ring true.

Need to fund an account, otherwize, a lot of the features on NT dont work. i am still on a demo account, but I will send my broker a check by the end of the week so that i can get the other features on NT, like opening a seperate account for each instrument traded so that i can track my progress.

Does anyone know of a good excel spreadsheet template for tracking trades and profits and losses with documentaion? Using the control center on NT to monitor, but i would rather have something resident on my own computer that I can keep track of, for tax purposes and such.

Was fooling with the CL and I saw anold video from ZTR talking about CL trading. It really moves quickly, and I see what everyone says it isnt for beginners. perfect place to blow up your account.

To be continued...

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