Uh oh.. This could be the set-up to a huge move to the downside. I've been thinking about it since Saturday- I could be totally wrong- but a head and shoulders in the daily seems significant to me. If there's going to be a move, I hope it's tomorrow morning and not overnight. If we get it, I'm trading live!

I saw your reply and was like "IT'S HAPPENING".. scared me, @snax

(Disclaimer: Just my opinion, but let it influence your trading decisions.)

- "I freely recognize that every one of my reasons behind each setup is just my opinion and my reasoning about why a trade works might be completely wrong. However, that is irrelevant."
-- This resonates with me because I often have this feeling of "fuzzy reasoning". There are so many variables involved that it is hard for us to be certain why something worked for us. We want to put a label and rules around that something because then we have hope that we can find repeatavle success with it. In the end, if we are successful, does it matter what the reason was? Maybe, for instance if we are using a strategy that works well in a trending market and we decide we understand it, only to find out it mysteriously fails sometimes and we don't know why (bracketed market). But I think what the author means is that these price-action behaviors behave consistently for him and he believes he knows why, but accepts that the reason for his success may be different than his reasoning and he is ok with that. The reasons why something works are separate from the setup, and irrelevant to his trading. This is an important point i think.

Yo snax! Hope all is well. I'm a little late to this party, but I've been busy with life...or work really. Although, in full disclosure, I did play a fair amount of golf over the long weekend and had a good time. But this is an interesting tidbit you have shared here. And as a recent Brooks convert I feel compelled to contribute. .

I think there is a bit of paradox in Brooks when he says his reasoning is irrelevant. His assessments of tradeable patterns are based on a recognition of an internal logic of how these price action patterns unfold. So if we are to buy into his system we have assume his reasoning is relevant and important. To use a Taleb-ism, he's attempting to domesticate uncertainty by working rationally to make bets on an unclear future. So the reasoning seems relevant if we are to use his methodology. I guess all he is saying is his logic seems to do well, but a narrative is not important and probably futile. I think Taleb would say you are domesticated by uncertainty when you rely on narrative.

I like Brooks. His methodology has kept me focused on solving the puzzle while trading. And I think this has helped keep emotion in the background. And I'm amazed at how much less impulsive I have been lately...But always prone to slip!!! I don't have the whole system down, or even close to it, but it has helped immensely.

Your reading list seems fun and please share more thoughts! I've been into Brooks' third book Reversals. And as soon as I get done with it I think I might get back into Thinking Fast and Slow by Kahneman. I started it about a year ago but have been reading trading guides pretty much non-stop. One of these days I'll have to knock the dust off of my copy...

Yo snax! Hope all is well. I'm a little late to this party, but I've been busy with life...or work really. Although, in full disclosure, I did play a fair amount of golf over the long weekend and had a good time. But this is an interesting tidbit you have shared here. And as a recent Brooks convert I feel compelled to contribute. .

I think there is a bit of paradox in Brooks when he says his reasoning is irrelevant. His assessments of tradeable patterns are based on a recognition of an internal logic of how these price action patterns unfold. So if we are to buy into his system we have assume his reasoning is relevant and important. To use a Taleb-ism, he's attempting to domesticate uncertainty by working rationally to make bets on an unclear future. So the reasoning seems relevant if we are to use his methodology. I guess all he is saying is his logic seems to do well, but a narrative is not important and probably futile. I think Taleb would say you are domesticated by uncertainty when you rely on narrative.

I like Brooks. His methodology has kept me focused on solving the puzzle while trading. And I think this has helped keep emotion in the background. And I'm amazed at how much less impulsive I have been lately...But always prone to slip!!! I don't have the whole system down, or even close to it, but it has helped immensely.

Your reading list seems fun and please share more thoughts! I've been into Brooks' third book Reversals. And as soon as I get done with it I think I might get back into Thinking Fast and Slow by Kahneman. I started it about a year ago but have been reading trading guides pretty much non-stop. One of these days I'll have to knock the dust off of my copy...

Hey @Salao!

I really like the Taleb concept of "domesticating uncertainty" you mentioned, I haven't gotten to that one yet. I feel like trying to block off bad habits and behavioral patterns is part of that. I keep trying to turn this uncertainty into a house-cat but it is more of a rescue-panther at this point

I was going to ask you about your thoughts on Brooks because I see you referencing his concepts.

I actually used some Brooks for my trade yesterday with the bear trend bar as a signal bar and made the 1-tick below close entry point that he recommends with my stop just out of the range of the bar, though I set it for 8-ticks it was luck that it worked out that way. It worked out nicely and I had a plan I was focused on. So today I forgot all that and jumped into the market like "I got this" and got two quick losses handed to me. Funny how impulsiveness keeps getting me too.

The Kahneman book looks interesting as well.

How are you liking the E-Micros?

I was really bummed today but tomorrow is a new day, going to try and stay focused before work and try not to be impulsive. Initial-Balance is so hard to trade!

Cheers!

1.Losing trades are gifts that inspire me to action. A losing trade prompts the act of creating or improving upon the method.

2. I focus on just a few manageable methods. Although I watch for new opportunities, in the end I use just a few methods, acutely executed.

3. I find the simplest solution. Ockham's Law, also called the Law of Economy, states, “Entities are not to be multiplied beyond necessity...the simplest solution is invariably the correct solution.”

4. The money I use to trade is not monopoly money.

5. I study to increase my skills. A steady diet of reading and contemplation is vital to personal development. It's a matter of self-discipline.

6. I never let my emotions take over a trade. When in a trade, I let my system do the trading.

Snax! Sorry about the tough day. I also had a hard time getting out of my own way today. It's just amazing the level of sharpness that it takes to do this at a professional level and I marvel at the dudes that can. The artisan trader type...haha! Whenever I have a really tough day I always review these things:



Pretty clear and concise and helpful. So I copied these 6 things directly from a FIO post and pasted them into my Trading Plan. My Trading Plan has evolved. Things have been added, removed, added and removed but these things have remained the constant. They help me re-focus after disastrous days or on days when I need plain old refocusing. I better give a quick shout out to @Massive l who posted these principles sometime ago...in some thread...somewhere...I found them in my forum lurking days...so, over a year ago. These have been very helpful...Thanks Massive l!

The initial balance is hard to trade...at least for me. There are some guys that seem to nail it every time though. This is something I've been really trying to drill down on lately...by studying Brooks! . He lays out a framework for trading the open...but I don't quite understand it fully yet. So I've mostly been avoiding trading the IB/opening range lately. Which has been good! But this isn't the solution for me.

As for the Emicros...They have been awesome! You got to love em', right? The liquidity has been amazing right out of the gate. Nobody predicted that. They are an excellent resource for beginners. They allow us beginners to develop an edge with real money while risking a relatively benign amount. Talk about domesticating uncertainty! Stay convex my friend...

I have a feeling you're going to tame that panther one of these days! Just don't let it claw your eyes out in the process...I'm told you never know what you're getting with these rescue panthers! I feel like I'm still in the domesticated by uncertainty phase. Or rather, I'm uncertainty's b!#@$, Dr. Steenbarger style...haha! .

Trade well!

My Rules:

1) Follow your plan
2) Don't catch falling knives.
3) Don't chase momentum

Hey @snax...I forgot to ask. What do you think of the micros?

. The problem that I have to be careful of is that at my current skill-level I don't have the experience to always tell if I'm executing my plan or if I'm really just jumping in "Hold my beer"-style, and the distinction is very subtle for me right now.