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Well, this was to be my first day back to live trading the futures.
I opened the charts to find that TF had been in a sideways channel for days, volume was low and price seemed
to be wandering - at first glance.
I pulled up my cash Forex account and saw that the Euro Dollar was moving well, so after taking a loss
after a failed long, I reversed my market condition and went all in short, the downward pressure was immense.
I should have realized that the TF was feeling this pressure somehow.
I wake up at this time of day to catch this exact move at the London open. I need to focus more on the TF charts
and use the currencies as a cue.
Good lesson.
and good news....
I made +60 on the huge down move in Euro, bolstering my cash Forex account.
I had two good trades in the TF - they are trades I DID NOT take and they ended up being losers.
In the past I would have just pulled the trigger and started huffing on the Hopium pipe.
Then, I would have realized that they were incredibly bad trades that weren't in my plan and the
the whole emotion rollercoaster starts up again.
But not today, baby!
Papa's got a brand new bag. It's called knowledge ... and thus, confidence.
I realized that I was on the wrong side of something developing in TF and stood fast.
This is a fantastic development.
I simply missed out on one market but, gained in another. No sense of missing out. No irritation.
Great!!
I am a trader now.
Tomorrow, for London, I will simply shift my focus to the futures account, where I am to make my living.
The cash currencies are merely a cue, and secondary entry vehicle.....
I made a few notes on my TF chart and wanted to post the missed entries for later review.
In the future I will capture an image of my currency trades mid trade to examine later. The trading software does not
retain past trade points, so it is hard to study prior activity.
enough said.... I would never have taken this trade with live money
Trade 2
OK ... My head is almost back in the game
I missed the correct entry while checking on the dogs and chased a bit,
costing me my first car
-4
Car two was still play, however. I trailed a little too tight and got hit.
+9
Trade 3
Just a continuation of my bumbling of trade two.
Stop limit on break of side by side bars... my least favourite trade, but PA looked good
and was worth a shot with minimum risk . Target hit at R1
+26
I was little down on myself yesterday because I failed to take any live trades with TF.
Well, the same thing happened this morning. But,this time, I feel much better about myself
because I realize what I am doing.
I'm trading.
A setup didn't materialize like it did in the EURO.
That's why I caught the Euro but missed the TF. I chose to take one trade, but not the other.
In the past I would be more or less guessing on the direction of the London breakout in TF with
disastrous results. Both mentally and financially. When you smoke the Hopium, you always loose.
Remember that kids.
Once again, I made money on the EUR / Dollar micro's. I stuck to my plan for the most part except for
the silly trade my brotha, @Xav1029 , pointed out to me... I think he knows my plan better than me..
I am just not seeing and or trusting the entries in TF or CL
So the plan has once again changed.
I REALLY KNOW the movement of the EUR / USD. It is the only instrument I have traded continuously
over these two, going on three, years.
And, there must be a reason why @Xav1029 was put on a parallel course with me.
The Euro is where I feel "at home"
So....
At London I will start on the M6E with my new brothers in arms.
Still trade the cash market in tandem ( I like the way the spot markets tip the hand sometimes)
Still break at 330am or 4
get some rest.
Then, back at it at 6am trading spot micros and simming the 6E, which I now believe, will be my
instrument for the TST combine.
Now, Let me tell you about the one futures trade I took today.
When my trading time was up for the London segment, I calmly closed out my NT TF workspace with
zero sense of dread or disappointment. Even though the exact same thing as yesterday happened.
I missed the move on TF but caught it on the EUR.
I simply realized that I was TRADING..... correctly.
So, for the NY segment, I opened up the 6E . All the sudden I could read PA like a book.
I waited for quite a while until I saw price coming down to a firm support level.
I KNEW price was going to bounce there. The only thing I didn't know was how much.
I placed the Buy Limit and waited. Like a hunter.
Price came down and stopped just above me at the 20ema.
I didn't move my order. I wasn't worried about missing out.
I stayed.
Price slipped down and passed me by one tick.
Filled
A perfectly thought out and executed trade. Pure PA . Faith in knowledge of an instrument.
Beautiful.
And even though the trade wasn't a huge, successful bounce, I realized quickly that the tide was turning.
I was weighing all the variables. Price was at PP... The POC was shifting... the candles were getting weaker.
I calmly moved my stop to BE plus an amount just below the current PA where, if taken out, Price was turning.
All my decisions were cold and measured.
No emotion.
Skill and knowledge.
Thousands of hours of screen time paying off.
Yes.... yes...
Looking forward to London
I have never been more proud of $46.38 of Sim dollars.
Today was another milestone.
I hope the EuroZone can hang on just a little longer.
London is calling my friend. I have not looked at any other chart besides the 6E(M6E for execution only) for a couple weeks, and I am definitely seeing positive results. Keep at it and lets keep the party going
As with most of us, my first round of live trading was a bust. This was a about a year and a half ago.
I took a 50% drawdown before I realized this wasn't easy at all.
So this is round two.
I see PA much better now.
All the trades I took this morning were stalked to perfection.
I passed on many levels until price got to the levels I liked.
Once again, I placed the limit orders and waited.
Perfect. My entries were exact and well thought out.
a score of 10
now.... my ultimate weakness.
Staying in a trade.
I am closing out my initial cars earlier than the plan.
I am moving my runner to BE + - right in the combat zone.
Retests hit them all.
Trade management ....5
Trade 1 would have run to its intended goal had I left the runner at the planned position of
-5 until price breaks clear.
Trade 2 was a premature T1 harvest followed by a manual close when price merely approached
BE.
Trade 3 was a re-entry in the same area for a modest gain of +5 until I realized that, indeed
I WAS in a bull trend.
Trade 4 was tolerable because I wanted to be out for news.
The silver lining is I'm in the green on my first day of trading. I used to be quite elated at this
good fortune. That's because, in the past, I was just lucky and I felt like I Won something.
Now, I am earning my money.
I feel disappointed when I don't execute the plan correctly and leave money on the table.
I have the urge to keep trading this morning, but I'm calling it.
I am a professional trader.
I have let my emotions get out of control, therefore my decisions will be tainted.
It's a business decision to shut it down.
I am going to give myself a little bit of a break however.
Yesterday was my first day running multiple cars in market replay so there was an additional
unknown factor to my subconscious. Not quite fair to myself.
This was my first day back trading live money of any consequence. An additional unknown factor for
the hidden Aj.
I am still getting used to trading real time... waiting is a killer. Doubt will creep in, friend.
I must hold the line. I don't want to trick myself with distractions, because I need to read the PA.
I know now when price is turning. My exits today were $$$$ influenced . I NEEDED to win
to prove I could. Maybe I needed that. Perhaps it's my subconscious taking care of me.
Thank you subconscious, now BACK OFF!!! Aj, has work to do.
So let's look on the bright side.
I'm seeing entries perfectly. ...10
I'm being VERY patient and not moving my limit orders to chase at all ....10
Price is filling my orders nearly to the tick, keeping my stops tight and RR perfect..... 10
( Perfect RR if I will let the the freaking trades work )
Risk control ... 10
Trade management .... 5
Fear of losing .... 2
needing to be right .... 2
getting flustered when price moves away ( fear of missing out) .... 2
so, even though I am quite irritated with myself, I'm settling down and realizing something.
I am a trader.
I can make money. It's just how much.
How much am I going to LET MYSELF earn.
My dreams are in my grasp.
My emotions are pushing my dreams away.
Guess who is going to win....
So the rest of the day is market replay with my chosen instrument, hammering home the fact
that when I pick a good level, I need to let the dogs run. I need to visualize the targets being hit
so that I will KNOW next time, it most likely will work if you just let it be.
Trust in your RR.... I have yet to do this.
I will study PA for 30 minutes and read "The Daily Trading Coach" for 30 minutes until market hours
are up.
When I went back live, I had to just get up and walk away after an entry. I made peace with the loss if it happened and then just went away. Once I counted 75 round trips around the central stair case while I waited for something to happen. I had the volume set at max so I could hear the nice Ninja lady say target filled or worse, stop filled and I just paced.
That round trip took something like 40 steps to go through the living room, kitchen and dining room. I swear to you I counted all 75 trips before the Ninja lady told me my target was filled.
Truly one of the hardest things I've ever done. But I did it....it helped me get past the idea that I needed to be in and out instantly. Its still a work in progress of course but that broke the mental block I had about instant gratification.
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication, Leonardo da Vinci
Most people chose unhappiness over uncertainty, Tim Ferris
I've never been able to completely remove emotion, such as things you listed here, and I don't think anyone can.
The trick is making proper decisions DESPITE those emotions. Simply being aware of them (feel them with your conscious self as your unconscious emotional being produces them) is the trick. Become more aware of your self (in real time) and you become a better trader.
