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Ok I'm starting a journal and it's NOT for the Ipad (I promise)
Ok, I've been live trading for about 6 months now and have been keeping a journal to myself but, for some reason, I'm not that good at keeping it up. I usually am good for weeks at a time but, if I stop trading for a few days because my kids are sick or I'm on vacay, I find it hard to start up again. So, here I am. Accountability is always good and they say that a habit takes 21 or so days so, I'm hoping by the end of March, my journal will be a habit because I do believe in them and I always do much better when I document my trades.
A little about me and my trading: I'm a true newbie, I've taken some trading courses and read alot of books and I spent about 6 months developing a trading plan and practicing before going live. I haven't blown out my account yet but, I am currently down and I have been up too. My biggest problem, like others here, is sticking to my $#%(#*# plan!
Another reason for not starting a journal here sooner is that my plan is not as sophisticated as most of the ones I have read here and frankly, I'm a little embarrassed at it's simplicity and my lack of experience. Most of you guys here are so well versed with trading and I'm not. I'm just a girl trying to have a little fun and make some money at the same time at this "big boy" game.
I currently don't know how to post screen shots but, I will figure it out tomorrow and do so. Not sure what they will look like but, I will do my best.
I currently only trade ES. I was trading NQ, TF and DX (and a short stint with FDAX which went terribly wrong - LOL) I trade all hours, depending on when I get a signal and when I'm awake. I am only trading 1 contract but I dream someday to trade 2 because my plan would work really well with 2
I don't trade every day but, I will post everyday because when I don't trade, I do backtesting and sim.
Thanks to Big Mike for this forum and allowing me to post my journal
Great, it is good to see more woman traders. My wife trades as well and hasn't been live for a few months due to the kids schedule and mostly replay these days.
I think Canadians are exempted from winning the IPAD anyways? haha...
Keep us posted. Oh, and how I grab a screen shot is the old fashioned way. Hit the print screen button on your keyboard and voila. Open up Paint, Control key + V (paste) and then crop it. Other programs you can download that will do that much more easily but old habits die hard.
wish you good luck in trading mostly, journal is just a tool for success
The markets are non-linear, dynamic systems. Chaos analysis has determined that market prices are highly random with a trend component. The amount of the trend component varies from market to market and from time frame to time frame.
why did you say that Canadians are exempted from winning the IPAD?
yeah journal! i will be updating my journal soon. Because It is listed on the advise of Mr. Big Mike and i believe him taht it is one way to be a good trader adn to evaluate oneself.
by the way, about the IPAD, i just started yesterday as a member of this forum.
Am i disqualified for the game?
because i didn't post march 1st ?
So, I'm thinking of changing the title of my journal to "How not to trade" LOL
Today started off fine. Good in fact. I have a feeling alot of people made alot of money today. Should have been an easy day to pick up 10 points but, alas, not for me.
I have posted a screenshot (my first one ever so, I hope it turns out ok) with my trades.
I basically wait for my signal (red or green) bars to hit the outside BB, confirm with RSI and enter. My exits are based on time of day and volume. If I'm trading right after open, I usually set a 4pt target and if I'm trading on the lunch hour (EST) I usually set a 3 pt target. Stops are always 2pts. I enter with limit orders and exit with market orders, when I want out, I want out NOW.
My backtesting shows that if I stick to my plan and ONLY trade as per my plan, I should win about 60% of the time. With my profit ratio of 1.5:1 and 2:1 - I really should be ahead of the game by now. But, the problem is sticking to the plan.
I have many traits that are well suited for trading. I have no problem taking losses and I can hold till target without a problem either. My problem is patience, waiting for the signals (I often get bored and want to trade just for fun) and distractions (it's very hard to trade properly while taking care of a baby)
My main problem today was the afternoon trades. I got nervous when my trade went against me temporarily and not only did I exit but, I reversed as well. Ugh! I never do that , not sure why I did it today but, I did. If I had just stuck to my plan, I would have been up about $400 today, instead I am down about $100.
Oh well, there is always tomorrow. This is why I love trading
NOTE: I should also mention that I use NT 6.5 for charting but, I trade with the Zen-Fire WebTrader on a separate computer, this is why I had to post my screenshot this way, without the proper trade markers.
Entered as per my plan, exited as per my plan. Picked up 5 points. Done for the day.
What I did differently today than most days is that I entered my trade, set my stop and target and walked away. My baby is sick and woke up much earlier than normal. She usually wakes around 8am PST so, I can usually get 1.5-2 hrs of trading done before she wakes. Today she was up at 6:45 so, almost as soon as I entered my trade, I had to leave the computer. Worked in my favor today, forced me to stick to my plan
I don't think I can trade the afternoon session today as I have other obligations but, I'll see how my morning goes.
Nice to see your journal here. And simple is good. The simpler you can make something, the easier it is to execute it, and I find execution is really what it is all about in trading -- not method.
The iPad / $600 is open to anyone, details are in the contest thread. Doesn't matter where you live, so long as your journal was created on or before March 1st.
Well, I didn't think anyone would take that comment seriously. Just a poke at our Canadian friends and the "haha..." was intended to mean 'laughing' like jest, or joking or kidding or other words used. Sorry.
