Friday Log - Memorial Day Weekend

As we head into the Memorial Day weekend, remember those who gave us the opportunity to live free, choose the career we want to pursue and achieve the goals and dreams we all chase and ultimately can realize if we work hard.

Today I anticipated a range bound day and that's what we saw. I was only intending to trade the AM session and that was pretty much what I did. Started the morning off with two long positions @ 89.77 and 86.75 within the first 10 minutes. Had a stop under the climbing trendline stretching from yesterday's low. Took some heat but just missed hitting my stop. Was considering adding two more C's but refrained as internals were mixed. My thought was price would go hard down approx. 6 points and then back up. My only mistake was to have gotten in a bit early on the first position of 89.75.

Scaled out as price went higher and closed all positions by 1024. Other than a little anxiety from the heat around 82-83, I felt good about the trade other than the early trigger on first position. Result: +9.5

Next trade was short at 1110 @ 93.25 with 2 tick stop above previous high of 93.75. The set up was extreme TICK reading @ 1042. Was stopped out with 2 pt loss but got right back in after doji / IVB formed. Scaled out of trade with last contract targeted for PP area and B/E stop. Needed to take my bride out for lunch so I boxed the trade. The end result would be either +3 or +6 final points on the RT. Result: 5.25

Avoided the afternoon session. Light volume and lots of volatility during the last hour. Good to watch with some weekend coin in hand although still need to rebound from the earlier in week debacle. More on that reflection in later post.

This holiday weekend, display the flag, have fun with family and friends and remember our troops who, through generations, have brought to us the fun and freedom we experience everyday, not just during this weekend.

Trade Well !

Thursday Log – The Day After Hangover

The overnight position did not work out (gee, that’s a surprise). Overnight positions rarely work for me and that’s why I usually don’t put myself in that position. Result - 42

I attempted a long pre-market once market came down to S1 area after eco reports announced at 0830. Market opened with internals pointing down. Had stop in place, leveraged the trade 2 pts below S1, market came back to average and like yesterday, I did not take the gift (although it was early as market tried to find direction but internals were indicating downward bias) and close the trade to B/E. Took the heat and got stopped out. Result - 18

Took a couple scalps later in the session for a scratch. Nothing too brag about that’s for certain. Maybe today’s poor results were a hangover effect from yesterday, although I try to start each day without thinking about what happened yesterday. Result: scratch

Will think about where my head is and what’s interfering with my decision making and discipline process the last couple days. One problem might be that when the trend changed, my thought process was still locked into what I “thought” the market would do rather than WHAT the market was DOING and TELLING me.
I must tighten up some rules, one of which is ‘only trade on the price side of VWAP’. Once price dipped under VWAP, that’s when I was going against the flow. Also need to be better aware of micro trend changes.

Walking away early today. Need to re-group and get ready for tomorrow’s market. One thing positive is that even with the two back-to-back non-profit days, I was not afraid to trade. This used to be a problem but I seem to have tamed that fear fairly well. Now it’s more about working on the trade mechanics and minimizing the damage.

Trade Well !

Wednesday Log - Trapped

Started the morning going long @ 0936 with 15.25 entry after test of yesterday high held. Market opened strong with positive internals, A/D above +2000 and TICK above zero line, although XLF was not participating. Entered for a scalp. Initial target was 17.25 on partial of position but then moved target and stop. Did not let trade idea work and should have taken the 2 pts on half of position and swing the remainder which would have worked. Result: 2 pts.

Took another stab long @ 0947. Poor entry and felt I was chasing. Price broke earlier HH and got in on slight pullback @ 18.50. What’s the point of getting in now if I did not let my first trade work as planned? Poor execution and after a minute of reflection, I invoked a self imposed trip to the penalty box and scratched the trade. After the exit, market ran up another 2 pts. No regrets other than not having patience on first trade. Result: B/E

Got long @ 19.75 on first PB and added as price dropped on second leg to 16.75. Was giving it a lot of room. Bot 2 more @ 10.75. Not very good discipline. Market melted down and so did I as I got mauled in the bull trap. Market internals telling me things were changing and did not act on it. Decided to hold overnight which I hardly ever do. Hail Mary stop and targets set. A loss will wipe out all of last weeks gains. That’s ¼ of a month of trading. Let's look at it this way. If I would have been disciplined properly, not moved stops,taken the 12 point loss earlier when I realized I was wrong (but didn't want to admit it?), then I would have preserved 80% of last weeks profits. Do you get it Steve!? This type of inaction will kill the account.

I did not trade well or smart today. Had a chance to get out twice with BE and then a 12 pt loss but did not take the gift. Someday I’ll learn to take those gifts when the market shows sympathy on a bone-headed trade. When you are wrong now. Learn to admit you were wrong early and be nimble and flexible with your plan. You will get it back with another set-up or two. Tomorrow is another day.

Trade Well !

Legend of the Chronicles

Some logbook entries will look like a collection of secret codes as I use many acronyms to describe trade set-ups and jargon. Some are common and obvious while others may not be. Here’s the code breaker:

A/D - Advancers / Decliners
B/E - Break Even
C – Contract(s)
CE - Clint Eastwood Set-Up
DCM - Damage Control Mode
DLTW - Didn't Let Trade Work
EMA - Exponential Moving Average
ETF's - XLK, XLF, XLE
HH – Higher High
Internals - TRIN, TICK, A/D
KB – Keltner Bands
LL – Lower Low
MA – Simple Moving Average
MRAH / MRAL - Most Recent Active Low/High
MO - Missed Opportunity
PT – Point
S&R – Support & Resistance
SS – Slow Stochastic ERP – Extreme Running Pattern
TC - Trading Concepts Set-Up
VWAP - Volume Weighed Average Price

Tuesday Logbook - Bulls and Bears Pulling on the Rope

Range bound trading today. Got off a couple decent trades but saw three others that I did not act on that would have added a few more points to the till. Seems like a fairly hard channel we're in right now. It will be interesting to see who breaks the bank first.

Charts were in-op for first 12 min so reverted to back-up charts. Went short @ 0935 and again @ 0937 for avg fill of 907.75. Anticipated heavy support in 901-903 area. Took all off @ 905.25 as I walked the stop down. Had initial close order on half of position @ 903.25 and was going to swing the remaining half. Missed by 2 ticks. At that point, stop was re-set from B/E to locking in profits. Once support held, buyers became bold and shorts threw in the towel.
Getting more comfortable with leveraging my positions. Better conviction and trade planning. Really helps take the anxiety out of the trade. Result: +10pts.

Nice set up in 1105 timeframe with two leg pullback from high and first pullback to mid-lower KB. Entered long @ 10.25 and ready to buy more @ 07.25. Target for position was 12.25 which was hit. Strong support with intraday Fib ret as well as trendline support along with KB set-up made for good trade. Result: +4 pts.

Good patience again today. Fairly satisfied with patience quota over past 4-6 weeks. Laying in the weeds much better and waiting for the higher-prob set-ups. Conscious about the trap of over trading, Going into each day at the opening bell with the mind-set that I’m digging out of a hole. I no longer check P/L until close of day as I focus on point management.

Missed Opportunities: Saw these set-ups but did not pull the trigger: 1. First bounce off MA @ 1257 (long), re-test short of high @ 1330 and another re-test and stop runner @ 1448. Divergence signals on SS, TICK and ADX. XLE was not making new high during the 1448 retest. Trade and learn. Must have confidence to trade what one sees. In addition, the 1448 set-up was a low risk trade. A few more points were there for the taking but...

Trade Well !

Full Exposure

At first I was going to "hide" my chronicles until I had a few posts under my belt. But then, after some contemplation I thought "what the hell", It would be true to myself and uphold the purpose and intent of this record if I "go naked" right from the get-go. Working out the kinks, seeing how I liked or disliked the format, learn how to post charts, etc., might be a cleaner start but it's about growing and learning by immersion. But then isn't that what the trading journey is like?

It's the exploration of new ideas, learning how to become accomplished with a new interest or discipline that helps one get over the fear of the unknown. Although posting my open thoughts is what I would hardly call bold, it is public, it is a new exposure and learning process for me and I am comfortable with taking risks.

So although a couple of posts have been pinned up before I "flipped the switch" and go live, I am for all intents and purposes live from the start.

I Wonder how long it will take for someone to discover this forum?

Trade Well !

Logbook Ground Rules & Guidelines

Any good plan has rules and so I believe it's important to establish some ground rules for this logbook. Not only for myself, but also for anyone who might stumble across this splattering of words, thoughts and ideas. In the end it is my intention to provide an easy flow of trading records to reference that will hopefully improve and motivate my trading as well as offer some tidbits for others to chew on. Bon Appetite.

GROUND RULES & GUIDELINES:

1. Open, honest and respectful communication
   
2. Complete, full-disclosure re-caps of my daily trades and my thought processes behind them without smoke and mirrors.
   
3. Share resources, knowledge and dialogue that will help me recall past trading thoughts as well as help and engage other traders
   

4. I welcome comments from others as long as there are no personal attacks. Constructive feedback and observations are encouraged. Keep it professional!
   
5. This forum was started for one main reason and that was to take my trading to the next level, hold myself accountable and learn to be a better trader. If this logbook turns into a bridge that connects other traders who can share information and benefit then all the better.
   
6. I am not a professional writer and don't claim to be one. I can hardly tell the difference between a verb or an adjective. I do enjoy writing and that's another sidebar of this logbook, to put my thoughts on paper. So, please no major criticism on proper English or sentence structure. If I understand what I'm trying to communicate and you as a guest get the gist of information presented, then what's the point in spending much energy on my self-proclaimed weakness? This ain't a writing class, it's a trading journal!
   
7. My trading style, methods and strategies continue to be honed and shaped into what is comfortable for my personality. It's part of the journey. I suggest and encourage no one try's to copy me (or for that matter any other trader's style). It's important to create your own trading style that best fits you. Its like trying to find a good fitting pair of shoes. It might take a few boxes to open and styles to try on, but eventually you find what feels "right" and works.
   
8. Anyone submitting comments must be registered and cannot post commercial or subscription website links.
   
9. I welcome and encourage all comments that are constructive. Whether you agree, disagree or are neutral, be respectful of others' opinions, thoughts, ideas and questions. Most of all let's have fun, grow and learn to make more than we lose! I also encourage thoughts and ideas on how I can improve this site.

Trade Well !

Monday's Logbook - Scratch That Itch

A trader wants to trade and is itching to get in. But sometimes its best to scratch the trade rather than the itch and that's pretty much what I did today.

Today started out somewhat positive albeit tough to read first hour. Went short and scalped 1.75 pts first 30 mins on retest of intraday low. Internals were looking strong but did not see it in the chart although once Friday HH was tested and broken, a pullback entry could have been a low risk entry.

Nice set-up in 1200-1215 period. Looking for 95.25 long entry. Missed fill by 3 ticks. Trying to be too refined with entry. Plan was to buy more @ 93 area but never got it as train left the station. One good thing is I did not chase.

Was waiting for pullback to intraday 40-50% Fib areas but never materialized. SOH until set-up occurred once +1400 TICK triggered @ 1442. Followed price up until it got toppy and waited for close below high bar @ 1451 and entered @ 1506 with 03.25 short. Got greedy on the trade as initial target was 91.25 but instead tried for 90.25. 91.25 was the trade target as 91 was hit. Once again the extreme TICK readings pay. Need to take 1-2 pt scalp and set remainder of position to BE/swing.

Stopped out @ 04.25 with -2 pts (2 C's / 1 pt). Tried another short @ 1548 expecting longs to release prior to close. Warning signals to close trade (or not even get in) were there with IVB and XLF making fresh HH. Stopped out -1.

Overall -1.25 pts on the day. Had a fairly good feel for the market today but waited for strong low risk pullback which never came. Good patience waiting for good set-ups. We'll get 'em tomorrow.

Trade Well !

Purpose & Intent

Welcome to my personal journey through the world of trading. The purpose of this weblog is to further develop my trading skills and take my trading to the next level through self talk, documentation and open forum exposure and accountability.

The intent of this 'logbook' is to create more structured discipline with my trading career, enhance my trading skills and results as well as share my knowledge with other traders who might find benefit.

The journey to becoming a successful retail trader is a tough one. I once read where "trading is simple but its the hardest thing you will ever try to learn". I can attest that at least for me that statement is true. But after 48 years of trying to figure out what I wanted to do when I "grow up", I found my passion to become prosperous trader.

For those who have discovered this logbook, I encourage your comments, insights and perspectives. My hope is that my posts will not only help me to achieve my personal expectations and goals, but will also deliver a forum that will share knowledge and inspire fellow traders.

Trading is not a destination. It is a continuous journey of reflection, discovery and growth. There are gold nuggets of information everywhere that will help the aspiring trader develop and succeed. I hope this forum will provide some tools that will assist in mining those gold nuggets of information, strategy and techniques into trading success.

Trade Well !