February - April -- I've learned the Warrior Trading style which has me looking into entries using candlesticks for the first time and really had a good intro into tape reading. I've also delved more into swing trading while I studied WarriorTrading Pro.
Swing Trading -- It was a sloooow 3 months but it was a good experience since the emotional rollercoaster experienced during daytrading was slowed down to where I had time to analyze how I was feeling during the ups/downs of being in a trade.
The euphoria of being in a profitable trade and the inflated ego/pride that cost leaving more than 70% of unrealized gains on the table.
The depression of being in a losing trade and the emotions of denial, refusal to be wrong, reluctance of taking a loss, and changing the original plan to rationalize my emotions instead of acknowledging what the market is telling me. Each wrong led to another wrong which snowballed me into a psychological trap that I couldn't get out of until the loss became too great to ignore.
** Rule #1: Cut Losses and stick to stops
If I didn't learn enough on seeing NVDA crash after a positive ER, It didn't stick till I was in AMD when It crashed on in-line ER. At least it's at a discounted price now.
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My problem right now is that the core WT style of trading contradicts my old style using established supports as risk levels. Instead of being selective of my trades, I've started to get in lower quality setups.
Huge advantages of WT Pro is that on extremely hot markets, I now have learned tools such as reading candlesticks/level 2 to use to enter/set my risk. I'm still getting used to reading the Time/Sales while looking at level 2.
Huge disadvantage of WT Pro is that on sideways/bearish markets. Whipsaw action are huge due to setting risk levels on arbitrary price points and not on previously established support levels. Ross has had a tough time trading through this and It felt like a huge WALL trying to trade in a clear bearish/shorter's market. This is a previous chart I uploaded on the Gap and Crap:
It's nice to have learned WT Pro style and it will be a tool for me to use during overall hot markets for hot stocks. I've felt sideways on this since I did spend alot for the WT pro that I could've used as capital but I feel that it was worth seeing that I did get what I wanted out of WT Pro.
1) Control FOMO/Find ways to spot when i'm chasing on Longs/Experience first hand what happens when you chase seeing Ross have a tough time and go through trader Rehab for April/May.
2) Tape reading..
I ran into MADAZ on youtube, another scalper that is also a very fast tape reader. Back in December, I couldn't decipher anything that Ross was looking at, but now I've got an idea at what he sees. MADAZ on the other hand adapts to how the market is doing and scalps both long AND short. What more that I like from him is that he doesn't focus on where and how the candlesticks close but focuses specifically on support/resistance levels and how the TAPE reacts around those areas. Which is how I trade back in january but he does it in the timeframe of SECONDS.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HfvGHz7Av0&list=PLR26t0AnySjkLkxETkds3qcYVyQe_l3kp&index=5
** I've noticed that lagging indicators are always behind the price action so I started to use multiple timeframs back in December to make sure that i'm on the right side of the move. But now, I've also noticed that candlesticks in different timeframes can tell different stories. The true indicator of where price direction really is the tape, the one limitation of it is that the larger the timeframe gets--the importance of tape reading gives way to higher TF support/resistance levels--but at the same time keeping in mind that any unknown large trader/institution/catalyst can easily break those same levels.
I've actually noticed this before last year then during the open when stocks would crap in the open--hit a support level--and shoot straight back up green always wondering why it just didn't shoot straight up. What would happen then was that I would buy at the bell and sell into the panic just to watch it bounce of the level and go green without me.
** MADAZ pretty much trades just that in the open.. support/resistance levels but on a scalping time frame. What scares me though is not having enough experience watching the tape to see the difference between a levels holding or the price action BLOWING THROUGH the level. This one fact along is the main reason why I can't do a scalper's timeframe and need a slower TF to trade off. But now that I've seen a scalper use support/resistance levels as his stops than using arbitrary stop points--I've got more confidence back towards my own style of trading.
Importance of CATALYSTS
It's hard not to get into a trade when the chart pattern sets up well but with no know catalyst. I've stayed away from them while Ross had a hard time playing them. They do have potential though, most of these no catalyst but good chart pattern plays are short squeezes and I need to read the chart first whether I can tell there are shorts trapped or not in order to play. If not, I need to stay away from the chart.
FEB-APR Lessons learned:
1) Understanding what the catalyst is important for future potential momentum
2) Stick to stop losses
3) Take 2-3 Days off to reset after a big rule break/Have an emotional thermometer beside the Monitor.
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Stats for 21 April- 5 May
GapGo ----------------------- 1g
MOMO/1min MicroPB --- 2g/2r
MOMO/1min PB ---------- 1g
MOMO/5min PB ----------
MOMO/ABCD/MA PB -----
F3 EOD ---------------------
Short ------------------------ 2g
BAD ------------------------ 1g/7r
16 trades
7 green
9 red (8 were bad setups)
43.75% W/L Ratio #### Commissions
May 2nd Week Trading Plan-
60%+ W/L Ratio:
1) Focus on High Quality Setups
2) Sticking to stop losses
3) Picturing how the trades will be executed/my responses to the trade if it goes up or down--prior to taking the trade.
September Plan - Get capital ready to switch to CenterPoint Securities to focus on shorting. Shorting is really where I feel like should be at. I can easily see where my stop losses are at much easier and feel like it's much easier to execute the loss than being in a long trade where my reaction is to hold hoping it'll bounce back.
