Jump to content

Welcome to the new Traders Laboratory! Please bear with us as we finish the migration over the next few days. If you find any issues, want to leave feedback, get in touch with us, or offer suggestions please post to the Support forum here.

  • Welcome Guests

    Welcome. You are currently viewing the forum as a guest which does not give you access to all the great features at Traders Laboratory such as interacting with members, access to all forums, downloading attachments, and eligibility to win free giveaways. Registration is fast, simple and absolutely free. Create a FREE Traders Laboratory account here.

StreetCoup

You Need a Trading Plan

Recommended Posts

Trading is a business like any other. Treat it accordingly. It’s about the evaluation of risk for a potential trade. Everyone who has been involved in the financial market for a while will know to appreciate a trading plan. Market participants who have been hurt with losses regret not having had one from the first moment on. After all, it is more exciting to jump into the first trade and get the drill immediately.

 

Imagine you were about to buy property. Wouldn’t you balance the pros and cons of the location, the buying price, or your monthly annuity? You certainly will not buy the first property that comes across you. Unfortunately this is precisely how beginners approach trading. The hurdles of opening a trading account and depositing some cash are far lower than, say, registering your own business. Henceforth, trading is not taken as seriously.

 

When composing your trading plan, you have to understand most of all yourself. Why do you want to trade? What are the specific goals you are trying to achieve with trading? How much time during the day can you dedicate to it? Can you handle a loss of $50, $1,000, or $5,000 per trade? How would such a loss affect you? Do you prefer to harness large trends, or quick trades throughout the day?

 

The next step is to find the right market and the right time frame. For example, I have chosen the ES for myself because I want to focus on one instrument and trade it well. My primary time frame is the 1 hour chart.

 

Going further, you need to know your specific trading strategy. Create one that is as objective as possible because such will stand a higher chance to last throughout various market conditions. I have abandoned all indicators and focus merely on the price. This is what every market participant is seeing. Define where your stop-loss would be at and what the potential loss is if it gets hit. I want to make sure to quit the trade if the original reason for entry is no longer given. I take visible peaks or troughs to put the stop-loss at. With the help of the 1 hour time frame, I am able to detect significant support and resistance areas which help me to find an entry. Everyone will notice if a new high or low is taken out. Do not miss to test your tactics on paper before risking real money.

 

Prepare a trading journal once you have collected some experience and want to get to know yourself better. Write down your emotions, your reasoning for each action made, and a lessons learned for upcoming trades. It seriously helps at becoming more objective in your trading decisions. You engage yourself with the decisions made and will be more alert of making mistakes in future.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

When it comes to treating your trading like a business one of the best things you can do is put together a trading plan.

 

That’s because having a good trading plan in place will ensure that you view the market (and market opportunities) with as little emotion as possible and will keep you focused during times of fear and greed.

 

Why is this important?

 

Because both fear and greed can cause you to make mistakes. And mistakes, both big and small, cost money.

 

Mistakes — what are mistakes?

 

Before we move into the essential elements of your trading plan, let’s take a moment to discuss exactly what types of mistakes we’re trying to avoid by having a trading plan in place.

 

Overtrading

 

Overtrading can mean a couple different things, and all of them are bad.

 

For instance, your trading plan could call for trades to be held for a period of days to weeks. Without a plan you might flip flop in and out of positions for reasons that have nothing to do with a well thought out trading plan. Namely, boredom, excitement, or regret over missed moves happening in another sector.

 

What happens when you engage in this type of trading? You rack up commissions. If you don’t think commissions can seriously diminish your trading results I invite you to backtest . Another form of overtrading occurs when you load up on any single position. With a trading plan in place you might have a rule that limits your exposure to a maximum of 25% of total equity.

 

Without a trading plan you might drop all of your capital into a single stock…that’s struck by bad news overnight…and gaps down -60%.

 

Trading Based on Fear or Greed

 

When you have a good trading plan in place, your entry and exit signals are concrete and worked out well before hand. If a market moves against you but doesn’t take out a stop, you know the position is still open. Without a plan you might rush to close a perfectly good position due to any minor retracement or shakeout.

 

Trading Via News

 

When you’re trading with a plan your set ups are known beforehand and you search through the 7,000 available stocks with these technical and/or fundamental set ups in mind. This is like to going to the grocery store with a list of items you intend to buy.

 

When you don’t have a trading plan in place you can be tempted to buy any and all news stories, runaway charts, or guru tips. For instance, let’s say you wake up one morning to learn that AAPL has just had amazing earnings, in fact the news story is everywhere. Because you have no plan you rush to buy, not noticing that the chart is over extended.

 

This is like going to the grocery store on an empty stomach…after you haven’t eaten for 3 days. Within seconds you’ll be buying everything in sight.

 

Those are just a few of the things that can go wrong without a well thought out trading plan. Now let’s look at how you might go about putting together a trading plan of your own.

 

Your Trading Plan

 

When it comes to designing your own trading plan it’s important to note that your trading plan is not going to be the same as my trading plan. That’s because your needs and your risk profile are inherently your own. That’s why it’s important that you create your own plan.

 

Luckily, there are a few criteria that will be the same for every trading plan — and it’s those criteria that I’m going to talk about today.

 

Set-Up

 

What needs to happen in the past for your trade to happen today? Does your stock need to be up 100% in a year for you to even look at it? Do you need a moving average cross over to bring a stock onto your radar? Do you take fundamentals such as earnings per share, book value, debt levels into consideration? Do you use a combination of all? Also, what types of stocks will you be looking at? Will you be trading slow moving Mega-Cap stocks, or wild, volatile Micro-Caps? Or a combination of both?

 

Consider all of these items are when you are planning your set-up criteria.

 

Entry

 

A lot of beginning traders often mistake entry for set up. But it’s good to think of them as two different criteria. Your set up is what happened in the past to get you interested in the stock. Your entry is what happens in the present to get you into the stock. Does it need to trade over yesterday’s highs? Does the stock need to gap down or up? Do you set trigger prices? Indicator rules? Do you enter at the open? At the close?

 

What has to happen today/right now to get you into this trade?

 

Exit

 

Once you are in your trade, what has to happen to get you out of it? Do you use a trailing stop, or a fixed stop that you raise yourself? Do you use a moving average stop? Do you trade with a price target? Do you scale out of your position or do you get out all at once? Does it have to drop 7-8% like it does for O’Neil? Does it have to trade out of a consolidation box like it did for Darvas?

 

Without a doubt you should know this information before you place your trade. That way you can manage your risk and plan hour trade accordingly.

 

Money Management?

 

This criteria determines how much of your capital that you place on any given trade. Do you split it up evenly? Do you decide by volatility? Do you put all of your capital into 1 or 2 positions, or do you split it up between 30 positions. Don’t just gloss over this criteria. Many professional money managers believe it’s the most important one!

 

In Conclusion

 

As you can see, there about as many different ways to put together your trading plan as there are traders. Which means you should really get to know yourself first and be honest with yourself about what type of trader you are and how you feel about risk.

 

That way you’ll be able to create the perfect trading plan of you!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.


  • Similar Content

    • By millonmethod
      Hello everyone!
      I am an advanced trader, with many years of experience (about 15 years - 10 living exclusively from this)
      I am going to give you some tips that you must know:
      There are going to be many people who tell you that trade is easy, that with only crossiing a line  with another one you will win a lot of money.... and that´s not true.  No, Sir, reality is far away from that. Many people who start arrive here with the hope that someone "gives them" a free method, they watch youtube videos thinking that this will give them the "strategy" and in a few days they realize that it does not work for them - they lose money - and then They go looking for a new one ... and so on. YES, IT´S TRUE YOU EARN IN TRADING, A LOT. BUT THINK: for a few to win (10% + any BROKER) many others must lose (90% people). YOU MUST HAVE A MONEY MANAGMENT FORMULA ( you can email me) People study so many years to live on this, not because they are dumb, but to know what they do, when, and have absolute effectiveness. It´s very easy to get lost here: do not disperse, jumping from one to another strategy WILL NEVER give you money, it will only waste your time and make you nervous when trading. PEOPLE WHO CHANGE THEIR METHOD CONSTANTLY : LOOOOSE ALWAYS.   If you have the knowledge to develop it, take your time and do it.  Always try it first on DEMO for at least 2 weeks! If not: search to buy a solid strategy (no you tube videos pleassse ! Avoid losing money! ) This is like any business, it requires some capital to start (capital = money in the broker + solid made /purchased strategy) If you are lost: I RECOMMEND YOU NOT TO WASTE TIME IN YOUTUBE, JOIN PEOPLE WHO HAVE EXPERIENCE AND IF YOU ARE GOING TO BUY A METHOD ... PLEASE !!!! DO NOT BUY 10 BAD AND CHEAP METHODS, SAVE MONEY AND BUY ONLY 1 BUT EXCLUSIVE AND MUST ALLWAYS HAVE SUPPORT !!!!!  Do not buy Signals! They never keep up with constant profits! One week will win and the next will lose. Nothing that does not depend absolutely on you will give you the money you are looking for. And if you do not have a strategy (made or purchased) do not even try PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE: DO NOT USE REAL MONEY! AT LEAST 2 WEEK DEMO FREE HELP HERE!!!!!  IF YOU FOLLOW MY ADVICE YOU WILL BE PART OF THAT 10% WINNER, email me.
      Have a nice trading day
       
       
  • Topics

  • Posts

    • Date: 11th July 2025.   Demand For Gold Rises As Trump Announces Tariffs!   Gold prices rose significantly throughout the week as investors took advantage of the 2.50% lower entry level. Investors also return to the safe-haven asset as the US trade policy continues to escalate. As a result, investors are taking a more dovish tone. The ‘risk-off’ appetite is also something which can be seen within the stock market. The NASDAQ on Thursday took a 0.90% dive within only 30 minutes.   Trade Tensions Escalate President Trump has been teasing with new tariffs throughout the week. However, the tariffs were confirmed on Thursday. A 35% tariff on Canadian imports starting August 1st, along with 50% tariffs on copper and goods from Brazil. Some experts are advising that Brazil has been specifically targeted due to its association with the BRICS.   However, the President has not directly associated the tariffs with BRICS yet. According to President Trump, Brazil is targeting US technology companies and carrying out a ‘witch hunt’against former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, a close ally who is currently facing prosecution for allegedly attempting to overturn the 2022 Brazilian election.   Although Brazil is one of the largest and fastest-growing economies in the Americas, it is not the main concern for investors. Investors are more concerned about Tariffs on Canada. The White House said it will impose a 35% tariff on Canadian imports, effective August 1st, raised from the earlier 25% rate. This covers most goods, with exceptions under USMCA and exemptions for Canadian companies producing within the US.   It is also vital for investors to note that Canada is among the US;’s top 3 trading partners. The increase was justified by Trump citing issues like the trade deficit, Canada’s handling of fentanyl trafficking, and perceived unfair trade practices.   The President is also threatening new measures against the EU. These moves caused US and European stock futures to fall nearly 1%, while the Dollar rose and commodity prices saw small gains. However, the main benefactor was Silver and Gold, which are the two best-performing metals of the day.   How Will The Fed Impact Gold? The FOMC indicated that the number of members warming up to the idea of interest rate cuts is increasing. If the Fed takes a dovish tone, the price of Gold may further rise. In the meantime, the President pushing for a 3% rate cut sparked talk of a more dovish Fed nominee next year and raised worries about future inflation.   Meanwhile, jobless claims dropped for the fourth straight week, coming in better than expected and supporting the view that the labour market remains strong after last week’s solid payroll report. Markets still expect two rate cuts this year, but rate futures show most investors see no change at the next Fed meeting. Gold is expected to finish the week mostly flat.       Gold 15-Minute Chart     If the price of Gold increases above $3,337.50, buy signals are likely to materialise again. However, the price is currently retracing, meaning traders are likely to wait for regained momentum before entering further buy trades. According to HSBC, they expect an average price of $3,215 in 2025 (up from $3,015) and $3,125 in 2026, with projections showing a volatile range between $3,100 and $3,600   Key Takeaway Points: Gold Rises on Safe-Haven Demand. Gold gained as investors reacted to rising trade tensions and market volatility. Canada Tariffs Spark Concern. A 35% tariff on Canadian imports drew attention due to Canada’s key trade role. Fed Dovish Shift Supports Gold. Growing expectations of rate cuts and Trump’s push for a 3% cut boosted the gold outlook. Gold Eyes Breakout Above $3,337.5. Price is consolidating; a move above $3,337.50 could trigger new buy signals. Always trade with strict risk management. Your capital is the single most important aspect of your trading business.   Please note that times displayed based on local time zone and are from time of writing this report.   Click HERE to access the full HFM Economic calendar.   Want to learn to trade and analyse the markets? Join our webinars and get analysis and trading ideas combined with better understanding of how markets work. Click HERE to register for FREE!   Click HERE to READ more Market news.   Michalis Efthymiou HFMarkets   Disclaimer: This material is provided as a general marketing communication for information purposes only and does not constitute an independent investment research. Nothing in this communication contains, or should be considered as containing, an investment advice or an investment recommendation or a solicitation for the purpose of buying or selling of any financial instrument. All information provided is gathered from reputable sources and any information containing an indication of past performance is not a guarantee or reliable indicator of future performance. Users acknowledge that any investment in Leveraged Products is characterized by a certain degree of uncertainty and that any investment of this nature involves a high level of risk for which the users are solely responsible and liable. We assume no liability for any loss arising from any investment made based on the information provided in this communication. This communication must not be reproduced or further distributed without our prior written permission.
    • Back in the early 2000s, Netflix mailed DVDs to subscribers.   It wasn’t sexy—but it was smart. No late fees. No driving to Blockbuster.   People subscribed because they were lazy. Investors bought the stock because they realized everyone else is lazy too.   Those who saw the future in that red envelope? They could’ve caught a 10,000%+ move.   Another story…   Back in the mid-2000s, Amazon launched Prime.   It wasn’t flashy—but it was fast.   Free two-day shipping. No minimums. No hassle.   People subscribed because they were impatient. Investors bought the stock because they realized everyone hates waiting.   Those who saw the future in that speedy little yellow button? They could’ve caught another 10,000%+ move.   Finally…   Back in 2011, Bitcoin was trading under $10.   It wasn’t regulated—but it worked.   No bank. No middleman. Just wallet to wallet.   People used it to send money. Investors bought it because they saw the potential.   Those who saw something glimmering in that strange orange coin? They could’ve caught a 100,000%+ move.   The people who made those calls weren’t fortune tellers. They just noticed something simple before others did.   A better way. A quiet shift. A small edge. An asymmetric bet.   The red envelope fixed late fees. The yellow button fixed waiting. The orange coin gave billions a choice.   Of course, these types of gains are rare. And they happen only once in a blue moon. That’s exactly why it’s important to notice when the conditions start to look familiar.   Not after the move. Not once it's on CNBC. But in the quiet build-up— before the surface breaks.   Enter the Blue Button Please read more here: https://altucherconfidential.com/posts/netflix-amazon-bitcoin-blue  Profits from free accurate cryptos signals: https://www.predictmag.com/ 
    • What These Attacks Look Like There are several ways you could get hacked. And the threats compound by the day.   Here’s a quick rundown:   Phishing: Fake emails from your “bank.” Click the link, give your password—game over.   Ransomware: Malware that locks your files and demands crypto. Pay up, or it’s gone.   DDoS: Overwhelm a website with traffic until it crashes. Like 10,000 bots blocking the door. Often used by nations.   Man-in-the-Middle: Hackers intercept your messages on public WiFi and read or change them.   Social Engineering: Hackers pose as IT or drop infected USB drives labeled “Payroll.”   You don’t need to be “important” to be a target.   You just need to be online.   What You Can Do (Without Buying a Bunker) You don’t have to be tech-savvy.   You just need to stop being low-hanging fruit.   Here’s how:   Use a YubiKey (physical passkey device) or Authenticator app – Ditch text message 2FA. SIM swaps are real. Hackers often have people on the inside at telecom companies.   Use a password manager (with Yubikey) – One unique password per account. Stop using your dog’s name.   Update your devices – Those annoying updates patch real security holes. Use them.   Back up your files – If ransomware hits, you don’t want your important documents held hostage.   Avoid public WiFi for sensitive stuff – Or use a VPN.   Think before you click – Emails that feel “urgent” are often fake. Go to the websites manually for confirmation.   Consider Starlink in case the internet goes down – I think it’s time for me to make the leap. Don’t Panic. Prepare. (Then Invest.)   I spent an hour in that basement bar reading about cyberattacks—and watching real-world systems fall apart like dominos.   The internet going down used to be an inconvenience. Now, it’s a warning.   Cyberwar isn’t coming. It’s here.   And the next time your internet goes out, it might not just be your router.   Don’t panic. Prepare.   And maybe keep a backup plan in your back pocket. Like a local basement bar with good bourbon—and working WiFi.   As usual, we’re on the lookout for more opportunities in cybersecurity. Stay tuned.   Author: Chris Campbell (AltucherConfidential) Profits from free accurate cryptos signals: https://www.predictmag.com/   
    • DUMBSHELL:  re the automation of corruption ---  200,000 "Science Papers" in academic journal database PubMed may have been AI-generated with errors, hallucinations and false sourcing 
    • Does any crypto exchanges get banned in your country? How's about other as Bybit, Kraken, MEXC, OKX?
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.