I think as long as you've got a plan and a purpose to what you're doing then it's fine. Targeted practice is key! I feel like the open provides so much opportunity, and I want to learn how it can be used. Sometimes this works out, other times it doesn't. Given I can only trade for the first 40 minutes or so each session, it seems crazy for me to not try and figure out what happens in the first five minutes.

NIO, NIO, NIO... Pre-market it gapped up 6%. My thesis was on the open it would pull back as profit taking took place, and then the dip would be bought giving me opportunities both short and then long. As such I was ready for either a fallen angel in the first minute or an ORB down and then buying the bottom. I had two support levels marked from PM / daily levels. It took 3 minutes for the volume to arrive. I took a 1 min ORB down before it did (not the best decision) and then a 3 min ORB down. Got out of the way early on both, terrified of the volume dumping and sending it to the moon. I then bought the bottom after seeing it hold the levels I'd set and then look like setting a new 1 min high, but setting my stop below the low of the previous candle left very little wiggle room. It wiggled just a fraction too much and I was stopped out by just a few cents. This week I am trying to be more experimental with my trading. Last week I wouldn't have gone near this trade, but this week I'm trying to be more active on the open, there is volatility and volume and I want to learn to use it. That is, of course, much easier said than done.

Good looking trade and similar to Peter's 'W' VWAP reversal pattern. Shame about the R:R being a bit broad, deserved more than 1R but you squeezed what you could out of it. I can see it's extended from the 9 on a 5 min chart. Was this rule also around the previous candles being top-wicky and showing failed attempts to break? The consolidation on the 1 min chart was a little erratic as well I guess. 5 min ORB is outstanding! Great work 🙂 RBLX didn't have shares for short for me, I guess as it's only just IPO'd. I want to figure out a 5 min ORB a bit more, are you still keeping stats on behaviour re: VWAP of 5 min ORBs? Great trade! What a shame you got out of the way but I feel your pain, it's agonising watching every tick. Once you're in a trade, what do you do? Do you keep watching the chart or leave it to do it's thing a while? I sometimes force myself to look elsewhere and only track what's happening by watching the P/L, this helps me stay in trades longer. Exiting trades early is a major issue for me, like you I get freaked out the second the thing wobbles. Feel free to join in here!! 🙂

I'm gonna have to start a forum log like this too. Seems useful for a number of reasons. Only thing I see here was the CAN trades were cutting across the short EMAs, although I know they usually don't look so spread apart when you take the trade.

Apparently Senator Van Hollen introduced a new bill to implement an FTT of 0.1%. Here is a link to him talking about it: (1210) Van Hollen Discusses Merits of Financial Transaction Tax at Banking Committee Hearing - YouTube Hopefully it goes nowhere. Not trying to be political, but this directly impacts day traders in a pretty major way.

I expanded on The Process of Executing a Good Trade in this post. it takes a lot of practice to plan a trade in real-time (especially in the first 30 minutes of the market). At least a month and hundreds of attempts until you develop a process that works for you. Once you get good at planning and managing the trade, you will be able to do it faster and faster each time. Like muscle memory of sorts. Here is what works for me: Prerequisites 1. Stock is in play 2. Support and resistance identified in pre-market 3. Pre-market volume and price action is tradable 4. Know the float category (low, mid, high) and how many shares you plan to take While watching the stock 1. Spread is manageable 2. ATR/price swings accounted for (i.e, see how much the stock ticks. Is it going up/down in 0.01 to 0.05 increments, or 0.50 to $1) 3. Price action is clean and not choppy; related to above 4. Volume is good and not dying 5. Who is control: buyers or sellers? 6. What is the strategy/pattern that is setting up here? 7. Is the price getting extended? Finding an entry 1. Is the entry favourable (new 1-min or 5-min high), or will it be a chase 2. Did the stock pullback yet? If not, to which level will it test and will I survive that? 3. What's the target? Is it realistic? 4. Finding a reasonable stop at a technical level 5. Calculating the risk-to-reward 6. Executing the order; with conviction--no hesitation Managing the Trade 1. Is the live price action still clean? 2. Are we making higher-highs and higher-lows, or vice versa? 3. Are there are levels or tops/bottoms that I missed before entering that have now become a factor (i.e, a moving average on the 1-minute chart) 4. Is the market providing new information that validates or invalidates my original criteria? Is the Level 2 bullish, bearish or neutral? 5. Is it a good time to add more (if you scaled in initially), or should you take some profit off the table? 6. If scaling out, how much and at what levels? 7. Is the price action conducive to my original stop/target? 8. Is control between buyers and selling shifting? 9. Given the above, does it make sense to stay in the trade or exit at break-even, before stop, or before target? I know that is a lot to process in a short amount of time, but those thoughts go through my head during a trade. For others, it may be much simpler or even more complex.