Mark D. Day Trading Journal - Live 2019

[Brandon K 64]

Also, that spike on QCOM had me thinking it was gonna go up, lol. Fake out for sure.

[Mark D. 435]

Thursday April 18th, 2019

Sleep: 7 hours. Mood: good, ready to trade. 

First trade of the day was BX. i got in right at the break higher, sold half when it stalled out and the rest when it made a new 1min low at my breakeven. glad i got out becuase it dropped hard!

GOOD: entry, R/R and trade management

RFI: could have held longer and sold more when i had the chance

MOOD: great, really happy with how I handled that trade. 

CONSISTENT: yes. 

 

The last trades i hulked out a little bit. I noticed in the pre-market that if CRON came down to the PPDH that would potentially be a good place to take a long position. I noticed it did exactly what i thought it would at 9:46. i waited for it to come back to the 16.40 level but i got impatient and decided i would take half size and put my stop at the level i wanted my entry. it came all the way down to it and i got stopped out. then i tried the same trade again, with the stock making new 5min lows below VWAP, i didn't get much better entry the second time either and then held past my $10 stop. then i gave it one last try right at where i wanted my original entry giving it to the LOTD, again it crossed my stop loss and i held for another big loss. 

GOOD: stopped trading.

RFI: amateur trading forcing my opinion to be right when it was clearly wrong. 

MOOD: not that bad, i'm working on positive acceptance of my mistakes. 

CONSISTENT: big no!

 

Another max loss day. and i broke my rule of only two losses allowed after a max loss day. i'm going back in to sim for the remainder of the month. I'm breaking my rules, letting losers run, and forcing my trades and i hit my max monthly loss so it's back to sim to try and work on my emotional control before stepping back in to real trading. 

What i did good today: Great trade management in BX. 

What i did bad today: CRON trades were about as bad as they could be

What can i do better tomorrow: need to focus on trading with the trend and focus getting out of trades that aren't working

Other comments for tomorrow: Back to SIM until i'm making better trades. 

 

[Mike B 624]

3 hours ago, Mark D. said:

First trade of the day was BX. i got in right at the break higher, sold half when it stalled out and the rest when it made a new 1min low at my breakeven. glad i got out becuase it dropped hard!

Great risk management on $BX. I was watching $BX too but the price action was to crazy for my tolerance level to get in.

[Mark D. 435]

1 hour ago, Mike B said:

Great risk management on $BX. I was watching $BX too but the price action was to crazy for my tolerance level to get in.

thanks Mike! I was tempted to short it after that but it was too crazy. 

[Mark D. 435]

Week 16 Recap

Amateur trading Wednesday and Thursday. The worst part about this week for me is how I’m starting to slip back in to letting my losers run past my intended stop. Another bad habit that’s starting to creep back in to my trading is trying to force my opinion of being right by taking the same trade repeatedly when I can see after the fact that it was against the trend. I have several other issues but those are the two that are doing the most damage so I’m focusing on those for now.

My plan for next week was to go back to SIM but I’ve decided that part of my issue is that my fear of losing money is causing my bad trading and the only way to overcome that is work on being consistent and sticking to my rules in real trading so I’m not going back to sim. I am going to only take two losers on Monday.

Other changes are; I’ve removed the daily chart. I don’t think it’s helping and it’s only making be biased. I’ve eliminated my unrealized P&L on screen so I can focus on the price action and not how much I’m up or down. I’ve removed the 5min MA from all charts, so my charts are less busy.

Hope everyone has a happy Easter!

 

·         Weekly stats

o   2.5 R/R (Goal: above 2.0) [Previous Week: 1.7]

o   32/48 67% (Goal: above 80%) [Previous Week: 58%]

o   -$89.76 (Goal: $250) [Previous Week: -$23.10]

o  5/12 42% trades with the trend (Goal: 100%) [Previous Week: 70%]

o   6/12 50% Non-optimal Entries (Goal: 0%) [Previous Week: N/A]

o   3/12 25% Letting Losers Run (Goal: 0%) [Previous Week: 10%]

o    2/12 17% No Setup (Goal: 0%) [Previous Week: 20%]

 

·         Highlights

o   Risk management on my BX trade was on point.

 

·         Ongoing things to work on

o   Forcing trades in the wrong direction, especially after getting stopped out.

o   Taking the same trade again after getting stopped out.

o   Letting losers run to my auto-stop of 1.8R. Work on always getting out at stop.

o   Kicking myself for my bonehead CRON and QCOM trades.

[Rob C 826]

On 4/19/2019 at 8:05 AM, Mark D. said:

 

My plan for next week was to go back to SIM but I’ve decided that part of my issue is that my fear of losing money is causing my bad trading and the only way to overcome that is work on being consistent and sticking to my rules in real trading so I’m not going back to sim. I am going to only take two losers on Monday.

 

 

 

 

 

Glad to hear it. Same thing with me. SIM is really good for testing out strategies, but I never felt that it helps with psychology. I think it teaches me poor discipline. So I shy away from using it.

 

[Mark D. 435]

Monday April 22nd, 2019

Sleep: 7.5 hours. Mood: happy for the long weekend to clear my head. ready to trade. 

first trade of the day was a ORBD in AMD. i waited for a pullback to the MAs on the 1min chart and got in. got out a minute later on a new 5min high towards the 200 MA on the 1min. it was at about half my stop loss when i got out but since it made a new 5min high i didn't want to stay in the trade. i should have waited to see if it was going to pop and a new 1min low before getting in short. it didn't matter either way, it ended up going higher. 

GOOD: got out with a small loss. 

RFI: too early on the entry. 

MOOD: good, happy to limit my losses. 

CONSISTENT: yes. 

 

last trade of the day was an ABCD in AMD. I wasn't watching when it made a new 5min high at 10:15 so i missed the first push. i got in at the moving average on the 1min chart. i put my stop loss too wide and though i sold at the profit target, i didn't make much money on the trade. i got spooked out of my last 25% on the spinning top to new 5min low. i should have waited to see if the previous day high was going to provide support. 

GOOD: sold at profit target. got a great entry. 

RFI: risk level was too large. i was hoping to get in at or around PDC but i should have used that for my stop loss. 

MOOD: good, happy with trade, otherwise. 

CONSISTENT: yes. 

 

Happy with my trading today. limited my loss on my first trade and my second trade had a great entry. i'm probably a little in the red with commissions but all in all a good trading day. 

What I did good today: emotional control on both trades was much better than last week. 

What i did bad today: too wide of a stop loss on my first trade. 

What can i do better tomorrow: need to adjust your stop by what the market is saying, not what i want it to be. 

Other comments for tomorrow: Keep working on emotional control and making good trades. 

 

[Mark D. 435]

Tuesday April 23rd, 2019

Sleep: 7 hours. Mood: good, ready to trade. 

First trade of the day was an ORBD in VZ. my plan was to get in at the previous, previous day low and risk it popping above the VWAP. I was too fearful to get in right at that level but ended up going short a little bit lower which would have been fine but i didn't change my Risk level so my first sell at the LOTD wasn't favorable. i took half off because it was hesitating and the rest at breakeven.

GOOD: got some profit on the trade. 

RFI: stop is too far again.

CONSISTENT: yes

MOOD: good. 

 

Then i took the double bottom reversal in VZ but again i was too scared to get in at a good R/R and instead chased it and got a bad r/r and i ended up not taking any profits at the PPDL level and i held on way too long thinking "it will turn around" which it did and i got out at my stop loss. 

GOOD: good setup. 

RFI: FOMO entry lead to bad R/R which lead to a full stop out. 

MOOD: good, i still have a lot of psychological work to do

CONSISTENT: i got out at my stop but i shouldn't have been so firm on my profit target. 

 

I should have stopped trading after this because it did rattle me a little bit. i ended up trying to take an ABCD in ROKU. My first instinct was to short it as a double top but i've been burned so many times i stuck to trading long. It is amateur trading to associate older trades with this trade because every trade is unique. i should have just waited to see which way it was going to break instead of guessing. i got out on a new 5min low against my position. glad i did because it ran to my stop. 

GOOD: got out on price action.

RFI: associating older trades to this trade. guessing which direction instead of waiting for a signal.

MOOD: fine, happy for the small loss.

CONSISTENT: yes. 

 

Ok day of trading today. worse than yesterday but i wouldn't say i did a bad job. turns out after i finished my ROKU trade that i noticed i was in SIM all morning so none of these trades went to my real P&L. After i realized i was in SIM i took a couple more trades, all winners that put me well in the green for the day. that shows i still have a lot of psychological work to go but i am getting better, it's just a slow process. 

What I did good today: two of my three trades were in the right direction.

What I did bad today: still too cautious on my stop loss. 

What can i do better tomorrow: either stick with your original entry plan or adjust your stop so that you can get a good R/R that is achievable. 

 

[Mark D. 435]

Wednesday April 24th, 2019

Sleep: 7.5 hours. Mood: good, trading in a doctors waiting office not really comfortable with trading here. 

First trade of the day was a long in T. It closed above VWAP so i tried to take it long right on the break higher but i got left holding the bag and stopped out. i'm not sure why i went long on right there, that's not my trading style specifically for the reason that i typically get stopped out. also i'm working on taking my full 100 shares but it was too much for the regular 1min moves in this stock. 

GOOD: not going to knock the trade idea, i think it made sense. 

RFI: too soon on the entry and too large a position size for the normal movements. 

MOOD: mad at myself for not positioning correctly

CONSISTENT: yes. 

Took the same trade again. which i should not have with the same results. same issues. 

GOOD: got out at stop

RFI: don't take the same trade again unless it goes in the direction of the original trade.

MOOD: eh, not that bad

CONSISTENT: yes.

 

Last trade of the day was a long in SNAP. it sat at the PPDL level for almost 20 minutes so i got in long on a new 5min high. after i got in I realized i should have waited for a pullback so i could use the LOTD for my resistance level. this trade didn't work either and i got stopped out on the trade and max loss for the day. 

GOOD: better risk level than on T but still not good. 

RFI: got in the trade too soon. 

MOOD: ok. 

CONSISTENT: yes respected my stop. 

 

What i did good today: respected my stops and tried to get myself to take full position size.

What i did bad today: chasing entries and not being patient for good setups. 

What can i do better tomorrow: need to correct the other way and get full share size but at a point where there is shown resistance. 

 

[Mark D. 435]

Thursday April 25th, 2019

Sleep: 7.5 hours. Mood: good, ready to trade. 

First trade of the day was in MU. i got in right near the VWAP and a daily level risking a break below and under $44.00. sold half a little bit under my profit target then another 25% at my profit target and the final at $44.50. i'm really happy with this trade, I didn't chase and nailed the entry. i could have done better selling but as long as i'm taking good trades with good entries i'm happy. 

GOOD: nailed the entry, good R/R. 

RFI: should have sold 75% at the high of the day instead of earlier.

MOOD: happy. 

CONSISTENT: yes. 

 

I haven't had a decent green day in a while so i decided to call it quits after this trade and finish green. 

What i did good today: didn't chase my entry got in right at resistance

What i did bad today: selling could have been better. 

What can i do better tomorrow?: keep trading but only take good setups. 

[Mark D. 435]

Friday April 26th, 2019

Sleep: 8 hours. Mood: feeling nervous this morning. i'm assuming it's because i did well yesterday so i'm worried i'm going to trade bad and also i'm trading from home which is not my typical trading environment. 

First trade of the day was MU. it sold off beautifully without me on an ORBD. then made a double bottom that i passed on as well. once it crossed the 200 MA and then lost it to the downside i got in short. i did not mean to take full size i hit the wrong hot key. i got out half at 1R which at the time seemed like a good idea to lower my risk but had i just given it a little more time i could have got out at 2R for a good trade even though i didn't mean to. I got my typical sell half at 1R get out the rest at b/e. if i don't stop doing that with my winners, i'll never be profitable. 

GOOD: patient with my entry. 

RFI: no setup, chased the entry, didn't sell at my profit target. 

MOOD: ok, glad it wasn't a loser

CONSISTENT: no. not following my trading plan. 

 

Tried the trade again to the short side, risking the VWAP to the LOTD. i did not wait for the signal it was going lower and got in too early and got stopped out immediately. 

GOOD: got out at my stop with no problem.

RFI: no setup, too early on the entry, didn't get in at resistance. didn't wait to see if this was a pullback or a reversal. 

MOOD: fear, FOMO

CONSISTENT: yes, got out at my stop. 

 

 

Took MU to the long side which was a great idea BUT i didn't get a good enough entry and i got stopped out. so close to making money overall on MU today and i just botched it with my entries. 

GOOD: right idea

RFI: bad entry, stop was too close. 

MOOD: dissapointed i didn't have the patience for a proper entry. 

CONSISTENT: yes i respected my stops. 

 

Last trade of the day was in NVDA. it could not break through the VWAP and i got in on a new 5min low risking above the VWAP and a new 5min high. i'm not going to knock the trade idea, this could have went in my direction the only thing i would change is my bad entry. 

GOOD: trade idea made sense with a reasonable stop.

RFI: chased the entry. 

MOOD: ok, it's a choppy day in the market. 

CONSISTENT: yes, respected my stop. 

 

Let my emotions get the better of me today and took all FOMO entries. 

What I did good today: Got out of my trades at my monetary stop loss point with little to no hesitation or emotional pain. 

What i did bad today: too emotional on my entries and not trading my setups. not one trade today was a good entry

What can i do better tomorrow: I need to 1.) trade a setup or make sure the stock is trending then 2.) get a good entry and then finally 3.) don't sell before 2R period. 

Other comments for tomorrow: i'm so close to being profitable, i can feel it. just looking at my statistics, i have a win rate of around 43% which is pretty good. my problem is that my average winner is $10 and my average loser is $10 so i'm slowly losing money. or a little fast because i'm paying 20% commissions on top of both. I confident i can be a winning trader i just need to tweak my trading just a little bit and i will get my equity curve in the right direction. 

 

[Mark D. 435]

Week 17 Recap

Another red week but at least this week I didn’t let any losers run. I’m glad that I had the control not to let my bad trades get away from me. Also, this week I’ve been upping my position size to 100 shares so that I don’t have to get a huge move to get to 2R but with that I have to be really patient and get really good entries, something I look forward to practicing next week.

·         Weekly stats

o   2.5 R/R (Goal: above 2.0) [Previous Week: 2.5]

o   30/56 54% (Goal: above 80%) [Previous Week: 67%]

o   -$46.59 (Goal: $250) [Previous Week: -$89.76]

o   8/14 57% trades with the trend (Goal: 100%) [Previous Week: 70%]

o   5/14 36% Non-optimal Entries (Goal: 0%) [Previous Week: 50%]

o   0/14 0% Letting Losers Run (Goal: 0%) [Previous Week: 25%]

o    3/14 17% No Setup (Goal: 0%) [Previous Week: 17%]

 

·         Highlights

o   Great trade in MU on Thursday.

o   Good job not letting any trades run past monetary stop.

o   Good job working on taking full position size.

 

·         Ongoing things to work on

o   I need to marry my full position size with getting a good entry at proven resistance levels so I’m getting full position but not getting chopped up in regular movements.

o   Patience, patience, patience on my entries.

o   Only take trades with recognizable setups. Be picky!

o   It is crucial not to sell my winners until they are at least 2R. this alone would be a huge help to my trading.

 

[Mark D. 435]

Monday April 29th, 2019

Sleep: 6.5 hours. Mood: headache and tired. 

First trade of the day was a short in TGT. it came up the the VWAP, bounced off and made a new 5min low. got in right at the break and it reversed on me immediately at my stop out. Don't know why i keep trying to take those trades on the break there, i did the same thing last week in MU got stopped out exactly the same. 

GOOD: got out at stop.

RFI: taking trades right on the new 5min break and not waiting for the 5min to close. 

MOOD: tired and frustrated with myself. 

CONSISTENT: yes. 

 

Next trade i tried to take TGT on the long side. something happened with my order execution, it was set to SMRTL but not doing my marketable limit orders on my hotkeys. got a horrible fill on the long side then i could not get out of my position at my stop. i had to restart my DAS to get out of the trade. i have no idea what happened. 

GOOD: didn't lose too much on the execution error.

RFI: taking trades without setups that i'm not comfortable in. 

MOOD: frustrated. 

CONSISTENT: i tried to be.

 

Last trade of the day was a double top in TGT. great trade idea that would have worked but i got in too early and then talked myself out of it before it hit my stop loss. it turned right around and hit my profit target. i'm so frustrated with my trading today. the last couple days have been particularly bad. 

GOOD: recognized a setup and took the trade.

RFI: too early on the entry, got out for emotional reasons.

MOOD: frustrated. 

CONSISTENT: no. 

 

I'm thinking about going back to sim and working on my trades but i'm going to trade live tomorrow since it's the last day of the month and then re-evaluate. 

What i did good today: besides the DAS error i didn't let my trades run past my stops. 

What i did bad today: Same issues as last week. not taking setups and getting in to trades way too early. trying to catch a trend in TGT when it traded in a small rnage.

What can i do better tomorrow: Just trade setups. trade stocks that are trending. 

Other comments for tomorrow: I need to look over my trading in depth once i get some sleep and can think with a clear head. 

Edited April 29, 2019 by Mark D.

[Mark D. 435]

Tuesday April 30th, 2019

Sleep: 7.5 hours. Mood: alright today. My mind has been a mess the last couple of days from taking six losing trades in a row. i want to focus today on taking recognizable setups that are in my edge with an entry that makes sense. 

First trade of the day was an ORBD in NXPI. i was nervous about taking it short above the 20MA on the 1min chart but it looked good on the other time frames so i went ahead and took the trade. after two minutes of going no direction, i started getting nervous and thought about getting out of the trade but it wasn't going against me so i held on. a minute later it squeezed hard and i got out at 0.5R. glad i did, I would have got stopped out for a full loss. 

GOOD: good trade management, good entry. 

RFI: not that great of an R/R. i did the math in my head and i thought it was fine. 

MOOD: fine, plus i moved on to a different stock and didn't try to revenge trade what turned out to be choppy. 

CONSISTENT: yes. 

 

 

Last trade of the day was in JD. it closed the first 5 minutes above the VWAP and then made a nice 5min candle above the MA. This was an ABCD in my mind. I risked a new 5min low to the high of the pre-market. I wanted to get in at VWAP or at the MA but I was watching other stocks and missed the first pullback to the 1min MAs. then I FOMO'd the entry fearing it was going to move without me. It came all the way to my stop loss but i reasoned that if I had waited, this would have been my entry so I gave it a minute and held through the pullback and got out at my profit target. i'm not happy with my entry but i am happy with my trade management. 

GOOD: trade management was excellent. 

RFI: FOMO entry, R/R not great.

MOOD: happy with the trade overall. glad i didn't partial.

CONSISTENT: yes. 

 

 

Really happy with my trading today. i was mindful of my trading and didn't get sucked in to any bad trades that weren't trending. 

What i did good today: Took only trades with setups, didn't try to force any trades. 

What i did bad today: let the FOMO get the best of me and entered my JD trade too early. 

What can i do better tomorrow: This is the kind of trading day i want to have everyday. i need to let the trades come to me and not force trades. 

 

 

[Brandon K 64]

2 hours ago, Mark D. said:

First trade of the day was an ORBD in NXPI. i was nervous about taking it short above the 20MA on the 1min chart but it looked good on the other time frames so i went ahead and took the trade. after two minutes of going no direction, i started getting nervous and thought about getting out of the trade but it wasn't going against me so i held on. a minute later it squeezed hard and i got out at 0.5R. glad i did, I would have got stopped out for a full loss. 

I took that trade too. Was a good set up. Just didn't work out. Great on you stopping out. I got out at the top of that candle. : (