The Good Trading Check list

[marc walton]

The following article/check list was supplied by Madhan as his entry for the summer competition.

In another recent article one of you quoted that if you treat forex like a hobby, it will pay you like a hobby. If you treat forex as a profession then expect to be rewarded as a professional. This is certainly a good starting point for you to become more professional

The Good-Trading Checklist


I focus on the process of good trading, good execution, and consistency.

I work with a proven methodology


I am comfortable with and fully understand my system


I have back-tested my system and know what it should produce when properly executed under normal conditions


Percentage of winning trades versus losing trades


Average winner-value and average loser-value


Trades I place are within my true personal risk tolerance


My trading life is in balance with family, personal, social and business times


I have and follow sound risk management rules for both my individual trades and overall account protection


I always use protective measures, such as stops, to manage risk exposure and only take calculated risks


I only use risk capital that is within my true comfort zones


I fully understand the core concepts in trading


I grasp all the terminology used in my trading


I keep a trading journal and review it regularly


I generate reports for my trading business


I regularly review my trading execution, with a focus on continuous improvement


I remain aware of my beliefs to identify counter-productive beliefs and views of myself, money and trading.


I follow my business plan, including: a budget, financial controls and general money management rules


I keep my math and trading skills finely honed


I keep my trading area organized and conducive to good trading


I adhere to healthy, sound routines and practices in my trading activity


I only trade when I am rested, well (not ill), and clear-headed.

Madhan

[robert]

hello Marc, and eveyone .
I was wondering how can we be really strict and disciplined when we are trading ? i think everyone has his own system or at least a system that works but I think most of the mistakes we make are because of not following our rules.
My question is the following :
HOW CAN WE BE STICK TO OUR RULES ?????

Good luck .

[capsmart]

By repeating those rules all the time.
When you drive,
When you take a shower,
Before you sleep,
When you brush your teeth.
You got the point.
Please repeat them as positive statements. Like
I am a disciplined trader and follow my rules
I always use a stop loss when trading.
etc
I know it is mambo jambo but believe me it works. It is not something you do for a week and you forget. I takes at least 4 weeks of constant effort.

[robert]

OK i see !! I can do it !!

[capsmart]

Since I got a like for my post maybe it is a "sign" to re-open the thread.
I made a recording of positive affirmations. They are about 70 now and they last 15 minutes. I go for a walk every day for about 1 hour and while I walk I listen to my affirmations in random mode. So in 1 hour I hear them about 4 times each. It is something that is helping me a lot. There are affirmations of all kinds. Discipline (stop loss, news trading), rules (open a trade when x > y), psychology (remain calm and focused), health etc. You can record anything you like and repetition will do the work.
What I noticed is that affirmations that are not "compatible" with me after a while sound strange even if is me talking to me. One of them was "I make 1000 euros every week" and I did not "like" it very much. This was the reason I started the thread about how much I can make per week. Now that the weekly target is much smaller it sounds much better.So when I will get used to my new target I will start increasing it, first in my affirmations and then in my account.

[Trade Spotting]

hello Marc, and eveyone .
I was wondering how can we be really strict and disciplined when we are trading ? i think everyone has his own system or at least a system that works but I think most of the mistakes we make are because of not following our rules.
My question is the following :
HOW CAN WE BE STICK TO OUR RULES ?????

Good luck .

Hi Robert,

Maybe try printing out a hard copy of your trading rules and placing on a wall near your computer/workstation where it is in clear and constant view. This might help you to internalise the regime.

I've done this with lists for both my daily trading regime and my specific trade rules.

Mary

[thblees]

I highly recommend this checklist:

http://www.yourtradingcoach.com/prod...-checklist.pdf

[chrisp]

hello Marc, and eveyone .
I was wondering how can we be really strict and disciplined when we are trading ? i think everyone has his own system or at least a system that works but I think most of the mistakes we make are because of not following our rules.
My question is the following :
HOW CAN WE BE STICK TO OUR RULES ?????

Good luck .

One possible method is to (mentally) go back to your childhood (provided that it isn't a traumatic one) and award yourself stars when you do it right and demerits of some form when you break your rules, e.g. no computer time for you for 24 hours! Keep the star chart where it can be seen. You might award 1 coloured star for 40 pips and stop to B/E, 2 for closing a trade at a predetermined point, a silver star for a successful home run (100 pips) and a gold star for leaving a good entry to run for as long as possible. Give yourself a silver for every 10 coloured stars and a gold for every 5 silvers. When you have accumulated 10 gold stars print youself a certificate of achievement.
But sit your inner child down and have an earnest talk about it. It is not a game, getting the certificates is a tangible proof of ability. Earn the certificates = wealth, fail and you end up in a dumpster.
Be firm with yourself, but let the inner child trade and the adult do the discipline. Children are amazingly fast learners.