3 Thing's Traders Don't Want To Accept
-Your over-trading is a reflection of poor discipline.
-Your hesitation is a reflection of lack of confidence.
-Your risk management is a reflection of your profitability.
90% of your trading problems are your fault.
No more excuses
A losing streak doesn’t mean your system is broken.
But it also shouldn’t be ignored.
The problem is most traders only see two options:
A) “It’s not working.”
or
B) “I just need to push through it.”
Both miss the point.
A losing streak is information.
But only if you know how to read it.
The first question isn’t:
“Why am I losing?”
It’s:
“Am I executing correctly?”
Because if execution isn’t clean,
the streak doesn’t tell you anything about the system.
It only tells you something about your behavior.
But if execution is clean,
now the information becomes useful.
It tells you:
1. You’re in a normal drawdown.
2. Or the environment has shifted.
3. Or your edge isn’t showing up right now.
Those are very different scenarios.
And they require different responses.
Sometimes the answer is patience.
Sometimes it’s reduced exposure.
Sometimes it’s stepping back and reviewing.
But it’s almost never:
“Change everything.”
That’s the mistake.
Most traders don’t analyze losing streaks.
They react to them.
They tighten rules mid-stream.
They skip valid setups.
They size up trying to recover.
Or they abandon the system altogether.
And in doing that,
they turn a manageable drawdown
into a much bigger problem.
A losing streak isn’t a verdict.
It’s feedback.
But feedback only helps
if it’s coming from consistent execution.
Otherwise, it’s just noise.
So before you try to fix the result,
make sure you understand what produced it.
Because a losing streak isn’t something to fear.
It’s something to interpret.
Taking stock here of where we are:
This correction in the Nasdaq is now going on 5+ months and hit over -10%. The good news is that corrections lead to good trading periods at least historically for me. The bad news is they don't exactly ring a bell to tell you when they are over.
We are another headline and oil spike from being right at new lows and if we get another leg down it may signal more time will be needed. In the meantime I do think we've seen enough damage under the surface and a rise in pessimism to wash out a lot of the excess bullishness and create a good backdrop and the old leaders all looked to have topped which is also good as new leadership is where some of the biggest/best trading opportunities arise.
Recent buys for me have yielded bupkis and there has been no real accumulation. That is where I'm focused. An accumulation day (likely on the heels of news) would be good but I want to see it hold and any stocks I buy actually show some blank ink (profits). This could be as early as today, could be weeks or even months away. This is how it is every time and the only way to be prepared is to show up, have a plan, pay attention and be ready to act.
Traders say they want better execution.
But most have never clearly defined what that actually looks like.
So it stays vague.
“Be more disciplined.”
“Follow the plan.”
“Stick to the system.”
That sounds right…
but it’s not specific enough to measure.
Clean execution is simpler than people think.
It looks like this:
Taking trades that meet your criteria.
Not almost. Not close. Not “this looks similar.”
Position sizing that follows a plan.
Pressing when you’re in sync.
Pulling back when you’re not.
Stops that are respected.
Not widened. Not ignored. Not negotiated.
Exits that follow your plan.
Not driven by fear, hope, or recent P&L.
That’s it.
No extra effort.
No added intensity.
Just alignment between your rules
and your actions.
Most traders assume execution breaks in big, obvious ways.
But it usually doesn’t.
It breaks quietly.
A small deviation here.
A slight adjustment there.
A decision that feels harmless in the moment.
Until those small decisions compound.
And now the results don’t reflect the system anymore.
They reflect inconsistency.
That’s why clean execution matters.
Not because it guarantees wins.
But because it gives you something honest to evaluate.
When execution is clean,
you can trust the feedback.
When it isn’t,
everything gets distorted.
Before trying to improve your results,
make sure you’re actually executing your system.
Because without that,
there’s nothing real to improve.
Market Wizard Linda Raschke’s 12 Technical Trading Rules:
1. Buy the first pullback after a new high. Sell the first rally after a new low.
2. Afternoon strength or weakness should have follow through the next day.
3. The best trading reversals occur in the morning, not the afternoon.
4. The larger the market gaps, the greater the odds of continuation and a trend.
5. The way the market trades around the previous day’s high or low is a good indicator of the market’s technical strength or weakness.
6. The previous day’s high and low are two very important “pivot” points, for this was the definitive point where buyers or sellers came in the day before. Look for the market to either test and reverse off these points, or push through and show signs of continuation.
7. The last hour often tells the truth about how strong a trend truly is. “Smart” money shows their hand in the last hour, continuing to mark positions in their favor. As long as a market is having consecutive strong closes, look for up-trend to continue. The up trend is most likely to end when there is a morning rally first, followed by a weak close.
8. High volume on the close implies continuity the next morning in the direction of the last half-hour. In a strongly trending market, look for resumption of the trend in the last hour.
9. The first hour’s range establishes the framework for the rest of the trading day.
10. A greater percentage of the day’s range occurs in the first hour then was the case in the past, and thus it has become increasingly important to trade aggressively if there are early signs of a strong trend for the day.
11. There are four basic principles of price behavior which have held up over time. Confidence that a type of price action is a true principle is what allows a trader to develop a systematic approach. The following four principles can be modeled and quantified and hold true for all time frames, all markets. The majority of patterns or systems that have a demonstrable edge are based on one of these four enduring principles of price behavior. Charles Dow was one of the first to touch on them in his writings.
Principle One: A Trend Has a Higher Probability of Continuation than Reversal
Principle Two: Momentum Precedes Price
Principle Three: Trends End in a Climax
Principle Four: The Market Alternates between Range Expansion and Range Contraction!
12. In the world of money, which is a world shaped by human behavior, nobody has the foggiest notion of what will happen in the future. Mark that word – Nobody! Thus the successful trader does not base moves on what supposedly will happen but reacts instead to what does happen.
You are not only engaging in a number of self-defeating behaviors, some of them are outright addictions.
The antidote: post-analysis for clarity and objectivity—and rules to enforce discipline and foster structure. This is how you build a winning playbook. I can’t think of a single scenario I’m not prepared for without a rule to respond. And if a new situation occurs, a new rule is developed and added to the playbook.
Read books.
Most of the problems people face with money, career, and life are not new. Someone struggled with it, studied it, and wrote the solution down decades ago.
Books compress experience. You get 30 or 40 years of someone else’s lessons in a few hours. That is why reading saves you time, money, and unnecessary mistakes.
If you want better results, borrow better thinking from people who have already been where you are trying to go.
Winners make you nervous so you cut them too early.
Losses make you hopeful so you hold them for too long.
This is why your account is slowly dying and you have no idea why.
A losing trade does not always mean you failed.
If you followed your plan and the trade did not produce a profit that is just an expected cost of business.
If however you did not follow your plan and lost money that is a failure that holds a lesson.
90% of traders never study past BIG WINNERS 📈.
That’s why they never hold future ones.
Here’s why studying past big winners changes everything 👇
1) You learn what quality really looks like: Tight bases. Strong trends. Clean structure. After enough repetition, your eye stops guessing. You recognize strength instantly.
2) You understand how winners behave under pressure: They pull back. They shake you out. They feel uncomfortable. If you’ve studied them before, you don’t panic at the first red day.
3) You stop chasing and start waiting: Big winners don’t appear randomly. They follow the same phases again and again. Preparation replaces FOMO.
4) You finally learn how money is made: Not by lots of small wins. But by a few positions held correctly. This shifts your focus from win rate to outcome.
5) You expose your biggest mistake: selling too early. Every past leader shows you how often “I should sell” was wrong. Structure beats emotion — every time.
I still study past winners. Every day!
I create new chart books with big past winners.
That's how I train myself and train my pattern brain.
These patterns repeat.
I’ve taught this process to thousands of traders.
I think everybody can learn these patterns.
If you want future big winners,
study the past ones first.
Environment > Setup
Like most things, this can mean something different to everyone.
Here's what it means to me:
First, I define 'Environment' through price action. I don't use multiple breadth measurements, momentum indicators, sentiment etc etc. I rely on PRICE and PRICE only.
Second, what 'Environment' am I looking for? I'm looking for an environment that is conducive to MY style - and I'm someone that exploits trends through swing and position trading. I don't care if it's a great day trading environment - I'm not a day trader.
So what's my key ingredient? FOLLOW THROUGH. Period. In a conducive environment I'm seeing clear follow through in price action - leading names trending on key SMA's and being quickly supported on pullbacks. Breaks above trendlines or pivots that see follow through the next session, for example.
What are the key ingredients of a POOR ENVIRONMENT for my strategy?
1 - Multiple material opening gaps in both directions
2 - Multiple material intraday reversals
3 - Weak / Ambiguous mid-term trend structure
4 - News Driven Price action
The result is LACK OF FOLLOW THROUGH. Names will break above a trend line or a pivot and almost immediately reverse.
Each of the above items is base solely on PRICE action. They are easily identifiable to anyone with a cursory understanding of price charts and don't require the extra ambiguity of indicators, oscillators etc etc etc.
Fighting a poor environment by constantly engaging 'setups' will reduce your probability of success. It's that simple. Conversely, I want to hit the gas when follow through (as evidenced by price action) is strong. In a strong environment with robust follow through even mediocre setups will move in the direction of the trend.
Simple concept. Simple process. Over 27 years of trading I have found VERY few things more impactful to my returns than getting aggressive in a 'strong environment' and backing off during a 'poor environment'. Focus on impactful decision.
If you're not a profitable trader, I hope you can manage risk
If you're not a good risk manager, I hope you're discipline
If you're not discipline, I hope you're coachable.
If you're not coachable then find another career. Trading is not for you
New traders’ weakness is cutting their losses.
Break even traders’ weakness is letting their winners run.
Profitable traders can do both.
Great traders can do both with large positions.
For me, becoming an end of day trader was a revelation psychologically. I now analyse markets and stocks post close, place trades & stops for the following day, then close down my trading platforms & enjoy other aspects of my life ! Realistically it's an 80/20 rule, yet it works.
The more money I manage, the more I zoom out on the charts.
Precision matters less.
Trend and potential matter more.
With size, I’m not trying to nail bottoms anymore — I’m trying to own leaders in alignment with the market.
"It’s always wise to review big winners that you missed to find out why you didn't recognize them when they were exactly right and ready to soar." - William J. O'Neil
Prediction is like that sexy girlfriend, once you get her, she makes you famous, then breaks your heart and drains your wallet.
Deep market structure is the one everyone ignores because she seems a bit crazy and unappealing, but once you understand her ( and it takes time) , she shows up every day, provides for you, and quietly makes you wealthy in the shadows.
Life choices I guess