Merlin Burkhart

⭕️

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

My trading journey started about a year ago.

Since then, I went from knowing nothing about trading to being able to call pivots on any chart, simply by using technical analysis.
s/o to @Larskooistra_ and @Wyckoff_Insider for all the educational stuff you provide for everyone!

Despite my technical skills, I can’t call myself profitable yet.
Why?
Mental game.
Overtrading.
Mediocre setups.
Greed.
Feeling behind in life → chasing fast money.

One year of unrealized PnL.
Breached evaluation accounts.
Breached funded accounts.
Small wins just to keep me going.
And an exhausted mind towards the end of 2025.
Until I took a step back.
I started trading my own capital.
I took $5 trades to remove emotional attachment.
I gained confidence.
Now, I’m restarting my trading journey.
I’ve made a plan going forward, and I’m sharing it here to keep myself accountable.

From now on, I’ll share every trade I take and my thoughts behind them here on X.
This will be a consistent series about my trading journey and everything that comes with it:
wins, losses, setbacks, thoughts, and learnings.
A journal for myself.
Showtime.

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

@Sol_CJ888 @Luca62572030131 Some lessons have to be learned the hard way.

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

@ChannaW_ Common channa cook 😍

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

#54 avalanche-2:native long, M1 accumulation (-1%).

Next trade is this long on Avax in confluence with the possible PO3 on Btc for a bullish reversal. Both got invalidated.
Took it on the immediate retest into demand created by the bullish BOS as a Test entry. Price just consolidated on saturday and even created a pretty clean distribution which I didn't trade tho. The distribution pushed price towards WE liquidity and even lower before we got a Lvl 2 bullish MS break. I simply trailed my SL and did not add anything to the position since BTC was in nomansland already without any SOS. Got stopped during the night for a full 1% loss due to fees.

Emotions: Again a bit of a forced trade at friday evening. Was watching the accumulation models the whole day but missed the initial BOS entry. I wanted to be exposed since multiple models confirmed at the same time. Emotionally I accepted the risk, which is good but in the end doesn't give me shit if the model fails.
I'm no 0.88% before breaching the funded account. I'll split it into 2 trades. Not more. If I fail the account, so be it.
Tough time rn trading crypto for me.
Tried shorts but was too early and burned confidence. Missed the only setups on TAO and FART because of hesitation and now I'm too early longing.

Onto the next.

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

@seth_fin 🤑

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

@0xATV Will monitor them more often from now on.

I see you crushing them 🔥

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

#53 $NAS short, M1 distribution.

I took this short yesterday as the NAS100 and the S&P were both looking very clean for distributions. We're currently at HTF -1 negative fib with VIX at an interesting point. Although we're not seeing any SOW yet.
Such a scalp can work anytime tho.

Was watching the model since the morning but didn't participate on the initial BOS. I wanted to see more + get a better RR as you have to spend more time in the chart to properly manage such scalps, I want them to be worth the time.

I was viewing the retest as a TEST and entered upon the first SOW on the local 3min Bojan high. Since the move up was aggressive there was no Lvl 2 MS to confirm a bearish continuation.
Price went on deviating the lows and getting aggressive buybacks. We created supply before the last push down so I knew once we broke this zone to the upside, it's time to derisk.
Closed 50% right there.
Got stopped for the other half (-0.44%).
Probably could've closed the position fully but wanted to partly STTP.

Emotions: One of the first trades on NAS100. The model was clean, however I should probably not take them on my prop yet and start forward testing them on my bybit acc with low risk first. I had to make an exception of my trading rules when entering on the Bojan. I still have to learn to better say "no" in such circumstances. I can adapt my rules when I've backtested something deeply and saw it work before but not in the moment. Otherwise I won't lay any weight on my rules and start to trade in different styles again which usually doesn't work out well.
In other words, not being able to say "no" is the same as trading upon emotion. I felt like I have to participate since I watched it all morning and it confirmed and I would've been in a position anyway. So I forced the entry with diverging from my rules just to find an excuse to take the trade.

I was able to manage the trade pretty well tho, not out of an emotional state anymore. I accept the loss and I'm happy that I've learned something through it.

Onto the next.

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

@NefarianTrading Clean!!

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

#53 $EURUSD long, M2 accumulation.

Took this EUR scalp last wednesday but didn't journal it till rn. I've been lacking a bit lately with journaling all my trades. At least I'm doing all the prop trades but have to get back to journal them all, also with my own capital.

Alright, I had a stressed week with the first semester exams and a big tennis tournament over the weekend. Still I was watching EUR for a 1MFL opportunity and executed it upon the 2min BOS right into NY open together with the 10min bojan.
However at the point of entering I didn't notice the supply above and thought it was all just liquidity on lower TF. It was not.

Got stopped out and price searched for the M1 before reversing on news not giving a reentry opportunity.

Idea was right, timing was wrong.

Emotions: Was a bit pissed to make such a beginner fault and not being able to reenter but that's part of the game. Was patient since then with entering any models on both crypto and FX props.

Onto the next.

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

@MoneyTaura XAU

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

New range. Watching heavy for scalp short now

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

hyperliquid:native

M1 with some time displacement and entry confirmation before Token Unlocks on June 6th = heavy short.

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

#51 $USDJPY / #52 $GBPJPY

Two scalp this morning. Ending BE.

USDJPY: We're currently in a retracement leg of a MTF distribution and came into the first supply POI while creating this model. I took it on the 1min BOS but price didn't get the followthrough I wanted. I closed my position when we created demand and pushed aggressively higher.

GBPJPY: As USDJPY got invalidated I saw the opportunity for price to push higher into more refined MTF supply POI's and tried this long on GBPJPY. My entry was a bit late and spreads filled me terribly. Due to the bad entry my risk was also a bit higher. Nevertheless I was able to TP 50% at range high. Was aiming for the swing high but price only grabbed asia liquidity before reversing aggressively on some news.

Could've def made some nice profits with a better entry on GBPJPY but it's fine.

Onto the next.

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

Watching this local range for LTF distributions

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

@xalorising Clean! Keep them coming

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

BVOL / EVOL

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

#50 $XAG short, M2 distribution.

Took this XAG short in yesterdays NY session ending in a 1% loss.

I was checking this setup during a charting session after the morning but wasn't feeling it so didn't follow it along. I also wasn't aware that Lars was monitoring it and was kinda surprised when he posted about opening a short on the model. I was too late to enter with him but from this point on I monitored the setup and I liked how we got a buy2sell right on NY open, where I entered.

Price never got the wanted followthrough and it ended up being a buy2sell2buy. I was on the go when entering and had to leave the house a few minutes later.

Emotions: I accept the loss since it was def a valid trade which Lars traded aswell. However I don't like how I changed my own thoughts about the model just because Lars took it. Like I said I didn't like the quality of the model to even monitor it myself. But then I change my mind completely and feel like I'm missing out on a model Lars takes. Since I know Lars is profitable I want to take the advantage I get from him sharing his trades.
Still I have to learn to consciously say "no" in the moment, when I previously decided to not trade such a model on my prop account.
That's what it's about.
After all I have to be able to trade on my own and trust on my own thoughts about the market or specific models or I'll never fully figure it out.

Also this is just in hindsight analysis. If the model would've played out I probably wouldn't even had this thought.
Just a single trade of many.

Onto the next.

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

@Wyckoff_Insider He's still got it

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

@Wyckoff_Insider

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

I'm still watching for something like this and don't want to give SHIB up yet.

I won't execute this time if I don't get the confluence i want from BTC right here.
Preferred scenario would be taking out the range high and confirm a new pivot for the week which would turn into new P1 if we take the weekly low further into the week.

Lets see.

[Merlin Burkhart @MerlinBurkhart]

#49 ethereum:0x95ad61b0a150d79219dcf64e1e6cc01f0b64c4ce short, M1 distribution.

Tried another short in the current environment which got invalidated aswell. Honestly poor trading by me, trying to short over and over again.

I missed the intial 15min BOS but entered on the supply retest after seeing price rejecting from it. Price didn't get any followthrough but went higher before breaking Lvl 2 MS. I was sleeping but trailed my SL to the LH when I woke up. Price just consolidated and went higher.

Emotions: In hindsight a bad trade. Looking exactly the same as pepe which went higher already. I entered shortly before going to sleep so not the best state to trade in. As I said poor trading from me. Not looking at the market from a fully objective perspective but still wanting the bearish idea to play out. Even after multiple losses, still trying to be right and profit of it.

Sometimes you have to learn it the hard way I guess.

Onto the next.