Mari

[Miad @ZFXtrading]

Good Morning

Why i think most traders are watching the wrong thing

thread on something that's been bugging me for years:

so i blew up an account in 2013. like actually blew it up, not the twitter "blew up" where you lost 15% and learned a valuable lesson

i'm talking margin call, -$12k, had to explain to my wife why our vacation fund was gone

the fukced up part? i followed my rules. stop loss hit exactly where i put it. position sizing was correct i did everything "right"

and i remember sitting there thinking... wait, if i'm doing everything the books tell me to do, why does this feel like i'm playing a completely different game than whoever is on the other side of my trades?

took me like 2 years to figure out what was actually happening

you know when you're watching price action and you see a breakout forming? or support looks like it's about to crack
you sense something right? that urgency, that "oh shit i need to do something NOW" feeling

that feeling is information but it's the wrong information

by the time i'm feeling that urgency someone else already positioned 2 days ago

they're not feeling urgency at all they're probably bored, checking twitter waiting for their thesis to play out

i'm trading their exhaust fumes and thinking i'm early

this is gonna sound weird but stay with me

what if the actual skill in trading isn't analysing charts or finding patterns... what if it's learning to exist in a different TIME ZONE mentally than where the price action is?

like you're standing on wednesday but thinking from friday's perspective

i started doing this thing in 2015 where every sunday i write down 3 scenarios. not predictions (predictions are cope) but like "if we're at 2200 by tuesday the next logical thing is probably X"

not because i can predict the future but because i'm trying to pre live the emotions i'll feel when it happens and something weird happened after a few months of this

volatility stopped surprising me that feeling when price whips around and your stomach drops, that started happening less, because i already rehearsed that moment before it happened

This gap between where you are emotionally RIGHT NOW watching the candles and where you needed to be emotionally YESTERDAY to make good decisions today

every dollar i've lost has been in that gap

like think about your worst trades (we all have them, don't lie)

were they bad because you didn't know technical analysis? or because Tuesday You made a decision that Thursday You had to deal with the consequences of, and Tuesday You was operating on completely different emotions?

for me it was always: confident on entry, terrified on drawdown, relieved on small profit, devastated when it ran without me after i closed

i was playing 4 different people with 4 different risk tolerances depending on which day i was having

I took the best trades after realising all this, like in summer 2015 GPUSD, positioned short for a massive trend ahead of the brexit vote

i barely looked at charts. thesis played out, closed at my target, and that was my first taste of true wealth generation

why was it good? because decisions were made when i was calm, and just had to press buttons

contrast that with literally every revenge trade ever: trying to fix what Yesterday Me did, while Tomorrow Me is gonna have to clean up this mess

you're not trading against other people you're trading against past and future versions of yourself who all want different things

this is why backtesting feels different than live trading btw

in backtesting you're THERE (calm future perspective already know what happens) in live trading you're HERE (anxious present tense no idea what happens)

the gap between those two? that's where your actual Edge

Is it always 100% going to work?

last week i didnt buy where i was supposed to becasue the Friday Me would've held it. Tuesday Me didnt stomach risk.

but at least now i KNOW that's what's happening? before i just thought i "needed more discipline" which is useless advice

what actually helps: before market open, write down your exits both directions

not "i'll sell if it feels wrong" but "at 4180 i'm out"

now you're making decisions from THERE (pre-market calm) instead of HERE (real-time chaos)

someone's gonna reply "just trade mechanically" and yeah sure but even mechanical systems require you to NOT TINKER when you're down 3 trades in a row

the human still has to execute the system and that human exists across multiple emotional time zones throughout the day

another thing: people talk about "managing positions" but what you're actually managing is future versions of yourself

will Tomorrow You be able to hold this through volatility? will Friday You regret Monday You taking this much risk?

if the answer is no the position is already too big and your Edge degrades

idk if this makes sense to anyone else but it's been the biggest shift in how i think about trading
stop trying to predict where SPY goes start predicting where YOU'LL be psychologically when it goes there

the gap between what the market IS and what you NEED it to be is where all retail traders suck

"i need this bounce to save my calls" "i need this to break out so i'm not wrong"

the market doesn't care what you need. but you can control what you need FROM the market

best traders i know don't NEED any individual trade to work. they need to follow their process, they need to manage risk properly, they need to stay consistent.

the outcome? they're already elsewhere mentally in the consistency part, not the PnL part

anyway this got long and rambling but it's something i've been thinking about a lot

if you made it this far: what's the biggest gap between how you trade in your head vs how you actually execute live?

curious if this resonates or if i'm just overthinking

oh and if you're wondering "did this actually make you profitable" - yes and no

yes: i stopped blowing up accounts and started going on nicer holidays again
no: wealth started compounding years later when I learned new things about me and markets, but had to fix the first part first otherwise the next doors dont open

progress?

[XO @Trader_XO]

https://t.co/Zl3zv8d69B

[Mari @maritrade_]

@Trader_XO Eid Mubarak XO ❤️❤️❤️

[Mari @maritrade_]

@ZFXtrading Good morning, it’s gorgeous!

[Mari @maritrade_]

@ZFXtrading Good morning Miad

[Chase @Crypto_Chase]

I've decided to open my Discord to the public. There's already a TON of alpha inside (check the alpha channel) and lots of high quality traders.

I'll likely use it as a place to post some short-term trades, thoughts, n as a place for traders to converse.

https://t.co/k9r1kkni3Z

[XO @Trader_XO]

Bitcoin Market Review Livestream

Today at 4PM UTC with @TraderMagus

Talking all things trading, price action and orderflow...

In partnership with @PrimeXBT

Link to the stream below:
https://t.co/dPK8EePLly

[XO @Trader_XO]

Bitcoin Market Review Livestream

Monday 20th April - 9pm utc

Covering the usual bitcoin trade setups, combining price action with market profile and footprints.

In partnership with @PrimeXBT

Link to the stream:
https://t.co/ZgdpRaXstX

[XO @Trader_XO]

For anyone interested, the trading mentorship has been extended through to the end of June 2026, running from April onwards

The program is supported by my stream sponsors over at @PrimeXBT

There is no direct cost to participate other than meeting the requirements outlined on the form

The form is available via the Google Form link at the bottom of the tweet (also in the linktree in bio) and will close on the 29th of March

Full access is included to all prior content and materials, alongside two weekly livestreams focused on trade setups commencing 1st week of April

Sessions will cover the full trading workflow from trade planning, price action, and order flow through strategy development and execution to detailed trade reviews

Many thanks

https://t.co/APpv9eD6pJ

[Mari @maritrade_]

@Crowded_Mkt_Rpt I would like to suggest @ZFXtrading , he would be a great interviewee for this topic

[XO @Trader_XO]

Sunday Market Review - 22nd March 8PM UTC

Talking Macro & Trades with guest: @ZFXtrading

Reviewing trading setups across the market:
#Bitcoin
#GlobalMarkets

In partnership with @PrimeXBT

Link: https://t.co/3KRn5k2BkJ

[Miad @ZFXtrading]

https://t.co/6h9IHVqSF2

[Mari @maritrade_]

@Trader_XO Eid Mubarak XO

[XO @Trader_XO]

Bitcoin Market Review

Sunday 8th March - 9PM UTC

Breaking down the core Bitcoin trade setups I take through Market Profile Context & Orderflow to track participation, imbalances, and reactions at key levels.

Special shoutout to the team @PrimeXBT

Have a blessed weekend ahead.

Link to the stream below:
https://t.co/5rI4vqCuY6

[Mari @maritrade_]

@btc_charlie 🤣🤣

[Miad @ZFXtrading]

Good Morning

Are you making these 6 trading mistakes?

[Mari @maritrade_]

@ZFXtrading For you too Miad

[Miad @ZFXtrading]

The Trap of Easy

In the coastal town of Veridia, the people prayed to the ocean for their livelihood. They were used to the struggle: the torn nets, the storms, the days where the haul was empty.

One Friday, just afternoon, the ocean did something impossible. It vanished.
The water receded miles from the shore, faster than any tide in history. It left the seabed completely exposed. And there, glistening in the wet sand, lay the wealth of a thousand lifetimes.

Flopping helplessly on the ocean floor were fat tuna, giant snappers, and mounds of blue crab. It was a carpet of free food. No nets required. No struggle needed.
The village erupted.
"A miracle!" cried the fishmonger.
"Easy money!" shouted the mayor.

The noise was deafening. Bells rang. Children ran with buckets. Men sprinted with wheelbarrows. The fear of poverty vanished, replaced by a mania of greed. They ran out onto the wet sand, laughing, stuffing their pockets with lobster and coin sized scallops. It was the greatest trade of their lives: Zero risk, infinite reward.

Old Silas, a weather-beaten sailor who had lost an eye to a hook forty years ago, stood on the cliff edge. He held his nets, but he did not move.

A young merchant named Kael ran past him, breathless, dragging a cart. "Silas! Are you blind? The fish are waiting! The market has given us everything!"
Silas didn't look at the fish. He looked at the horizon.
"The ocean does not give gifts, Kael," Silas rumbled, his voice cutting through the cheers. "It only baits."
"Look at them!" Kael laughed, gesturing to the hundreds of villagers miles out on the sand, feasting on the bounty. "You’re overthinking it, old man. This is the opportunity of a century! Don't let your cynicism keep you poor!"

Silas grabbed Kael’s arm. His grip was like iron.
"Listen to the air, boy."
Kael stopped. He frowned. Beneath the screaming and cheering of the villagers, the air felt... thin. Vacuum sealed. The seagulls weren't diving for the free fish; they were flying inland, screeching in terror. The wind had stopped. The silence behind the noise was heavy enough to crush a lung.
"The Ocean," Silas whispered, "has not vanished. It has gathered."
Silas turned his back on the feast. He didn't run to the fish; he ran to the highest hill, dragging his boat with him. The town mocked him as he sweated up the slope. Look at the fool, working while we feast!

Ten minutes later, the horizon turned black.
The water didn't just come back. It returned with the force of a collapsing mountain. The ocean had pulled back only to build the momentum for a wave that would scrub the earth clean, a Tsunami.
Those on the sand realised too late that the "free lunch" was actually bait. The easy trade was a trap. The noise of their celebration was drowned out by the roar of the correction.
Kael, who had stayed on the cliff because of Silas’s grip, watched in horror as the sea reclaimed land.

The Lesson: The Trap of "Easy"
When the market makes it easy, you should be terrified.

In trading and research, we are often presented with a "Dry Seabed" moment:

A stock that only goes up every single day.
A data trend that looks too perfect.
A business deal where the other side demands no concessions.
The noise of the crowd (Twitter, news, excitement) will scream "Miracle!" They will mock you for not picking up the free money.

The Silas Rule:
* Nature abhors a straight line: If the resistance vanishes, it means the energy is coiling somewhere else.

[Steven Goldstein @AlphaMind101]

What went wrong ?

We often say that

But we rarely say ‘What went right ?’

Whilst at one level this shows our bias to responding to negative outcomes, it also shows how we are failing to heed and learn from the good things we do, or focus on strengthening them.

This is why I encourage my coaching clients to use a certain journaling format that recognises this and seeks to address those omissions.

It both seeks to counter our natural negative focus, looks to identify and recognise positives, and encourages the journaler to focus on using their journal for growth and change.

The ‘3-3-1 Action’ journal, is a very simple format, which asks people to note down in advance one sentence each of:

> 3 things you did well!

The positives are stressed first, and you cannot move on until you write down 3 (sometimes this isn’t easy, I admit)

Next note:

> 3 things you could have done better !

The positive spin on what is essentially ‘what did you do poorly ?’ aims to help avoid harsh self-judgment, allowing critique rather than criticism. (This can be easy, even on good days ironically)

Then note:

> 1 Thing you need to work on to improve!

This brings your attention to an area of focus or action you need to address. Also this doesn’t need to be a focus on the negative, it can be choosing to improve and strengthen areas you are strong at. - Success doesn’t just come from eliminating weaknesses, it also comes from developing strengths and qualities so they can be fully leveraged.

This is helpful in focusing on an area of growth:

Finally note

> Action

This is the action you will take, to deal with that ‘Thing you need to work on to improve!’

Note down not just the action, but when, where and how you intend to do it.

This adds an element of intention to change, grow and to hold yourself accountable for this.

This is and has been very powerful for many in helping them grown and become more effective and productive.

——-

One final note: writing ✍️ this down on an old fashioned notebook is far more powerful and productive, though if you prefer digital, that it ok.

Either way, just do it.

[Miad @ZFXtrading]

Two towns sat on opposite sides of a canyon. For generations, people threw ropes across and walked them, one at a time, terrified.

One day an engineer arrived and said: “I’ll build you a bridge. But it will take two years, and you won’t be able to cross at all while I work.”

The towns refused. “We cannot stop crossing for two years.”
So the rope stayed. And every year, someone fell.

The rope is discretionary trading without a framework. The bridge is the system people won’t build because it means sitting out while under construction.

Every trader who refuses to stop trading long enough to build their process is choosing the rope. And the canyon is patient.