Twentieth: Beginning of The End

Summary

I'd never thought I would do it, but it is almost over for me. Fuck up after fuck up has caused my account to dwindle in size. I haven't hit rock bottom, but I am dangerously close. All of this were due to mistakes that could have been prevented. Trading when I am not 100% is a big one. Execution is the name of the game and being tired definitely does not help. I thought I was starting to get a good run, but it seems like every time I move one step forward, I move two steps back. This is because one, I use all my energy on the first one and I forget the little things for my other trades.

I might have to win one stock and call it a day until I do it consistently. The challenge for me is to build my account back to size. So far, I have been losing badly. I also need a day to review trade theories because I haven't for a long time. 

Ticker: BLDR

I missed the morning washout and wanted to wait for it to drop. It was just channeling forever and my patience ran out after the short pop. I stopped paying attention which was my mistake. I just assumed that it was going to bounce back up. However, as soon as I stopped looking, it just broke down of the channel and fell. 

Note: I should not discount a chart because it did not work out the first time. Especially a chart like this where the volume was super low in the channel. I should have found it as a sign of weakness and put an alert if it dropped below the channel. It is something I must remember in the future. 

Ticker: AXN

My win of the day and something I should have just ended with. I noticed the symmetrical triangle flag thing forming and was waiting for either a break out or breakdown. The volume was extremely high and when it broke down, I just bought in. I drew trendlines to guide my prices and covered @ $1.99.

Note: This is how all my trades should be. Very simple and straightforward. It either works or it doesn't. I wish I added more size into this one. I didn't because I did not want to chase. I didn't know how much more it can go down.

Ticker: GENE

I fought the trend on this one and was hoping for it to bounce. It did a similar thing as the last bounce, but there was not enough volume to support it. I should have noticed quickly and sold out. The drop was not big enough to cause a bounce. More emotion was needed like in the last one.

Note: I really fucked up here because I fought the trend again. Unless there is a huge washout, I should not expect a stock to bounce. There was no high volume or anything. Everything was in my head. I also bought instead of sold because I was stupid. I need to stop with these mistakes, it's costing me a lot of commissions. I need to be calm and collective when I trade.

 Ticker: THRX

I really fucked myself here because not only did I fight the trend, but I also decided to be emotional after the first failed trade. My emotions got the best to me. At the end, I won a little back, but I still fucked up because I was too tired to trade. I was tired and not paying attention when SureTrader liquidated me. I bought more and sold again wasting commission.

I had a decent trade for this one, but my emotions got the best of me. I made a careless trade again, but I waited it out till the end. $18.50 was my target entry and as soon as I noticed the sudden drop, I got in.

Note: I got in, but I was liquidated by SureTrader because I was over margin. I got fucked completely because I was just tired and not in a state to trade.

Note: I should have just noticed that for charts that are just grinding up non-stop, I want to be on the backside of the move or notice to go long. I could have made money going up. Instead, I was stubborn and got bit by the snake. I need to get better at not fighting the trends and going with it.

Why am I posting this shit?
Because I want to get better! I want to shame myself so I do not make these mistakes again.

Please let me know if you have any comments or opinions. I would like to know if you have spotted any mistakes in my logic.

The Eighteenth: Slow And Steady

Summary

I felt more focused today and was able to actually make okay trades. I still lost because of my initial entries and blunders, but it is much better than how I did last week. Hopefully more days like these are to come and I can finally start building my account. 

Just like my stupid mistake, I entered a limit instead of stop-limit which costed me commission and a good entry price. I seriously need to double check every time before I make a trade. I need to get used to just having it right.

Ticker: GENE

I was happy to say that I was using multiple time frames for this chart, but I did not focus enough. I was looking for a bounce and after the first higher high and higher low, I dove in. Unfortunately, at this time, I did not pay attention to the 1 minute chart which could have saved me a lot of headache.

My charts looked a little different live because I was using TD Architect, but I was not paying attention. I should have known that my buy in was still a pop for the overall downtrend. The 15 minute chart made it seem like it would bounce from here. Both of the information combined helps tremendously, but I need to use them better to be more effective.

Note: I liked how I used the 15 minute, 5 minute, and 1 minute charts to help determine where the bounce was. I was primarily using the 15 minute because it seemed like this chart would take a bit longer to find a bottom. Half and whole dollar marks help, but I still need to focus to see similar patterns to be sure that my bounce is not just a pop.

Note: I liked how I got out quickly once I realized it was a mistake. I then was patient and made back some of the money by noticing a lower high @ $9.12. I am happy that I did not over trade this stock.  

Ticker: FMD

I got in for a swing short @ $5.32. However, I was stupid and sold out by setting the wrong order. I then re-shorted @ $5.27. My stop is @ $5.33 for this one.

Note: If I am going to keep putting in the wrong orders, I should stop trading. This is ridiculous because it is a novice mistake.

Please let me know if you have any comments or opinions. I would like to know if you have spotted any mistakes in my logic.

Lessons Learned

Compilation

I haven't posted anything about my trading for a while because of the ridiculous trades I have done in a short time span. It is simply too much to keep track of and I was also a bit busy with other things like negotiating rates with TDAmeritrade. So I decided to make a compilation of trading lessons I learned from the those ridiculous trades. I hope this helps me review some of the mistakes I made and how to become better. After this, I will continue posting my daily trades. 

Big Picture

Always take a look at the big picture or previous patterns before taking a position. This will let you know how the chart could behave. It will also better help you determine if there is a bear or bull trap coming. It will keep you prepared for the worst.

I wanted to short overnight on the second of February because it looked like it made its move and ready to drop. The trend was a channel and I wanted it to break to the downside for its breakdown. This did not happen so I stopped out. The last bar was the third of February and this was when I wanted to short. What I should have known was that it was bullish and I should be wary of any bearish traps. 

I missed the first half of the day because I was out and came back looking at a descending triangle. I did not notice the previous descending triangle forming and just having it breakout to the upside. I just played where I played without doing homework and was just squeezed out. I later switched to longs, but was just too late. 

Note: The bullish flag you see was something I drew after I got squeezed. This was the second thing I should have noticed before shorting. I forget that the bars could form two different patterns at the same time. However, if I had done my homework before that this chart was bullish, I might have just saved my money and waited for a better confirmation. 

Testing Resistance

During these trades, I have noticed that I have added in my positions too fast without it letting it test the resistances. I also learned about the over/under idea mentioned here by VinnyB.

Here is an example of what I did wrong:

Added so you can track my mistakes if you wanted to yourself.

I added too confident and added to fast without allowing it to test its resistance. Sure, I did reduce risk on the way up, but I should have just killed it when it held the support. 

Note: I should have waited for a better confirmation and added in too quickly. 

Note: I have to again, remember that the bars could form two different things and that the overall picture dictates if the chart will be bullish or bearish. I did reduce risk, but I also added on the way up because I was too short bias. If it goes over and not under, then it's time to get out. 

Don't Overtrade

Take a look at all the commission that piled up on me. 

01/30/2015

02/02/2015

02/03/2015

The fees do definitely add up and if you are in a losing position, then the last picture is the result of overtrading. I definitely fucked up by trading too much and did not wisely add into stocks. The trades I should be making should look like Gene from the 02/02/2015 picture. 

Note: I need to limit my trades to at least 5 a ticker. Anything more than 5 should not be entertained and should be viewed as emotional trading.  

Don't Trade Under Pressure

I noticed myself under time constraints at times and forcing trades due to outside pressures. This has caused me to mistime buys and sells which in turn lost me money. If you do not have the time to trade, then don't. 

Trading under these conditions will lead to mistakes! 

These are some of the things I learned with my new broker SureTrader. I have already been trading for a while, but there is still so much to learn. I will share more mistakes I make as soon as I make them. 

R&R: 1/29/15

TICKER: EXEL

What a day it was. Today was my first day shorting after joining SureTrader and it was an awesome experience. My first short was on EXEL and it was such a mess. I lost my money overall and made some horrible mistakes. However, it was just a warm up for my second trade. Hopefully I get better over time. 

Looking at this chart, there were two options. It would either break $2.08 and just shoot up strong or it would go over and under that amount and just turn red just like how it did in its pastimes. So, I was looking to short over and under $2.08.

It went straight down so I became patient. I really screwed it up though by panicking too early and fell into a bear trap. I shorted @ $2.02 after its first lower high thinking that it was definitely going down, but encountered a slow grinding action upwards. After the second lower high, I was sure and shorted some more @ $2.00. However, I thought I saw higher highs and it going from red to green and covered @ $2.04 for a small loss. I was stupid and did not let it test the previous highs and just covered. After an awesome conversation with SureTrader, I shorted more @ $1.95 and hoped for a flush which did happen. However, I was looking into a one day swing and just disregarded it. I did not notice its previous history and almost got squeezed.

Note: Remember to take a look at the history of the chart to see if it has any special characteristics like closing strong. It could make you want to short with a shorter time frame in mind. VinnyB reminded me what over/under meant so that is useful. If a stock does not keep up with the support after breakout, then it is most likely fake. 

Note: Remember to take profits when you are up. You can always re-short later. I need to either work on swinging or daytrading.

TICKER: GENE

It was my first time shorting something this big. I made a lot of mistakes and only hope to get better as time goes on.

I really wanted to buy in earlier, but I missed a lot of bearish signals and cues. It was moving so fast that I didn't even know what to think. So I purchased in @ $4.25 after a triple top and I noticed lower highs on consolidation. I covered as soon as it hit the bottom of the channel. I re-shorted $3.90 because I thought it was going over and under $3.80 and it would just break, but covered @ $3.85. After the lower high, I was trying to sell out of my EXEL position and got distracted. I immediately waited for it to re-test the resistance and shorted for an average of $3.75.

Note: It formed a a descending wedge and although it looked weak, this thing could have squeezed tomorrow. Next time I plan holding something overnight, I need to put in a smaller size. My plan for tomorrow is to sell out immediately in the morning if it is strong and re-short when it is at its highs. 

Note: I need to take smaller positions for holding overnight and I need to work on the differences between swinging and daytrading. I need to figure out the fine line and how I will play each stock.

Please let me know if you have any comments or opinions. I would like to know if you have spotted any mistakes in my logic.