By Dr. Woody Johnson

Paulo breathed a heavy sigh as he thought about the next day’s preparation.  He was still attempting to recover from today’s session, which was emotionally whipping him as my grandfather used to say, “…like he stole something!”  He felt fragmented and frustrated. He knew that his research and preparation for tomorrow’s trading was crucial.  Paulo also knew that his state of mind was not conducive to the sharp focus of his A-Game, which was required for preparation that was not distorted by poor judgment or distracted by noisy thinking. 

He had several mental/emotional tools that he could use when his emotional temperature was too extreme for making prudent decisions.  But he was so disgusted with his results from this day’s trading, which included several losses, two rule violations and a premature exit that left him at break-even only to watch the price action move decidedly in his direction for several points; that he just wanted to chuck it for now. 

However,...

Monday’s Blog Results: What a day! The suggested buy level at 4303.00 was good for a 15-point bounce. Not much on a 198-point range day, but that was only one of 28 setups the Team here saw get filled.

Today’s Lesson: Have confidence.

Before you can have confidence as a trader you need to be confident in your rules. There is a difference.

The way you get confidence in your rules is to perform deep research in all market conditions. Document thousands of trade setups. Look for edge based on probabilities.

The way you get confidence in your trading is to stop thinking you can “beat” the probabilities and just follow the rules like a machine.

Yesterday is a great example. The S&P sold off hard dropping almost 5% (from high to low). It gained all that back to close higher. During the plunge you might have been thinking “There is no way I’m taking a buy signal and trying to catch this falling knife.” Big miss with that thought, huh? Volume levels yesterday performed better on the long ...

Tuesday’s Blog Results: Neither suggested level triggered during the day session.

Today’s Trading Tip: Have an open mind.

You have a rule-based plan with edge. If not, get one or quit trading. Rules in this case are meant to be followed. You want to be as machine-like as possible. Not easy for many of us, but that’s the goal.

Imagine that your plan is working fine. Your discipline following it is very good. Then you meet a trader who tells you there is a better way. Not a huge change to your plan, just a “tweak.”

What’s your reaction?

1. Nod politely, congratulate her on finding that “gem” and carry on doing what you’ve always done.

OR…

2. Get excited, immediately re-write your rules, and expect a big improvement.

You’ve probably met both types of traders. Fixed, disciplined, rarely willing to change and excitable, glib, and always changing.

Consider a middle ground. When you hear of a “better way” don’t simply dismiss it because it’s not “what you do.” Don’t just glibly cha...

Thursday’s Blog Results: The suggested buy level only ran for 8.25 points. How much did you get?

Today’s Trading Tip: On Vacation…back on Monday

Today’s Best S&P Futures Turning Points:

Short Level: Sell 4685.50 stop 4690.75.

Long Level: Buy 4552.25 stop 4546.50.

Trade well,

Mike Siewruk

P.S. Tired of trading alone? Need more quality setups? Learn how our team-based approach can accelerate your trading performance. Click here for FREE video training.  

Wednesday’s Blog Results: Neither suggested level triggered. The Team saw a secondary level fill (and become the low of the day) running for 24.75 points.    

Today’s Trading Tip:  On Vacation…

Today’s Best S&P Futures Turning Points.

Short Level: Sell 4777.00 stop 4781.75. (Same as yesterday).

Long Level: Buy 4684.75 stop 4679.00.

Trade well,

Mike Siewruk

P.S. Tired of trading alone? Need more quality setups? Learn how our team-based approach can accelerate your trading performance. Click here for FREE video training.  

Wednesday’s Blog Results: Your suggested buy at 4742.50 was only good for a 6.75-point scalp BUT you shouldn’t have taken the trade.

Today’s Trading Tip:  Stand back.    

Traditional work, your job, your career, your profession, all make becoming a winning trader difficult. Not because of the time devotion, because they instill a belief that is NOT helpful in trading.

What is it? Doing something. Can you imagine if you were caught doing nothing and told the boss “Now is not a good time to be working on this.” Or “Thursdays are difficult days to get anything done, so I’m going to loaf.”

In trading NOT entering a trade is not only OK it’s smart. There are times when the probability of success is low. Don’t trade. Unlike your job, doing nothing is completely acceptable.

Look at yesterday. The FOMC Minutes came out at 2PM ET and the volatility soared. The initial reaction was a 13-point bounce higher. Two minutes later price dropped 70+ points to the close of the session.

Should you ...

Monday’s Blog Results: Your suggested short on the breakout below 4766 was good for an 8-point run. Team members saw the “perfect” Globex session with two 17.50-point trades back-to-back, level-to-level.

Today’s Trading Tip:  The “easier” session.     

One of the many great features in the Futures market is the Globex session. Most popular Futures contracts start trading at 6:00 PM ET. That’s 15.5 hours before the opening bell the next day.

The participants and trading are different than the day session. During the day the big volume traders are way more active causing price to jerk around more. Statistically, you’ll have more stop-outs during the day.

That sounds good but the main reason you want to trade in the Globex is predictability. Think about it. During the day session all the big volume traders are leaving their “footprint” on the price map. You can “see” where they want to trade. With this knowledge, picking turning points in the Globex is much easier.

Don’t worry about ...

Friday’s Blog Results: Your suggested buy level at 4722.75 never triggered. Team members saw a nice bounce off a secondary volume level, good for 16.50 points.

Today’s Trading Tip: Thought journaling.   

Documenting all your trade setups, taken or not, is critical to improving results. It’s quick and easy to do. With many strategies the information can be downloaded directly from your trading platform. There is no excuse NOT to have this valuable data.

Then there is the more important information most traders ignore… their thoughts and feelings. Trader psychology author and trainer Dr. Woody Johnson suggests that 80% of trading success is based on your personal psychology. If that figure is anywhere near accurate then you should be keeping what he calls a “Thought Journal.”

Start with the trades you take. You want to make this habit easy to acquire. Immediately after you place the trade log your mental condition. Sharp? Alert? Foggy? Fearful? Describe your feelings. Did you follow ...

For Tue 210914 (Plenty can change by the open, be aware.)

Globex Review: Price is range-bound between volume levels. The set/forget long trade off the CPL is still open running for 13 points so far.

Day Session Analysis: Sentiment leans bearish and that means buy-the-dip. HOWEVER, CPI @ 8:30 will certainly determine the early trend. Stats say LONG is best. Tuesday (both sessions combined garnered 20% of all the gains over the past 5 years in dollars. Reversals and Breakouts are about even. Trading ES/CL/GC using BB Rev with new filters. Looking for attractive SPXW premium to initiate a ladder.

S&P 500 Futures CPL: 4450.50/4455. We’re trading ABOVE the CPL (short edge below, long edge above) and ABOVE the equilibrium 4460.75/4461.50 (open below = short edge, open above = long edge).

The World Index: (+100/-100) FADES from +14 to -29 in a world of mixed, bearish leaning sentiment (long edge).

Catalysts: CPI @ 8:30. All eyes on CPI. Oil supply expected low for a month or so, now trad...

For Mon 210913 (Plenty can change by the open, be aware.)

Globex Review: After dipping below Friday’s price has rallied up (all indexes). Two takeable trades, one small loser and one small winner.

Day Session Analysis: The World sentiment is mixed. Stats are mixed as well. Common sense says follow the price action after the open. Monday (both sessions combined) garnered 27% of all the gains over the past 5 years in dollars. Reversals and Breakouts are about even.  Trading ES/CL/GC using BB Rev with new filters. Looking for attractive SPXW premium today.

S&P 500 Futures CPL: 4481.50/4485.25. We’re trading BELOW the CPL (short edge below, long edge above) and BELOW the equilibrium 4477.50/4478.5 (open below = short edge, open above = long edge).

The World Index: (+100/-100) dumps from +64 to +14 in a world of mixed sentiment (modest short edge).

Correlations: After analyzing correlations over multiple time periods (180, 120, 90, 60, 30 days) I observed that the numbers are all over ...