The trader's craft

What you will learn

Move the stop to break-even

Once price moves enough in your favour (e.g. +1R), move the stop to your entry. From there, the trade can no longer cost you money.

Partial exits

Close part at the first target and let the rest run. You bank profit and reduce the stress that makes you exit too early.

Trailing stop

Follow price with your stop (below each new swing low, a moving average or the ATR) to capture long trends without guessing the top.

Pyramiding into winners

Add to a position that's already working (never to a loser), moving the combined stop to break-even. This maximises your winners.

Where to take profit

Set the target by structure (next support/resistance), Fibonacci extension or an R multiple, BEFORE you enter. Don't improvise with money on the line.

Cut fast when it fails

If the reason you entered disappears (structure breaks), exit even if the stop hasn't been hit. The best loss is a small one.

What 1R is

1R is your risk per trade (entry−stop distance × size). If you risk €50, 1R = €50. Making €150 is +3R; a loss is −1R.

Why think in R

It turns a '€200 loss' into '−1R', something neutral and expected. It takes the emotion off the money and puts it on the process.

Expectancy

Your average gain per trade in R: (win% × avg R won) − (loss% × avg R lost). If it's positive, over enough trades, you win.

Record everything in R

Log every trade in R, not euros. A +30R account over 100 trades is a system; +€3,000 could just be luck with big size.

Process over outcome

You can follow the plan perfectly and lose, or break it and win. Reward following the plan; the money follows over time.

Realistic expectations

You won't get rich in a month. A consistent pro aims for a sustainable return, not doubling the account; wanting that is what blows it up.

Treat it like a company

You have expenses (fees, losses), inventory (your capital) and you need records. Losing streaks are a cost of doing business, not a drama.

Survival comes first

You can't win if you're out of the game. Protect capital above all; opportunities always come back, a zeroed account doesn't.

Weekly & monthly review

Each week review every trade: did you follow the plan? Each month look for patterns: which setups win, what hours you lose, which mistakes repeat.

Tag your mistakes

Tag every trade (FOMO, no confirmation, moved stop, revenge...). Over 50 trades you'll see in numbers which one costs you the most money.

Metrics that matter

Track expectancy in R, win rate per setup, average R won/lost, max drawdown and % of days you followed the plan. Your Analytics tab already computes most of them.

Backtest (historical)

Apply your rules to past data, candle by candle, without peeking ahead. Log every signal as if it were real: it gives your first expectancy estimate.

Demo / forward test

Trade the strategy on a demo account, in real time, for 1-3 months. It validates execution, spreads and your emotions — things a backtest can't simulate.

Sample size

10 trades prove nothing; 100+ start to talk. And don't over-optimise: a 12-filter strategy perfect on the past usually dies in the future (curve fitting).

Pre-market

Check the economic calendar, mark key levels, build a watchlist with 2-3 scenarios ('if X happens, I do Y') and decide today's total risk.

During the session

Execute only what was planned — no new trades invented in the heat of the moment. Log entries as they happen and respect the daily loss limit.

Post-market

End the day with a 10-minute review: complete the journal, grade your discipline (not your P&L) and write down one lesson. Then truly disconnect.

Trending

Clear higher highs/lows (or lower). Breakouts, pullbacks and letting winners run work; mean-reversion fails.

Range-bound

Price bounces between support and resistance. Buying low and selling high works; breakouts fail (most are false).

High volatility / news

Huge candles, gaps and sweeps in both directions (events, earnings, panic). Normal stops don't protect you: cut size or don't trade.