I've been out of it a bit, but started back in recently. Mostly when I've been routinely profitable it has been from trading simple confluences and price patterns, mostly wedges when it comes to patterns. I hate to say it but most of this game is psychological. I find that by sticking to one method there is efficiency.
Don't settle for second best setups. Don't be afraid to miss out. Tomorrow is another day, next week is another week.
My confluence strategy is to find really strong levels and not ask too much of them, like hitting a nail with a sledgehammer. Take profit is to me the trickiest part of the game. I'm trained to find entry points, and I can always find a nearby technical level that's sensible for a stop loss. But where to take profit is harder. I solve this problem by trading on the H1 or H4 and look for entries that I think might be worth 25 to 50 points and then only try to make 15 or so. If my TP is 15 then my SL will be somewhere from 20 to 12, probably averaging .95 to 1 RR. This should keep my win rate high, and minimize account drawdown.
My MM is very tight. I rarely risk more than 1.5% on a single position, and most often a bit less. This is key. If I make 5% in a week this is a great week. If I make 3% then I've done my job. 3% a week compounding is probably around 175% return in a year. We live in a world where multi million dollar hedge funds struggle to make 10%.
Sometimes I manage my positions once they're open sometimes I don't.
I'll post my Trade Explorer and talk about what I look for in set ups. Separating the good from the bad, or the better from the worse can be a bit subtle at times and take some experience.
Don't settle for second best setups. Don't be afraid to miss out. Tomorrow is another day, next week is another week.
My confluence strategy is to find really strong levels and not ask too much of them, like hitting a nail with a sledgehammer. Take profit is to me the trickiest part of the game. I'm trained to find entry points, and I can always find a nearby technical level that's sensible for a stop loss. But where to take profit is harder. I solve this problem by trading on the H1 or H4 and look for entries that I think might be worth 25 to 50 points and then only try to make 15 or so. If my TP is 15 then my SL will be somewhere from 20 to 12, probably averaging .95 to 1 RR. This should keep my win rate high, and minimize account drawdown.
My MM is very tight. I rarely risk more than 1.5% on a single position, and most often a bit less. This is key. If I make 5% in a week this is a great week. If I make 3% then I've done my job. 3% a week compounding is probably around 175% return in a year. We live in a world where multi million dollar hedge funds struggle to make 10%.
Sometimes I manage my positions once they're open sometimes I don't.
I'll post my Trade Explorer and talk about what I look for in set ups. Separating the good from the bad, or the better from the worse can be a bit subtle at times and take some experience.