August 11 2009 Accountability Report And Commentary

CLICK HERE FOR A VIDEO OF TODAY'S TRADES EDITED DOWN TO 5 MINUTES WITH AUDIO




There is so much information today we have to tackle this one at a time:

1. Prep

The premise of the morning prep was off this morning. I will call it a mis-read. This is the first occurrence of this since I started posting here.

I did a very thorough review and actually discovered an unforced error in my input analysis prior to the prep.

I missed a zone extension this morning that would have made a huge difference in my premise.

It is actually a testament to the accuracy and reliability of the prep. The mechanics of the structure based methodology worked. Human error caused to premise to be off. This can be corrected as it is a rare event.

Also, I did mention the sell off scenario in the commentary and the 989.50 support zone was held and traded successfully. (even though I mis-labeled it 981.50 which was sloppy)

2. Midday VIDEO

The extension of the zone that I overlooked while doing the prep is explained in the midday VIDEO. It is actually an extremely powerful concept.

There is also some good ES analysis and a short term projection.

3. Today's trades

I traded very well today. Maybe I should say I chose my trades well today. The execution was not good hence the "D" on the grading section above.

I only bet a 1/2 position on the second and third trade. This is because I wanted to put the second 1/2 on at a better (lower) price.

When I was evaluating the trade (prior to price approaching the area), I came to the conclusion that if I entered where I wanted to, the price would likely stop me out low tick if it were to make a stop run.

Basically, I usually give my self room for this occurrence but my max risk in the trade would not allow me room.

This is a tough situation. I can not skip the trade because it would cause randomness. I did not want to risk a full loss on the entry nor could I wait because the price does not always move to where we would like to enter.

So I entered with a 1/2 position. The price did not come down further and the trade was off. The problem is that with a 1/2 position, the winner is watered down by 50%. This causes havoc on my ratios.

IE- I lost 3.5 points with 2 contracts = 7, I won 5.25 points with 1 contract = 5.25.

Even though my winner was larger than my looser, my ratios were inverted today. Position size is crucial.

It was a weak play to limp into the long position and it cost a green sticker today. Playing defense often does.

Observations:

1. Stop playing defense. How many times do we have to say it?

2. Do not limp into positions.

3. Goes without saying but have to mention...pay attention to detail when arranging data for prep. Stay off the phone or e-mail.

4. The tone of these reviews is often quite negative. There are many good things I could say about today.

5. The fact that I had a mis-read and put myself at a massive disadvantage with position sizing and was only down 1.75 points is respectable.

I recorded my trades today and edited it down to a 5 minute HD VIDEO above. Check it out.