As a full-time trader, my journey hasn't been smooth. Those dark moments of significant capital shrinkage and continuous losses made me doubt my trading system immensely. But a 'return strategy' became my lifeline, helping me stabilize and turn things around. Now, sharing the core content with you, I hope these experiences can assist you if you are also 'self-doubting' in trading.
1. Entry Logic: Only seize two types of opportunities, strike precisely.
(1) Breakout from consolidation.
Prices repeatedly oscillate in consolidation zones, seemingly 'a stagnant pool', but actually hide secrets. Once an effective breakout occurs, the prior 'silence' is a signal for market explosion.
I focus on this 'moment of initiation': if the direction is right, decisively increase positions; if the direction is wrong, immediately stop loss and exit, never drag it out.
(2) Turning Points in Trends.
In an upward trend, the nodes after a normal pullback that rise again; in a downward trend, the moments when a rebound ends and falls again are all good entry opportunities.
The essence is 'following the larger cycle and countering the smaller waves': use 15-minute and 1-hour candlesticks to find pullback turning points, but the premise is that the daily and weekly trends are clear. If the big direction hasn’t broken, the adjustment is a signal to enter.
2. Trading Subtraction: Focus less on indicators and return to the essence.
Many traders always feel 'not enough certainty', frantically stacking indicators and increasing cycles, resulting in a view that resembles facing a bunch of unsynchronized clocks, getting more chaotic the more they look.
My strategy is the opposite—doing subtraction: only look at the daily and weekly charts for direction, and closely monitor 1-hour or 15-minute execution cycles, which are clear enough. Indicators? Just as an aid, use moving averages to track profit-taking: if the price is above the line, hold; if it breaks, decisively take profits and exit to secure gains.
3. Position Management: Light positions for building, staying alive is the opportunity.
Position sizing tests execution ability, not 'gambling nature'. When skills are not mature, 'light positions + stop loss' is my risk management treasure.
If you don't have confidence to 'run 10 kilometers', start with '2 kilometers'. Initially, I only dared to use 5% of my position, or even lighter; even if I lost, it was within my tolerance. Don't worry about 'earning slowly', trading is inherently a marathon; as long as the rules are clear and the account is 'alive', time will amplify your advantages. The power of compound interest never fails due to a small position; the key is to 'live longer and walk steadily'.
4. The True Essence of Trading: Patience, discipline, and execution are the way to go.
Trading does not rely on 'charging hard', but on patience, discipline, and execution. What truly makes a difference is not having flashy techniques, but whether one can abandon the gambler's fantasy of 'one big turnaround' and return to a simple, repetitive, low-error, and sustainable trading path.
This is how I climbed out step by step from the bottom. If you are also stuck in a trading bottleneck, try these methods. It's okay to move slowly; after all, trading is a marathon, and only those who laugh last are the winners.
