Reasons Why We Crash (Courtesy of Yamaha Champions Riding School)

As part of my prior job, I was fortunate enough to attend Yamaha Champions Riding School (eight times!), where I learned some valuable lessons.

One of my biggest takeaways was the top reasons "Why We Crash." While this was in the context of riding, I've applied these concepts to almost every aspect of my life. The more of these things you stack up together, the greater the risk of a crash. For the seasoned traders here, I'd be curious if there are any key missing items as it applies to trading.

1.) Lack of focus (In trading, particularly scalping: not being in the moment of your trade, trying to watch too many things at a time and missing optimal entry or exit)

2.) Abruptness (In trading, jumping from trade-to-trade or stock-to-stock without getting a good read and ensuring it meets the setup criteria)

3.) Repeating a mistake (Pretty self-explanatory)

4.) Rushing the entry [of a turn] (In Trading, getting in before the setup is really there; FOMO; gambling)

5.) Cold tires (In Trading, Rushing in with big positions without building a bit of a profit cushion (i.e. "warming up") for the day)

6.) Bike changes (In Trading, working off a new entry/exit strategy, stock selection criteria, etc. without giving yourself time to calibrate your reads on a new-to-you process)

(reference: www.ridelikeachampion.com)

I went into my day today with a plan to have a single trade. I executed that plan with a loss and walked away. Yay for me! BUT, I cooled off and came back 35 mins later to try and end the week on a green day. I wouldn't call what I did revenge trading. More trying to hone my selection and entry/exit skills. I then made 4 more trades (one small winner, one wash, two losses). Ended up again today downing my paper account balance by another 2.5%. Not good. Today reinforced that I do not have ANY intuition ~yet~ when it comes to reading the action. From my list above, I violated #2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 - almost a guarantee to crash - and I had a pretty epic highside today.

Going to take the weekend to reset and try to come into next week with a clear mind and see if I can slowly dig myself out of this hole with renewed purpose. Hope everyone has a great Labor Day weekend! 😬

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