How Many Ways to Mess up Trades - Let Me Count the Ways

It seems there are countless ways to make trading errors. And countless combinations of ways to make trading errors. Everything from missing trade setups to letting a profitable trade turn into a loser, to early exits, order entry errors, you name it and it can be done to mess up trading.

When you think about trading errors and how many ways there are to make errors and compare that to just the few simple steps needed to do what you are supposed to do in trading, it is remarkable.

Here is all you need to do;

1. Identify setup (your edge)
2. Have patience for setup to develop
3. Place entry order
4. Place stop loss order
5. Take profits or take stop loss

Thats it, of course you may be trailing a stop loss or adding on in a trend, but its pretty basic. So how can it be that the trading errors outnumber the "do the right thing" category by such a wide margin?

Maybe its possible that because in essence what we are supposed to be doing is so simple and basic we just have a hard time leaving well enough alone and give into the have to have something to do to feel productive mode. Of course the outcome will usually be on the unproductive side in the way of losses.

My suggestion is to review what your trade plan and trading setups are the you will look for the next trading day and make a commitment that you will simplify your life and trade only that. If the urge to do anything other than that comes along, take a nap until it passes.

And instead of counting the ways of making trading errors, count the trades that you did the right thing.