Mickey's Journal

[Michal]

Great post ! enojoyed reading it. I was one of those guy. Paid money got indies, installed and after two days was expecting nice returns.... I didnt so i was gone for some time until i realised i was stupid because i even didnt give it a chance. I think it's like i needed to mature to it... more likely. Anywa after i came back i stayed for good. I started my journal and i must say there were many ups and downs many changes made and story goes on. But as they say through forex you get to know yourself who you are, so for me it took more time and im still learning a lot ! every day for others might take less time... What i know today starting a journal and share my trades with others it's great and really helped me. I sometimes go back to first pages of my journal and smile to myself when i see where i was and where i am now

just my two cents... hope helps

[kiravon]

Thanks Michal
Yes its definitely some kind of maturity, we've all been there.

You know, even quite recently I might have asked you privately
how well are you really doing financially with AIMS, as if to ask
'does it really work?'

Happily I'm past that now, there are guys on other forums who
can tell you they've tried it and its just rehashed indis that don't
work no matter how many filters they add

Certainly AIMS is a great vehicle but James Edwards put it well,
'when you look at a setup you are not actually seeing the
reality of the market, you are just seeing yourself'

as you say, its a kind of reflection of who you are at any given
stage of your progress

[kiravon]

March 9th Sequence 2, Campaign 1, Dax 5m +7pips

Picture time! Not significant enough to
clutter this post up but its there for reference
http://www.screencast.com/t/9auAsJNu3bAU

I saw the resistance on 5m Dax on the upper
bollinger bands followed by a bearish momentum
bar but no fruit signal

so moved down to 1m TF and saw the fruit signal
there, also was able to place a more viable SL on
the 1M chart.

and when price closed with momentum above the
green on 1M it seemed prudent not to wait for it to
continue up to green on 5m TF.

So only +7 but I'm happy with that

The reality is I lost a hyperthetical 35 pips overall
as I overslept and missed a +42 pip win at LO.

But did you know? You can use the Twenty trades principle
for weight loss, dating, Learning languages and other skills?
Am I off topic? No, never been more on topic actually!

I moved to Poland three years ago and as cost of living is
so cheap found myself eating out all the time eg steak and
chips, fish and chips, Curry and rice all around £1.50!
1 pint of strong bear 20p! cakes from around 20p
overindulgence is mandatory here!

I put on a lot of weight. For two years I have tried to diet
but keep relapsing almost immediately ( don't 95% of dieters
and traders fail? )

Last few days I started a twenty day sequence of twenty
dietary campaigns that I classify as simply winners
or losers depending on whether I complete the day
eating just salad + one roll of bread + one yoghurt when
eating out, or four or five boiled potatoes if eating in.

So far I have been 100% successful and have not felt
hungry once, nor felt deprived nor lacking 'comfort'

and the point?

I know if I can regain some semblance of a humanoid
physique by this Summer then financial independence
by the same method will be a doddle by comparison

so as I get slimmer my confidence in the twenty trade
principle increases! so its really a win win situation in
every sense

[kiravon]

March 10th Sequence 2 Campaign 2 Dax 5m -2, Add on -16 Total -18*

( * it gets worse! I doubled lot size of add on. I think I might be running before I can crawl )

+45 DISALLOWED!**

( ** I took note that price broke down through Gator, mid Bollinger and 200 EMA
then retraced up to retest 200 EMA. Closed above them all then resumed the original
downward move breaking through all levels again for a further 45 pip which I won but
am not counting. Why not? because the set up was intertwined with gator and not several impulsive bars angled away from gator.It was therefore not a Fruit set up, nor even close to one! but Immy typed 'Shorts can betaken here' in the Skype room so I went short, but it wasn't Fruit - Pavlonian Reflex maybe but not Fruit set up. Apparently this is Dave's 'Gaterway to Heaven' set up which I think may be some kind of Inside Bar strategy but will check. )

BTW Skype room is far from a signal service, it is far more of a masterclass coaching session if
anything, however it does advertise that signals will be given as part of the education and my
45 pip win today is proof of that. I would think that is quite typical of the quality.

Other good and bad news - I stuck doggedly to my two hour schedule and therefore missed
a possible 200 pip win this afternoon including add on. That would have been nice but
being glued to screen all day for me would be a certain way of giving it all back before
very long

NOTE I need to read up on Add ons as its possible I'm doing something wrong. Once again
I carelessly had a SL of 16pips when my risk management doesn't allow for more than 10 pip
SL, and actually neither does it allow for doubling of lot size!

[kiravon]

March 11th Dax 5m Fruit Sequence 2 Campaign 3 -17 Rent

Dax 5m very non compliant this morning. Feel Despondent over
rent trade. I used to run a business where 50% of the gross
profit was eaten up by business expenses. That was the deal
and it never bothered me as I was making very good money.
So why should I expect trading to be any different?

And its a very manageable loss on just one of twenty campaigns.
and it doesn't matter if even the entire sequence (Batches ) loses
as long as most sequences win over time and I am confident they will.

News Strategy Sequence 1 Campaign 2 BE

Breakout Strategy 5M Sequence 1 Campaign 1 +38
Sold very weak Euro against a strong USD
noted very strong 1hr higher TF Downtrend

Traded for about 2.5 hrs only - quite acceptable

Slim Physique Strategy Sequence 1 Campaign 9 +Win
Stomach shrinking, Losing appetite, Last three days eat
just one meal a day mid afternoon, Now won last nine out
of nine campaigns.

This strategy is also 80%+ psychological. ie I could not possibly succeed
at this at home. After trading I go out for a 'Special Treat' - I go to the
large cafeteria in the shopping mall. I have my tray with the shrink wrapped
salad in its moulded container with its special little compartments, I have
plastic cutlery and little salt and peppers just like they used to give us
on DAN AIR flights when I was a child. It recaptures some of the
excitement I used to feel. Did I mention the gorgeous Polish waitresses
with their tight mini skirts? Am I really turning into Benny Hill?

Point is its working and its working well

[immy]

I really like reading your posts and actually looking forward to it every day. That last bit really got me into another mood... oh the tight mini skirts... you gotta give it to them, The Slavics are the Slavics !

[youtube]syMhJMmGEIc[/youtube]

[kiravon]

Pleasant musical interlude

As promised to myself I have begun to trawl through
Dave's journal in search of the 'Gateway to Heaven'.
I haven't found it yet as I'm only up to page 12 but
already I've uncovered some real nuggets!

Mainly in connection with S1 setups which I'm not
currently doing but Dave's analytical insights are amazing!
'Winning trades don't usually reverse back into the
AIMS box from whence they came!' Amazing!

The underlying principle being cut losers quickly!

Also Dave stresses the converse of not just letting
winners run but to add on and milk it for all its worth!

and also some priceless chip ins from others, Ray in
particular who came up with a phenomenal strategy
but I'm so tired ( due to no fat or sugar in diet ) I
can't remember what it was!

Thankfully I have come up with a strategy of my own
although I doubt its original -

When I see something that I know will really make me
or save me money I must thank the contributing member
in that post. Its courteous but more importantly
I can refer to my list of 'thanks' for quick locate of that tip,
insight or awesome strategy instead of spending hours trying to
find it again

I think I remember Ray's input - involves the cross of 34 SMA and
34 EMA - it looked brilliant - will check it again tomorrow, but
with all these amazing pointers to check out I may never get to
'Gateway to Heaven' at this rate ...

Reminds me of 'The Principle of Layering'

There can be a basic winning strategy ( in any sphere of business )
and others add their little tips and tricks

To implement all of them is not usually practical as they will
often conflict and contradict. But you can choose the ideas
and suggestions that really resonate with you personally.

In practice some of the ideas may not work as well as you
thought so you drop them and keep the various strategies that
do work and that you really like. So you layer one idea over another
until you end up with the best of the best that works for you personally.

For example, I'm a relative beginner but one thing that definitely works
for me is 'dynamic trailing' especially on the 5m TF. There can be some
very long runs but when they do actually end you don't give too much back
if SL is only one candle away.

This is of course one of the basic AIMS exit strategies but whatever system
I was trading I would always want to layer that into my method. There may
be merit in a 'set and forget' 1:1 or 1:2 risk reward system but trailing to
the very end is right for me. Probably the next layer would be locking in
profits and adding on.

Certainly the AIMS community is an amazing resource to learn from!
- after Dave I have so many other journals to check out!

[Dave]

Thanks for the kind words, Mickey. I'm nowhere near the holy grail but I try to take one step in the right direction every time I sit at the charts, and eventually I'll reach my goal! I know when I first joined AIMS I read Immy's, Grant's, Topher's, Darren's, Ray's journals, just to name a few, literally hundreds of times. Every time I saw a chart setup I liked I saved the picture and put it on my iPhone and I'd look at them on the bus, in ad breaks when watching tv, at the gym when I got tired (often), when bored at work, on the toilet.... every time I had a spare 5 mins. And I still look at them daily.
If I've come to terms with one thing then it's that the mind is The Boss. Keep your losers small and never ever add to them. Let your winners run and add to them when your risk can remain manageable (i.e. stop loss is still small and preferably shortened on the initial entry). And just relax.... "I am aware of my body and my emotions" :-bd
I've attached a little doc I use when I sit at the charts and feel rushed or anxious. Call it horse shit if you like, but sitting quietly for a couple minutes with some background music and a clear mind focusses your mouse-clicking finger! You'll see a lot of the content is just a collection of what's on this forum....

Affirmations.pdf

[kiravon]

Thanks Dave, especially for affirmations. I already know about tapping.
You can use it for everything and it just about works 100% of the time,
sometimes takes a few minutes, you forget about the problem, and when
you check to see if any improvement the problem has completely gone.

I've tried it on skeptics over the years and it works just as well on them
usually to their annoyance

BTW - you don't need to tap anywhere special, it works wherever you tap,
in fact one EFT therapist has success even when he taps on a doll's head!
others at times when its not appropriate to tap in public, just imagine
tapping on these energy meridian points with equal success.

The founder of EFT filmed himself working in a psychiatric hospital where the
inmates were long term seriously ill. They were all cured except one who had
a psychotic episode ( that happens in rare cases ) and he filmed the whole
thing for the avoidance of any doubt. Powerful stuff!

Something else that helps is from the most unlikely of sources - Rita Lasker
No stop laughing this is serious! She gave me the attached promotional gift
and its really, really good!* Its actually her singing.

Thanks again for the affirmations, I might make an MP3 out of it

(*I think the idea is to promote her site where she offers free robots etc so
in fairness if anyone likes the attachment they might consider visiting )

[kiravon]

March 12th Dax 5M Fruit Nothing today

News Strategy +25 Traded very strong AUD against an extremely weak USD

NEWS.png

News Strategy Update from March 4th -

Sequence 1 Campaign 1 +13
Campaign 2 +28
Campaign 3 BE
Campaign 4 +25

Breakout Strategy Sequence 1 Campaign 3 -13 Sold an extremely weak USD
against a soaring CHF supported by higher TF. Started really well then
stopped me out for -13 pips. Entered way to late even though it would
have been a +75 pip winner if I had got up for Frankfurt Open

I didn't so it wasn't!

BREAK.JPG

Breakout Strategy Sequence 1 Campaign 4 Dax BE Add on -7 -11 -21 Total -39
Breakout Strategy Sequence 1 Campaign 5 Dax BE Add on -20 -33 Total -53

AS can be seen a little Greed may have reared it's ugly head here. I thought I would
action Dave's strategy immediately and whilst its good I got out of both trades at BE,
I obviously was a tad careless with the Add on stops! to put it mildly! Needs a bit
more work.

Reflections. Immy made a very telling comment in the Skype room today, not sure if
anyone else picked up on it

' I find myself in THE ZONE when I'm on M1. I get engrossed I get sucked into the chart,
I see nothing feel nothing just that M1 chart. That does not seem to happen for me on
any other time frame'

So probably the 1M Fruit is the absolute ideal vehicle for Immy, and I guess we all need
to find exactly what it is that gets us into that zone.

For me, and of course it is very early days, but hanging around for a couple of hours
waiting for Fruits that are not really happening at the moment might not be for me
over the long term

That said, we are probably all doing 5m TF ( by popular vote ) to give us a bit of breathing
space so we have time to think about whats going on. We can always change later if necessary.

What I'm finding most pleasing at the moment is the News strategy because

1) I know its definitely going to happen
2) I know when its going to happen
3) Its fast. a few minutes and done - then I can be off for the day.
4) When you have simultaneous polarization of currency strength
like today it usually wins, so much so, I would venture to say that
the reason you have the polarization is no coincidence, currencies
may be polarizing because the news is known well in advance.
5) As discussed yesterday it is high momentum so you can trail
dynamically without giving much back as can be seen in the screenshot
above ( I don't like giving back! )
BTW I wouldn't trade news without confluence of currency strength,
I know how very perverse it can be!

Further Reflections

I felt quite downhearted after messing up
so badly on the Breakout system, even though technically they were both
BE trades and rent was avoided - Thats actually very good!

Then I had a fantastic win on the News Strategy once again, and noted
that this month it seems to be winning all the time. So I feel quite
elated about that. This emotional roller coaster approach is likely setting
myself up for a fall. Win, lose or BE just take everything in my stride, its just
business. The satisfaction should come from a series of successful
sequences ( batches ) not a couple of isolated winners. That is the whole
point of the 20 trade principle after all - to keep emotions out of it