Let’s face it, we all do it or have done it at some point.
You stare at the charts, suddenly you think the price is going to reverse so you get involved.
Price goes against us, we panic, we want it to rally or reverse.
Price goes in our favour, we want it to keep going.
But in reality, the market doesn’t care what you want.
React, Don’t Think
This is what I mean by trade what you see. Your analysis must have an objective probability not a subjective probability.
When you trade what you want to see:
You ignore valid setups.
You cling to losing trades.
You jump in early.
When you trade what’s there:
You enter only when all conditions are met.
You accept what the chart shows, not what you hope for.
You exit decisively, based on structure.
How To Apply This Today
Here’s a 3-step plan to anchor your decision-making in reality, not emotions:
1. Build an “If / Then” Trade Plan
Instead of hoping, build logic trees:
If price breaks support and retests, then I’ll apply my strategy.
If the trend is intact on all 3 timeframes, then I’ll buy pullbacks in line with my strategy.
If the trend breaks and my conditions trade, I will close the trade regardless of being in profit or a loss.
2. Use Market Structure as Your Guide
Support/resistance, trends, breakouts, these are objective.
Let the chart show you its hand. You don’t need to guess, just react.
3. Talk about the trade whilst in it
If I’m in a day trade, sometimes I open up a notepad or whip out a pad and pen and note down how I am feeling throughout the trade.
I also monitor what the market is doing, making sure the conditions are correct, once it changes I monitor if the set up is still valid.
Try this out for yourself if you’re struggling with consistency!