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By Mike Smith Let’s face it, trading can be a lonely occupation sometimes. Along with the hope of picking up a “hot tip”, this seems to be a key reason why trading forums are so popular. Unfortunately many people leave such forums almost as quick as they join them, simply because many users are not particularly supportive and often seem to be fuelled by ego-driven posting.

So, understanding that there are benefits from connecting with other traders, another option we’ve seen in action is to take on a trading buddy. This might be someone you know who has shown an interest in your battle against the markets, and they need not be the same level of experience as yourself. Indeed, it may be that they are only just beginning.

But that shared experience can create a difference. We’ve possibly identified THREE significant positives, and how trading buddies can not only increase your level of enjoyment when trading, but also reduce that “alone” feeling, and even potentially impact positively on results. Consider: 1.

Increased Accountability The very fact you have someone close that you can share your experiences with gives a layer of accountability that you will never get when you are trading without someone else knowing what you are doing. It’s easy to stray from whatever your trading “straight and narrow” is when no one is there to know. Logically, if you are sharing your experience of trades, those that go with you and those that don’t, there is one more reason to trade more consistently with your plan.

Beyond direct trading, there’s also the follow through in learning and system development that can be positively impacted upon by having someone else around. Recognising the potential benefits of this layer of accountability is why many traders seek out a coach and invest thousands of dollars in such. 2. Shared learning and experiences The benefit is based on the idea that “Two heads are better than one”.

Whether it be a theoretical trading concept, understanding and testing a trading indicator that you are considering using, or simply having someone on hand to encourage and support you, or even celebrate when things go well, a trading buddy can positively impact all of these. 3. More efficient and effective trading system development One of the critical tasks you face as a trader is to develop the systems that support your trading decision making. A staggering number of traders have no or incomplete trading plans, and no other systems in place that many believe are necessary.

Additionally, there’s the obvious benefit of measuring the success or otherwise of such systems and having a critical mass of trades as evidence that system changes may be useful. Developing and testing systems together and getting evidence more quickly with two people working on getting that critical mass of trades are definite positives for having a trading buddy. Making your trading buddy happen a.

Get one There are more advantages to having someone local (although much can be done online) who you can physically meet. This can not only be more enjoyable but more productive. Ideally, someone you already know and whose opinions you generally trust would seem logical.

Experience is less important than the above as we can help (see below) in bringing someone up to speed. Watch also for LIVE events happening across Australia we are running this year. One of the key objectives of these is to facilitate networking with other trades.

Also, check out Inner Circle if you are not already a member. Perhaps put the word out you are interested in having a trading buddy and see if anyone is interested. b. Get them trained If your prospective buddy is someone who has simply expressed interest in trading but not yet taken the plunge, point them in the direction of “First Steps”, our free education course.

It is designed for new traders and enables fast track learning. Get them up and running with a demo platform and of course ultimately a live trading account. If this is of interest, then connect with us ASAP and visit the FREE education page on the website.

If they already trade, get them involved in “Next Steps” and “Inner Circle” as appropriate, and direct them to the page on the website. c. Set some ground rules Any relationship needs them! It doesn’t have to be a formal session, just a simple ‘how can we both make this work’ conversation.

Documenting what you’re doing and writing plans for action can always help get the most out of it for both of you. We see some great potential advantages for you and your buddy and, of course, will facilitate that relationship through education and support as much as we can. Your next step is to consider whether the advantages we have discussed would be right for you and of course if they are, take action.

Chart patterns (e.g. head and shoulders, triangles, double bottoms/tops), are commonly used to assist in trading decision making. If using these as part of your entry approach, their use should be viewed as a specific strategy, amongst others you may use, and so merit a dedicated section within your plan. This article outlines some of the key things to consider when writing and using such in your trading plan.

General rules with trading plans revisited The statements within your trading plan serve two primary functions, as discussed in detail in previous articles. It is important that such statements are specific enough to more effectively perform these functions, namely: a. Facilitate consistency in trading action e.g. in the entry and exit of trades, allowing the trader, and b.

Enable measurement e.g. within a journal, to make an evidence-based judgement on how well these statements are serving you through testing. With this level specificity, it is easier to ‘tweak’ components rather than throwing the “baby” of any strategy “out with the bathwater”. Often, many experienced traders discover the finer details can make a relatively big difference to trading results, rather than massive changes in approach.

Obviously, if there is a lack of consistency, originating from behaviours that move away from what you have planned, make it almost impossible to make any judgement on the success, or otherwise, of a strategy. Using chart patterns adheres to all the above. What about trading chart patterns?

Chart patterns are simply a representation of potential changes in market sentiment. Often combined with other indicators and can be used to indicate a potential entry into, or in some cases exit from, a specific position. Some patterns indicate a trend reversal (e.g. head and shoulder, double tops, triple bottoms etc), others a pause (congestion) before continuing in the direction of a previous trend e.g. flags, pennants, symmetrical triangles.

Patterns may occur on any timeframe but generally speaking are more robust (in terms of potential longevity of movement) on longer timeframes (although of course they cannot indicate with any accuracy how long that move may be). As with any entry approach, there is a chance that a trading idea based on an identified pattern will fail and so, as always, appropriate risk management should be put in place And within your trading plan? Chart patterns are not easily identifiable with most general indicator systems and are often best “sighted” so there is an element of subjectivity.

Logically this could suggest that this makes it even more vital to be robust in your description of how to use these in your trading. We have identified FIVE potential components to include within your written trading plan. These are: 1.

Your definition of the chart patterns you are going to use 2. When you are going to use them 3. Identification of when a pattern is completed 4.

Other factors you may use to potentially decrease the chance of a false breakout from any chart pattern you are going to use 5. Your initial stop placement method #1 Your definition of the chart patterns you are going to use Specify which of the chart patterns you are choosing to trade. Ideally, a description of what this pattern looks like on a chart will help lock this in.

For example, if we were to describe a double top it could read: • Reversal of upwards trend. • Creation of two upwards prongs. Around the same price level forming a ‘M-shape’. • Breakout below the ‘confirmation point’ (bottom of “prongs” confirms reversal. #2 When you are going to use them There are two perhaps obvious, and yet important, factors to include: a. On which timeframes you are going to use chart patterns b.

The proximity of impending economic data releases. For example, If trading a 30 minute chart you could specify “no relevant (define this e.g. specific to currency pair, sector of share CFD), significant (define this e.g. you may decide to actually state the data points) data due within the next 3 hours. #3 Identification of when a pattern is completed Experienced traders always wait until a pattern is complete before acting. However, the incidence of false breakouts (i.e. when a trading idea fails after a pattern is completed) is worth taking steps to attempt to limit.

Let’s use the break of a neckline on a ‘reverse head and shoulders’ as an example. Clearly, price moving upwards through the neckline is the desire. However, you need to articulate what are you using to determine this.

E.g. At any time within a candle period or on candle close price; and/or is there a specific distance such as using 0.5 ATR, or perhaps number of pips/points, above the neckline? #4 Other factors you may use to potentially decrease the chance of a false breakout from any chart pattern you are going to use The following may be considered: a. Which other indicators e.g. moving average, volume b.

Intra-candle price action e.g. close within the top third of the candle if considering a long trade. c. Agreement on other timeframes (although this may not be the pattern what constitute “agreement” e.g. price above 10EMA. d. Minimum distance to next “key price point” e.g. next resistance price level if going long. #5 Your initial stop placement method As the structure of each pattern is different then it is important to specific your initial stop placement methods for each.

So, to use the previous example, if trading the “idea” of a breakthrough a neckline, a pre-planned exit logically could be move back through that neckline may indicate a trade failure and necessitate a risk management exit (and so of course be a determining factor in your position sizing into that trade). As with defining what constitutes a breakout, logically again, you need to specify whether you are using an anytime touch of a price for exit or a candle period close price, and/or is there a specific distance (an how you are going to articulate this) below the neckline. So now to action… Depending on where you are now with you plan there are two potential actions. 1.

If you are already using chart patterns use the above checklist to determine whether you have these components included, fill any gaps and that ensure they are specific enough 2. If you have not got part of your trading plan them this may help you get started in making it happen Remember of course, the above is indicative suggestions only, it is YOU that must make the choice about what to include/not include and the specific parameters you are going to test and ultimately use.

In previous articles we have discussed in detail the merits of a trading journal in offering evidence for both: a. How well you are following a trading plan? b. How well your trading system is serving you? (assuming you are already following a trading plan) We have also outlined the importance of “closing the circle” and making sure you review journal data and action plan to make any amendments that would be of benefit.

If you are in the position that you have “jumped in” and made a trading a journal a reality in your trading, next level journaling aims to increase the quality of information, where you can optimise those things you are doing well and work on those things that need improvement. This, in essence, is all to do with asking the right questions of the information you have, so you can continue to make evidence-based judgements as to what type of trading suits you best. The reality is that no two traders are the same (even if using a similar system).

Your challenge is to find YOUR best approach that works for YOU. And subsequently, mirror this on an ongoing basis. Here are THREE potentially “game-changing” questions you could ask of your journal data which may give clues about “best fit” behaviour for you as an individual. #1 Which trading direction works for me?

There is no doubt that some traders have results that seem to be better going “long” and others trading “short”. The other possible outcome, of course, is that it doesn’t matter, and you perform equally as well irrespective of direction. Measuring the results of long versus short trades will give you this answer.

Let’s assume there is a noticeable difference. After obtaining this evidence your choices are twofold. The root cause of this may either be: a.

You have a simple aptitude for trading in a specific direction and so can mirror this with all future trading. b. It may be that your system works well for going in one direction and needs adjustment with the other. In this case, provided you are not comfortable sticking to (a) above then of course you have the evidence to refine that part of your system that appears to require adjustment. #2 Which timeframe works for me?

Similarly, we can look at whether specific timeframes work better for you as an individual trader. Questions about optimum timeframes are some of the most frequent that we receive on both ‘Inner Circle’ and the ‘First Steps courses. We have written about this topic before, the conclusion being that it is your individual circumstances that are most likely to dictate which timeframe works best for you.

Again, the power of a journal is that you can easily come to an answer, and so mirror that going forward (of course, this is dependent on you recording this as part of your journal process). #3 Which trading vehicle suits my trading style? Many of you reading this may be trading multiple vehicles e.g. Forex, Index CFDs, Share CFDs, commodities, options.

There are obvious differences not only in how these various instruments are priced but also influencing factors on how they move. Using a similar approach to the above, you can easily identify which vehicles are working for you. As with exploring trading direction the reason for this could be your characteristics as a trade or the robustness of your system in trading different vehicles.

So, the choices are the same - you can allocate a larger proportion (or even all) of your capital into trading the vehicle that produces better results or of course review and tweak the system for those vehicles with less desirable results. OK, so these are your three starting questions, that may help you find a trading style that is best fit for you. However, before we finish, it is worth offering a couple of additional pieces of guidance when doing an exercise such as this. a.

You need a critical mass of trades to make the data meaningful. (there is little evidence that can be gained from a couple of trades in any category). There is no definitive number to what this may be but logically perhaps 15-20 will suffice in the first instance. b. Compare like with like.

To make things meaningful you need to reduce the number of actors that may skew your results. As a start point it would make sense to: i. remove any trades where you clearly didn’t follow your plan, ii. Unless analysing #3 above it would seem logical to compare within one trading vehicle e.g. just your forex trades.

Finally, we would love to hear your feedback on journaling and how it has/has not worked for you (or even problems) you have had getting started. Drop a line a [email protected] with any feedback you would like to share.

In a previous article we addressed the concept of cognitive trading biases as a barrier to potential successful implementation of a trading plan in the heat of the action you “press the button” on entry or exit action. This article discussed these biases - “loss aversion” which you can read here ( click to read ). In this article we examine another common cognitive trading bias, termed minimalisation bias.

Trading biases revisited People have inbuilt set of belief and value developed outside the trading context but when the trader interacts with the market, these individual natural ways of thinking and feeling become part of decision-making. Some of these natural in-built responses may not serve you well and are termed ‘cognitive biases’ which may take over from your written and planned ‘trading system’ and become the major influence on your market behaviour. Recognising that these exist and developing awareness of whether one or some of them are part of your trading psychology is the first stage in addressing any bias.

The aim of this series is to help explain what they are, and you are able to make the judgement on your market interaction. What is a minimalization bias? Logically, good decisions in any context (including trading of course) are based on having complete and accurate information, to enable us to process this, and subsequently take appropriate action.

In a trading context, we have access to not only information relating to market sentiment, and tools (indicators) that can help us make sense of this, but also resources that may indicate terms of increased risk e.g. economic data release dates and times. Ideally, the way we use this information both for entry and exit should be specifically articulated within a trading plan which acts as a guiding light for action. In simple terms, many plans will have a set of criteria, or checklist, that if all can be ticked off as present, then act e.g. trade entry can be taken.

With a minimalization bias, the trader basis their decisions on small amounts of usually incomplete information, or in other words, act when all of the criteria have NOT been met. What happens with a minimalisation bias? This bias often leads to premature entry and exit before a full set of signals are confirmed.

Common examples of this may include low trading volumes, not keeping an eye an eye on the economic data release, attempting to predict the next price move often seen when acting on immature candles or bars, or before there is confirmation of a breakthrough a key price point. Commonly, such errors originate from time pressures, poor charting techniques, a lack of specificity in trading instructions within a plan or a lack of, or skipping looking at, appropriate resources to help inform decisions. When in an open trade we may see action (e.g. exit) without substantial evidence of a weakening price, retracements often used as exits rather than clear reversal signs.

The impact of this is limiting the profit potential of a specific trade. Trying to ‘bottom pick’ at the market (if looking for a long trade) may also be a problem in more severe cases, where the investor believes the price had stopped going down on a slow down on the drop rather than waiting for a clear reversal signal. Remember, an exit signal is not necessarily a reason to trade in the opposite direction.

Overtrading due to poor entries, followed by rapid exits may also be a symptom. What you can do if you think you may have a minimalisation bias? If this resonates with you, then the purpose of this article is fulfilled, as recognising and “owing” that there is something that needs to be addressed.

It is the VITAL first step in making a change. Obviously, there are steps you can take to address this (and you MUST). Here are some suggestions: a.

You have a complete trading plan that articulates trading actions both for entry and exit. The more specific these are, the less likely you are to stray. Make sure EVERY one of your criteria is crystal clear. b.

Record and review in your journal how you are feeling as you trade and the market circumstances during your decision-making. It would be rare that this bias is present in every trade. Through recording this information, you may be able to see common thread as to when this bias raises its ugly head.

Armed with this information you will then be able to either avoid trading in certain circumstances, or simply “checking yourself” a little more rigorously. Sometimes the very process of formally recording what you are doing helps in doing the right thing more consistently. c. Re-align with your trading plan prior to every trading session, remind yourself prior to looking at the market what your key criteria for action are. e.

Take regular breaks from the market during any session, particularly when trading shorter timeframes, to re-align with purpose and plan and avoid over-emotional trading. f. If you are in a position where you are finding information difficult to access, then simply ASK. There are many out there with those resources not only at hand but also how to get that information efficiently.

Finally, as we finished when we discussed “loss aversion” as you work on this please be gentle on yourself in terms of your development. Biases by nature are usually deeply ingrained and will take some work to address.

Warning: Turn your sensitivity meter down a little. This is a no sugar-coating, tell-it-how-it-is article (but rest assured it comes from a nurturing place). All over the globe, trading gurus attempt to sell their wares (software, the ‘holy grail’ of trade set ups etc) using retrospective charting examples.

Such powerful visual “evidence” is often used to persuade prospective FX clients that this vehicle is ‘easy’ to make profit with. With little work, little time, or whatever marketing buttons they are using to press to get a response. So, hours of energy invested, often cash is exchanged and yet more often than not, with an off the shelf system in place (often just an entry system which we know is never going to offer a complete trading solution) traders are left feeling more than a little disappointed that such “guaranteed, easy riches” are not showing up in their trading account.

On an individual level we see similar. Much airplay is given to the merits of back-testing and yet as with the aforementioned guru approach, you can just about find examples, if you look hard enough, of chart examples that mean this “next new indicator thing” is now the answer to replenish your now depleted finds. So, what happens, we have a system change, and yet results still often fall short of expectations.

There are 3 common dangers of the retrospective approach to creating (if you haven’t a trading plan already) or altering an existing plan that are worth highlighting. #1 – Overstating the function of back-testing. Let us be completely blunt. The purpose of back-testing is NOT, nor should ever be viewed as evidence that a trading plan, based on what ever system you are exploring, will work for you in the reality of live trading.

Back-testing does not generally consider: a. The impact of economic data releases and revisions, b. The political and general climate both globally and specifically in the countries that currency pairs relate to, c.

Individual investor behaviour re. timeframes, time of day that they trade, nor their ability (or otherwise) to act or inaction on a change of sentiment, d. Unplanned events such as escalating conflict (or the threat of such), e. The relationship and impact of other financial instruments of FX pairs e.g. equity and bond markets, commodities So, why back-test at all if the evidence could be so flawed?

The answer is simple, back-testing creates evidence, not that a system will definitely work for you as a trader, but ONLY as evidence that a forward (or prospective) test may be worthwhile. So, the bottom line is the function of back-testing is to justify the time and effort to prospectively test. It is after such a prospective test that system changes can be made/developed. #2 – Failure to gather a critical mass of evidence There are two issues here. a.

What constitutes enough evidence to move to the next stage of system testing. Quite often traders will make decisions on a limited amount of data e.g. one timeframe and one currency pair, over the last couple of months on which to make system decisions. Now you have read this it may seem obvious and may not need pointing out (but we will anyway) why this is insufficient information on which to base a “cross the board’ entry and exit system. b.

The second issue here is one of selective evidence gathering. A natural human response when excited by an idea is search for evidence to back up that idea. The potential danger with this is that we often tend in this search, to ignore information that refutes our idea. #3 – The reason behind doing this may not be that your system is failing rather it could be a YOU issue.

System skipping is common amongst many traders and is invariably motivated by results that are not as desired. Here is the danger. As much of what goes into creating trader results (some would suggest up to 80%) is due to behavioural issues (we have waxed lyrical about trading discipline previously) unless you: a.

Have a trading plan that is specific, measurable and comprehensive AND b. Follow it religiously ‘to the letter” then you are not really in a position to make a judgement on whether system could serve you well or is likely not to produce desired results. AND to add to this, as such behavioural issues have not been either acknowledged or addressed whatever system (based or retrospective charts or not) is more likely to produce equally disappointing results.

So, before you start on the journey of altering a system you should logically make every effort to have, follow and measure the impact of any system before you even consider changing it (or looking into what you may change it to). This MUST be your #1 priority before going down any path of system alterations. So there you have it.

You have a choice to take action of course on what you have read, If so, your missions going forward are: a. Make sure you have a comprehensive plan that you follow. Then, and only then, should you begin to explore further development including the use of retrospective charts (or back-testing) b.

Recognise the SOLE PURPOSE of back-testing is to create evidence that a forward (or prospective) live test is justified. c. Make sure you are basing any potential system change on a enough “balanced” data.

FRITZ, CILIC JOIN ALCARAZ AND DE MINAUR AT CARE A2+ KOOYONG CLASSIC GO MARKETS ANNOUNCED AS NEW PARTNER Top-ranked American Taylor Fritz and former US Open Champion Marin Cilic are the latest headline acts for the Care A2+ Kooyong Classic in 2023, with Australian-owned online brokerage, GO Markets also announced as a new tournament partner. Fritz and Cilic join two of tennis’ most outstanding young players in new world No.1, Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz, and Australian star Alex de Minaur at the tournament from Tuesday, January 10, to Thursday, January 12, at the Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club. Fritz advanced to the fourth round of a Grand Slam for the first time at this year’s Australian Open, reached his first Grand Slam quarter-final at Wimbledon and achieved a career-high ranking of No. 12 in July.

Earlier this year he snapped the 20-match winning streak of Rafael Nadal to capture the Indian Wells title, his third ATP Tour singles championship. “I’m very much looking forward to playing at Kooyong for the first time and experiencing the Club,” said Fritz. The matches I get to play there will be the perfect preparation for the Australian Open.” Ranked 16 in the world, Cilic has won 20 ATP Tour singles titles, and owns an incredible Grand Slam record having reached the final of Wimbledon and the Australian Open and highlighted by his famous victory in the 2014 US Open. This year Cilic has established himself in the World’s Top 20 and upset world No. 4 Daniil Medvedev on the way to the French Open semi-finals at Roland Garros.

Care A2+ Kooyong Classic tournament director Peter Johnston said the signings of Fritz and Cilic alongside de Minaur and Alcaraz already solidifies the tournament as an event not to be missed. “It’s fantastic to have Taylor playing at Kooyong for the first time and to welcome Marin back for the 2023 tournament,” said Johnston. “With these two stars, Alex and the newly crowned US Open champion and World number 1 Carlos Alcaraz in the field, the 2023 Care A2+ Kooyong Classic is shaping up as a “must see” for fans in January. We look forward to announcing more players shortly. “It’s great to have the support of GO Markets, building momentum and excitement for the return of the tournament to Australia’s Summer of tennis.” The Kooyong Classic has attracted legends of the game regularly to compete since its inception more than three decades ago. A world-class field assembled when the Kooyong Classic was last played in 2020 and another quality field is assured in 2023 when the tournament returns bigger and better than ever.

The 2023 event will be supported by GO Markets, an award winning Australian-owned online brokerage, offering premium trading services. The partnership has been made possible by Kooyong Classic’s marketing partner, MediaPro Asia. Chief Financial Officer of GO Markets, Soyeb Rangwala said of the partnership: “GO Markets is excited to be a part of the prestigious Kooyong Classic, an event which holds an important place in Australian sporting history,” said Rangwala. “Founded in Australia in 2006 as an online provider of CFD trading services, GO Markets is aligned with Kooyong in our proud Australian foundations and our pursuit of excellence in local and global markets.

We look forward to kicking off an exciting summer of tennis at the Classic and welcoming some of the world’s best tennis talent back to Melbourne.” The tournament offers plenty for fans, and champions of the sport consider Kooyong an ideal destination to fine-tune ahead of the Australian Open. 2023 Care A2+ KOOYONG CLASSIC WHEN: Tuesday, January 10, 2023, to Thursday, January 12, 2023 WHERE: Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club - 489 Glenferrie Rd, Kooyong VIC 3144 TICKETS: Ticket on-sale dates will be available soon. Meanwhile, Corporate Box packages are available and can be purchased by contacting the Kooyong Lawn Tennis Club: [email protected] BROADCAST: The 2023 Care A2+ Kooyong Classic will be broadcast live nationally and streamed online on SBS between 11am - 5pm on each day of the event and distributed internationally through Media Pro Asia. MEDIA: Please note that accreditation is essential for all media wishing to cover this event.

Details on how to apply will be made available soon. For enquiries, please contact Stamping Ground: Michelle Stamper | [email protected] Jordie Browne | [email protected] About the Care A2+ Kooyong Classic: As part of the Summer of Tennis in Melbourne, Australia, the world’s top players grace Kooyong’s historic centre court in January each year, maintaining its long and distinguished tradition as the spiritual home of Australian tennis. As a key part of player’s preparation in the lead up to the Grand Slam of the Asia/Pacific, the Australian Open, the tournament offers an atmosphere like no other and is one of tennis’ most storied events.

About GO Markets GO Markets is a multi award-winning global financial services provider, which has always been dedicated to providing its clients with an excellent trading experience. Over the last 17 years, GO Markets has been dedicated to evolving their technology, services and education, in order to provide clients with the best possible trading experience. Through this dedication and because of the trust and loyalty of their clients, they have established themselves as the first choice for trading for our clients globally.

About Mediapro Asia: Mediapro Asia has recently renewed the marketing and media rights for the Kooyong Classic event. The deal means that the company is responsible for distributing broadcast and selling sponsorship rights both domestically in Australia, and overseas. Mediapro Asia, based in Singapore, has been working with the Kooyong Classic event since 2018.

Mediapro Group is best known as LaLiga’s exclusive media rights agency, distributing Spanish LaLiga audio-visual rights globally. Mediapro Asia is also responsible for marketing several other top sporting events, including the Ladies European Tour, the Chinese Super League, ManCity TV and Belgian Pro League. www.kooyongclassic.com.au