THE GOOD AND THE BAD / VOLUME + FOLLOW-THROUGH / HAPPY B-DAY IBC!

Yesterday started with several losses (mostly from AONE) which were mitigated with one sweet trade in AIG in the afternoon. The TOL trade was peanuts. It pays to pay attention, you know. Below, I posted annotated charts with my AONE loss and my AIG win. Things to be learned from both trades. In the end, I won. Winning sure is more fun than losing, but I don't have to tell you that.


There are a lot of people that try to mimic my style, but it's not for everyone. In fact, it's probably not for most people. I never had a mentor to teach me so I found my own way all by myself. Stop copying people and go explore your own path. What I do should just be one tool in your toolbox, mostly likely the HAMMER. Go through my educational articles and find out who you are and what style best suits you.

The SPX, along with many other indices and individual sectors, formed shooting stars, black-filled candles, and all types of doji. The narrow range, again, made it difficult to trade. Know when to just stop and watch. You're not missing anything. This lack of follow-through is killing the probabilities of even the highest probable trades, thus reducing the chances of success. I am looking for range expansion, follow-through, more volume, and other characteristics so I don't have to deal with uncertainty.


Beware of false breakouts and breakdowns. The tell is the volume. Here's a little summary:

To go long:
Breakouts - bullish on high volume. Buying with pressure and conviction.
Pullbacks - bullish on low volume. Indicates healthy consolidation.

To go short: Breakdowns - bearish on high volume. Selling with pressure and conviction.
Pullbacks - bearish on low volume. Indicates healthy consolidation.

Didn't I write an article on this? Anyway, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to iBankCoin! Almost exactly a year ago, I got on board and enjoyed it ever since trading with some good folks and dealing with a bunch of assholes.

Have a nice day.