How Are Strict Rules Sabotaging Your Trading Success
How to switch fear-based rules with rules backed by your trading confidence.
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In 2024, I faced my toughest trading challenge yet—and it wasn’t in the markets. A fire accident forced me to step away from everything, including trading. Against my own instincts—I decided to take a break.
When I came back in September, I wasn’t the same trader. Suddenly, I was making mistakes that felt foreign. Impulsivity had taken over, and I barely recognized myself in the game.
I’d always been overly cautious, so hesitation was my Achilles’ heel. But now? I was taking invalid trades and making hasty decisions that weren’t aligned with my strategy. My break had given me clarity, but it also left me disconnected from the markets.
On my plan to regain control, I implemented a simple rule: only two trades per day.
At first, it felt like the perfect fix because impulsivity was creeping in mostly after the second trade. But soon, I realized I was still taking invalid trades.
So, I doubled down with another rule: one loss, and I’m out for the day. This protected me from spiraling into impulsivity. My rules reduced impulsivity, and I felt more in control.
But when I reviewed my October performance with the usual monthly analysis, I was stunned: I’d left 10R on the table. Ten. Entire. R.
I’m sure you’ve been there—missing trades is part of the game. But 10R? That’s hard to swallow. Especially because I had already filtered this result through performance nuances, which means it wasn’t hypothetical—it was real, free from hindsight.
My rules had protected my downside but at the cost of my upside. So there I was in a conflict:
Did stopping impulsivity mean giving up on the full potential of my strategy?
After some reflection, I realized I’d fallen into a trap: fear-based rules.
These rules felt safe, but in reality, they were toxic—not just for my trading but for all traders out there.
In today’s post, I want to dig into this. We’ll explore why fixed rules can harm your trading and how to replace them with confidence-based rules that actually help your performance.
I’ll share actionable tips so you can avoid leaving 10R on the table and take advantage of your strategy’s full potential.