Anyone scalping the FTSE Futures??

would like at least 5557 and 12120 for short

or 11932 for a small long position 5442 FTSE

using the FTSE as the elastic band to enter DOW trades
 
would like at least 5557 and 12120 for short

or 11932 for a small long position 5442 FTSE

using the FTSE as the elastic band to enter DOW trades

It maybe you have to wait until this evening or tomorrow morning for the 5442 DC:|

I concur with the 5557.. but I may start scaling in from 5545 as 5548 was strong support today
 
It maybe you have to wait until this evening or tomorrow morning for the 5442 DC:|

I concur with the 5557.. but I may start scaling in from 5545 as 5548 was strong support today

thats what I have in mind I thought I was going to get a reload on the DOW for a minute anything around 5542 would do on ftse as long as DOW gets around reload

if DOW hits bottom target after hours then FTSE likely to put in a high target tomorrow for friday
 
thats what I have in mind I thought I was going to get a reload on the DOW for a minute anything around 5542 would do on ftse as long as DOW gets around reload

if DOW hits bottom target after hours then FTSE likely to put in a high target tomorrow for friday

finding it hard to adjust to this swinging style.. I had 5570 yesterday which I let go at breakeven AND I had 5630 this morning -- which I let go after only 20 prices..

if I look at my earnings today and yesterday they are nowhere near where they would be if I had just let these two positions run...

How do I get better at this DC.....?? anybody?? I really need to learn how to let these positions run further.. as a long term scalper I find this difficult.. I guess it is all about having faith and confidence in your system.

:(
 
just home before the close - left the hedge on while out which was a mistake :(

currently - 72 0n ftse and + 80 on dow which is a net -32 - ugh! good job I had the early short

jon
 
Hi Daddy John

Text book would say plan the trade place limits and stops and leave well alone.

However i like you have been scalping too long and always take profits too early, usually after a tick back only to see it continue along its merry way.

One way ive found useful is to close half or three quarters of the trade, you dont worry about a small position then.

Incidentally why stop scalping if its making money? maybe your hard wired as a scalper ;-)
 
How do I get better at this DC.....?? anybody?? I really need to learn how to let these positions run further.. as a long term scalper I find this difficult.. I guess it is all about having faith and confidence in your system.

:(
DJ

Am not personally sure where you are with your trading as I have only recently started posting here

but one comment I would offer is that perhaps you are trading the money and not the charts

I swing trade and in very simple terms I stay in a position as long as I can see a higher high and a higher low during a rally

and the reverse obviously during a fall

Its not complicated (but it means I cant pick tops or bottoms which can often be a temptation)

any use to you ?
 
DJ

I scalp and set a target for the trade and once that is made I take 50% off and let the rest run with the stop immediately brought down to breakeven

But then like you I am trying to learn to let positions go further but really struggle with it

So my hybrid satisfies both my needs!

f
 
DJ

Am not personally sure where you are with your trading as I have only recently started posting here

but one comment I would offer is that perhaps you are trading the money and not the charts

I swing trade and in very simple terms I stay in a position as long as I can see a higher high and a higher low during a rally

and the reverse obviously during a fall

Its not complicated (but it means I cant pick tops or bottoms which can often be a temptation)

any use to you ?

many thanks.. I have to change from scalping because I am finding it too hard on the eyes and brain at my age:)

in looking at higher highs etc.. are you using daily charts to judge this or other timeframes?
 
many thanks.. I have to change from scalping because I am finding it too hard on the eyes and brain at my age:)

in looking at higher highs etc.. are you using daily charts to judge this or other timeframes?

My favourite chart is 5 min which gives me about a week on full screen
 
finding it hard to adjust to this swinging style.. I had 5570 yesterday which I let go at breakeven AND I had 5630 this morning -- which I let go after only 20 prices..

if I look at my earnings today and yesterday they are nowhere near where they would be if I had just let these two positions run...

How do I get better at this DC.....?? anybody?? I really need to learn how to let these positions run further.. as a long term scalper I find this difficult.. I guess it is all about having faith and confidence in your system.

:(

Hi DJ
looking at your posts you seem to be still in scalping mode and concentrating on the money and Im guessing trading size similar to scalping.
what you need to do is be able to walk away from the screen and not worry if it goes for you or against you

the way I found to do this was to trade small 1 or 2 lots first half of the week set limit and stop orders then walk away do something else and come back thursday or friday its hard to do, for quite a while its like detox and you long to get back to the market for a fix.

persevere as the end game is where you set a position and you can go off and do other things, trading becomes part time and quality of life improves

right now for instance I have shorts and I really dont care if the FTSE goes to 5645area and DOW 12260s for as long as the market does not show me Im wrong then I hold the trade
 
How do I get better at this DC.....?? anybody?? I really need to learn how to let these positions run further.. as a long term scalper I find this difficult.. I guess it is all about having faith and confidence in your system.

Look up Jason Zweig ("Your money and your brain") on amazon. This a very accessible outline of neuroscience and how different components of the brain affect decision making about money (eg asymmetry in accepting losses and gains). I was surprised by just what neuroscience has to say - it's a lot more developed than I'd imagined.

I wouldn't say reading this book will solve any particular trading issue, but for me, the mere awareness of what may be going through my head (consciously and unconsciously) at a given moment can give me pause for thought. For example, I imagine most people have felt the compulsion to close positions once they go into a bit of profit. But this compulsion can occur (and you can close out) in a few emotionally charged seconds. For a longer term trade, what is the probability that these few seconds (out of say hours or days) represent anything like an optimal time to exit?

The book outlines several mechanisms in the brain that affect our behaviour, specifically wrt money. But I think it's instructive for reasons other than money - eg on hearing of something outrageous, it's easy to given in to automatic rage, but if you're aware (and awareness may be all it takes) that there's some emotional or subconscious mechanism taking control, it becomes easier to stop, and assess. We hear something outrageous, but it may have been engineered to do just that. In context, it may be something very different.

Of course, solid psychological approaches to short term scalping and longer term swing trading might well be very different!
 
finding it hard to adjust to this swinging style.. I had 5570 yesterday which I let go at breakeven AND I had 5630 this morning -- which I let go after only 20 prices..

if I look at my earnings today and yesterday they are nowhere near where they would be if I had just let these two positions run...

How do I get better at this DC.....?? anybody?? I really need to learn how to let these positions run further.. as a long term scalper I find this difficult.. I guess it is all about having faith and confidence in your system.

:(

DJ

Who am I to offer advice :whistling, but here goes.

If you've planned your campaign on H1 (say) then don't peek below that whilst price is outside your entry/exit zones (and en-route danger zones, maybe). Sort of pretend your H1 is your old M1 scalping chart :)

Also, do you have a re-entry strategy in your armoury?

jon
 
Top