"You are only as good as the chances you take"

I finished yesterdays post with a favorite quote of mine. Now I am posting another. I had to think hard about why I wanted to contribute to E-Mini's blog, and then what I would post. I decided to keep this as simple as possible and just make it an extension of the trading homework I do every day. (You DO have a regular study period, don't you?). As a friend of mine says, "70% of trading success comes from the 6 inches between your ears. The rest is just all in your head". Assuming you have a plan that gives you an edge in the market to make good probability trades, the rest is all in your head. It's NOT about your plan, winning trading plans are a dime-a-dozen....it's about the EXECUTION of your plan. And it's a lot harder than most people think. Execute or be executed. Believe and achieve...or doubt and die. We play the battles within our mind every day. Whether you have been trading 6 months or 26 years, we are all works in progress. I hate the term "expert". The reason I always put that word in quotation marks is because I am implying that anyone who calls themselves an "expert" in this business is an arrogant jerk. There are however people who have more experience than you and me. What's the point here? When you see a setup that fits your rules you have to take it. Most of us are discretionary traders, so we have to think about our entries and exits. But when we see them
we HAVE TO take them. I am not a teacher....or an "expert". I make mistakes all the time. Todays charts show the importance of believing in a plan and executing it. I don't know if any trade will work. Assuming you have a plan, then YOU ARE ONLY AS GOOD AS THE CHANCES YOU TAKE with it. (now what's the inverse of that?)