Goals: Building Mental Momentum - February 2025
Transparency, Grit, and Rebuilding a Foundation
It’s been a while since my last update, and I’ve got a lot to share—both from January’s challenges and my goals for February. Let’s get into it!
Full Transparency: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
When I started this platform, I committed to full transparency. Why? Because retail trading is often glamorized, but the reality is far from it. It’s a grind, filled with ups and downs, and I want to document it all—the struggles, the small wins, and the lessons learned along the way.
January was a tough month, and I’ll be honest: it kicked my butt. The biggest hurdle? I got sick at the end of the month. Being physically unwell bled into my mental state, and I found myself questioning everything. Why am I doing this? Is all the time and effort worth it?
During this time, I didn’t trade—which, in hindsight, was a good thing. Trading with a foggy mind is a recipe for disaster. However, the downtime forced me to confront the opportunity cost of retail trading. The hours spent analyzing charts, backtesting strategies, and learning the markets—it’s a massive investment. And when you’re not seeing immediate results, it’s easy to feel like you’re spinning your wheels.
If you’ve ever felt this way, you’re not alone. After coming out of my sickness, the doubt slowly faded and my confidence to keep going came back.
The Power of Grit: Pushing Through the Noise
One of the biggest realizations I had in January was that grit is non-negotiable in trading. There will be good days and bad days, but what matters is your ability to keep moving forward (obviously if your sick, it’s a different story).
I’ve come to accept that I genuinely enjoy learning about the markets—even when I’m not making money. This love for the process is what keeps me going. It’s not just about the end goal; it’s about the journey.
Strategy Flipping: Finding My Foundation
Like many beginner traders, I’ve bounced between strategies. From Qullamaggie’s breakout setups to gap plays and low-float momentum trades, I’ve tried it all. While this isn’t ideal, it’s helped me identify what works for me—and what doesn’t.
For example, I’ve realized that theme-based plays resonate with me. These are trades rooted in sector or industry movements, often referred to as sympathy plays. They allow for flexibility—you can go long or short depending on market conditions—and they align with the principles of Relative Strength and Relative Weakness, which I find intuitive.
A quick example of a theme play was Quantum tickers from mid-October 2024 to January 2025. All within the same theme moved together in unison.
Relying on Myself
I want to also highlight something I have noticed I have done since the beginning of learning to trade. I rely too heavily on other traders as opposed to my own judgment and knowledge. In the beginning, this makes sense, because you don’t have the base knowledge to work from but as I have gained more knowledge, I need to develop a system that makes sense to me. I need to take bits and pieces from other traders and implement them, into my system.
The Importance of Small Wins
One of my biggest takeaways from January is the importance of small wins. I’ve realized that a 25% win rate doesn’t work for me mentally. It’s too volatile, too punishing. Instead, I’m aiming for a 45-65% win rate. This range allows for a few losses in a row without completely derailing my confidence.
Small wins also serve as validation that I’m on the right track. It’s hard to stay motivated after nine consecutive losses, even if the tenth trade is a home run. By focusing on consistency, I can build momentum and maintain a healthier mindset.
February 2025 Goals: Building on January’s Lessons
Refine My Strategy: I’ll be focusing on theme-based plays and continuing to refine my approach to Relative Strength and Weakness.
Prioritize Mental Health: Trading is as much a mental game as it is a technical one.
Track Small Wins: I’ll be keeping a closer eye on my win rate and adjusting my risk management to ensure I’m staying within my target range.
Stay Transparent: I’ll continue sharing my journey—the good and the bad because that’s what this platform is all about. I may slow down educational posts but change to more “What I am seeing in the market” type posts which I think will also help readers and bring further discussion on current market outlooks.
Live Account Trading: I swapped from paper trading to my live account with a defined risk of $10 = 1R. This way my constant fear of taking risks can be overcome as paper trading doesn’t have the same effect.
-F4VS
Stick around and chat
If you have any thoughts on the post, please leave a comment. If you just want to say Hi, you can do that too! 😊
Lovely thoughts mate👌🏻