MU 2 trades: -2% and +29%

Daily setup: gap below bull flag. Opened below 50mas and dropped straight out.
Entry/play: puts after 1 min pullback
Management: Initial stop above few-min box. Then when it made ndl and bounced back in, I stopped on squeezed stop. When it reversed back down with volume I got in again. Initial stop above new pivot. Trailed stop. Took T1. Kept trailing stop. On hammer with volume, I squeezed stop and got out.
Psychology: Good. Keeping positions small bc CCL burn and bc today expirations.

Got my feet back under me. Reaffirms confidence in my system. Now I just need to climb my way back and beyond.

WFC +48%

Daily setup: Gap above huge base and trendline
Entry/play: 1 min new high (preempt, using level 2)
Management: Initial stop below day low. Looked for a 50% target bc small position (greed?) and same day expiration. First surge missed my target by 1cent. First pullback scared me, and market started selling into gap. Raised stop to under pullback and then to under ma/vwap tangle. Took target then squeezed stop. Left a LOT on the table, but market was selling hard, and I didn't want to give room to this on expiration day.
Psychology: Medium. I was affected by wanting $$gains, but had taken smaller position sized bc I'm so wounded from CCL. So when it went to .44 (my T1 .45) I didn't take it and I didn't yank it. Same mistake that cost me hard in CCL. But I did tighten my stop at that point.
     It was good psychologically to take a small position size. I could have made much more $$ on this, just by sizing bigger, but I needed to stay safe-ish, even if I pushed harder to 50%

CCL trade conclusion -33% on greed

Textbook example of what NOT to do. In every way.
Position too big
Option too spready
Yanked stops
Yanked limits
Got scared
Used swear words
Looked a gap open in the mouth and didn't take my gift.

Yesterday's commentary: https://fastoptionstrading.blogspot.com/2019/09/ccl-40-and-partial-still-open-ugh.html

CCL -40% and partial still open. UGH!

Daily setup: gapping down from a sloppy pennant that was already too oversold.
Entry/play: After a 1 min pullback to vwap, I shorted the rejection bar.
Management: Initial stop above the pivot. But I was in TOO BIG and the spread was too big for me to manage it cooly. First surge down didn't go to target. It didn't even really stall, it just bounced. I got another chance with another run down. It missed my ask by a smidge, and then it went to hell. I hadn't squeezed my stop bc big spreads. I put in a stop/limit, but I yanked it when I should have accepted it. And then it just never got better. Eventually I took off 1/3 to try to calm down. At the end of the day I took off another 1/3 because this piece of s## expires tomorrow.
Psychology: Flippin' terrible. I expended a lot of mental energy on it. I was in too big. I allowed WAY too big a loss. I gave my whole day to it. I lost a lot of money and too much psychological capital today.

Lesson: Don't trade options with big spreads. If I can't resist, I can only go lotto.

BYND -36%. What was I thinking?

Daily setup: huge gap up above downtrend
Entry/play: No rational entry. I jumped in. too big. too soon. too much exuberance.
Management: I grabbed the first bar, even though I planned to buy around 157. When it went to 157, I added (WTF, seriously!?). And it kept dropping. So... where to stop? After it cooled off for a split second, I put a stop below there.
Psychology: Shock! I came in today knowing I was over-exuberant. I ate the first trade early because of sheer idiocy. After the loss, I looked at my account and for a fleeting moment I had the right impulse: to walk away. I should have walked away, if only for 5 minutes.

...and the next day

Yesterday I was exuberant. I knew it.
Today I rushed in.
Too big.
Positions too big.
Ego too big.
I got CRUSHED.

Just yesterday I was feeling too excited about my "skills". Today I got very humbled. I hope with this reality check I can dust myself off and keep building.

emotions after several beautiful green days

I've had a beautiful several-day run trading where everything seems to be clicking. I'm raking in steady really nice money. I'm trading like a pro! calm, collected, taking my stops, following my rules. ...and also getting (and cashing in on) some luck.

I'm noticing the feeling that I need to regulate in myself. That feeling is ... what is it?... thrill?
It's a little better than satisfaction or confidence. It's excitement. And maybe feeling a little invincible. Exuberance?

But also nervous. Nervous because this feeling in the past has led to a slippery slope.

So now I need to check myself. Don't get over confident. Don't start thinking I'm invincible. Don't do anything stupid!

Just keep chopping. Bit by bit. Chop and chop. Climb and climb. Calm myself down.

Remember the trader adage: If you're dancing around the kitchen, singing about how genius you are... that's the top.
This can't be my top. I need to keep cool.

One of the most successful things I've been doing lately is taking a ~20% p/l target as fast as I can. More specifically, on the first surge. When I get that surge that I'm looking for (the quicker the better), I take half off. YES, HALF. If I had odd lots, the big half.

LISTEN UP SELF, don't underestimate taking p/l target as a key to success. This is the parnasa. I want parnasa from trading! Never stop taking half at the p/l target. The rest is dessert.

AAPL +16%

Daily setup: Hammering on volume, still in this pennant I'm watching
Entry/play: After ndh surge, bought in box. Way too early.
Management: Initial stop was pretty far bc box was too small yet. My initial thought of a "tight" stop would have shaken me out, which is another lesson about waiting longer.
Psychology: This trade didn't come easy. Was a bit of "work". Partly bc too early entry and also bc it didn't surge like I hoped. (What can I expect for nms?) At the beginning I was scared because my move didn't come quickly and there was a tiny spike down below my comfort zone. Was glad to be able to move up my stop. Ultimately, I got lucky on this one.

TSLA +19%

Daily setup: Late morning, hammering on volume
Entry/play: above resistance on volume
Management: Initial stop below box I'm trading. First pullback to my break even scared me, but then it surged. I left a lot on the table by squeezing my stop.
Psychology: Great. got my piece. PEACE.

BYND lotto from Monday, conclusion +54%

Daily setup: Lottos from Monday
Entry/play: WAY out of the money puts, this week expiration
Management: double or nothing. What I actually got was double on the first one, break even on the second one.
Psychology: Good. Lottos extinguish the fomo without putting me in danger.

ROKU -9% Sorry, but then not sorry

Daily setup: dead cat bounce
Entry/play: After it held second intraday low, bought surge off that box. I stopped by about 2 cents and was upset... until later!
Management: Initial stop below day low. I only had 1 call, but that would have been a pretty big loss. so I moved the stop to below the new 1 min box that was holding.
Psychology: Good. Bummed to lose. Not bummed to be long gone for the dump.

Update, ROKU in total freefall. 10:40am @102. Lesson about the futility of hope. ROKU was 150 five days ago.

AAPL +12%

Daily setup: Preempt bull pennant breakout
Entry/play: bounce off 1 min premkt support
Management: Initial stop below day low. Came close initially. When it looked to make a new high, I added, and raised stop. It got so close to my p/l target and stalled, so I took part 1 off a few cents early. Second surge stalled quickly so I raised stop. 9:50 surge got to the $ target I see on the chart, but I didn't raise my stop enough. (at 10:15 it went back close to day lows)
Psychology: Good. Sort of frustrating to miss targets, but NOT frustrating to contain losses. Today, this was my piece.

Lesson: TAKE MY PIECE.

Trading options in a cash account

I trade long options in a cash account.

1. Since I don't have a margin account, I can do multiple trades each day/week without worrying about the pattern daytrader rule. 
2. Options give good leverage for big gains, so I can still make serious progress in a small account.
3. Cash trading puts a hard ceiling on how much I can trade each day. Once I'm out of cash, I'm done for the day.
4. Options settle in 1 day. The next morning, I'm back in business with a fresh head.

Even when my account is >$25K I still plan to keep it a cash account. I will probably even keep my trading account small-ish, removing my gains into a separate account. I am comforted by this enforced discipline especially because I trade so "dangerously". It puts boundaries on me each day. It doesn't allow me to stab myself to death.

BYND lotto puts... too cute?

I left so much on the table with this morning's scalp. And then the market turned back down. And BYND can't even bounce off multi-week trendline. I don't want to miss the utter breakdown. I put $90 into 2 $120 puts for this week (@.45). I might kiss this money goodbye. Well, that's the point of lotto plays, isn't it? But it helps me not have FOMO and do something even more stupid.

UPDATE 1 hour later. I totally jumped the gun. These things are sinking fast. But that's why to go lotto and kiss the money goodbye vs do something stupid with big money.

BYND +28% left a LOT on the table

Daily setup: breakdown of 3 inside days
Entry/play: short after 1 min pullback
Management: I got in early, so had to hold to where I thought it could bounce. Stopping above that would have HURT. After it bounced where I thought and came back down, I added. Quickly reduced stop. Took p/l target and then squeezed stop, since it ran straight down while market was bouncing.
Psychology: Great. I left a lot on the table by squeezing stop, but that was the right thing to do. Spreads were huge, I was in mega-sized, and market was going against me. I like how I traded this mostly because it was a winner. If I had lost I would have said I was in too big... spreads too big... so I guess actually I got lucky. And when handed luck, I'm not upset to take my piece, and peace!