Trading EMini Futures With YouTube

Thinking about day trading for a living, but have had little or no success convincing yourself? Are you on your second/third trading account after blowing up your first? Banging your head against the wall with no hope in sight? You're not alone.

You might be lacking accountability. Are you and your mouse the only ones privy to the stupid trades you are taking by clicking on your order placement DOM? Are you the only one aware of the fact that playing a very expensive video game is an addiction and not an income? Are you clicking on trades a mile a minute justifying it by saying "ah, it's only simulated trading"? Are you taking unprofitable trades with your cash account because you taught yourself bad habits from the previous? Are you lacking consistency and rather than being responsible, you blame it on the market. Have you ever clicked like a "Mad Man" just to release your anger? If the answer is "No, Not Me", I say "BALONEY"!....Ok, well, maybe you don't do it ALL the time. But be honest.....have you ever?

Herein lies the answer of, ACCOUNTABILITY. If you feel you can do whatever the heck you want, to a certain degree, you will. If there aren't consequences other than financial, the mind can adapt and accept this as tolerable behavior. Once the sub-conscience categorizes this as acceptable behavior, one of the worst possible bad habits of day trading will have reared it's ugly head.

On the other hand, what if someone was looking over your shoulder and keeping your demons in check? What if all your actions, reactions and decisions were in plain view and had consequences in the form of answering to your peers? Wouldn't that deter your frivolous and habitually negative self destructive behavior?

YouTube to the rescue. Free video posting at it's finest. Opening up a YouTube account is as easy as opening up a new email account. Recording your screen and trades is as simple as finding a screen recording software that meets your requirements and budget. A charting platform that actually puts markers on your charts showing entry and exit decisions will leave nothing to the imagination and will play a large part in keeping you on your toes.

Once you get rolling, you will be recording your live screen trades. Talking your way through your trades. Putting your thoughts and actions out into the universe for the whole world to see and hear. You will be on your best behavior. You will finally have someone to answer to besides yourself. In your minds eye your peers will be watching and comparing themselves to you, and you to them. Before you know it, you are on the road to consistency, training your brain to act with accountability and responsibility. You'll be convincing and programming your sub-conscience mind with proper entry, exit, trade and money management techniques. In a nutshell, in time, you will advance to the next level by forcing yourself to act like a professional trader and thereby proving to yourself that you really do have what it takes.

Understanding Trend Lines in E-Mini Trading: Types and Angles

I make it point to sketch in a trendline on the e-mini charts I trade. I don't use the automated trendline programs that have become very popular of late. No, I prefer to draw my trend lines manually using the tops of each bar range, as oppose to drawing trend lines based upon the close of each bar.

I feel I get a better understanding of the e-mini chart price movement when I employ a manual method for drawing lines; or maybe I have been drawing them in this fashion for so long that it is force of habit. Either way: I draw my lines by hand.

Trend lines can be classified in two distinct categories:

1. External Trend lines: External lines are, by far, the most common line most traders employ. The technique for drawing this flavor of e-mini trendline is similar to playing "connect the dots." When drawing an up sloping trend line, a trader will connect the valleys of a rising trend. Of course, when the price action violates, or passes through the line, the potential for a trade arises. Down sloping trend lines are draw in exactly the opposite fashion of up sloping line. A down sloping line connects the price peaks. The reason these lines are drawn, either up or down, is to get an idea of when a potential price change may occur.
2. Internal trend lines are a bit more esoteric and are generally not used by the average retail trader. Internal trend lines are drawn so that they rest on the flat peaks or valleys and they are known to pierce through existing price action. Analyst generally argue that internal e-mini trend lines represent the buying and selling behavior of the masses, while external lines represent the behavior of active e-mini traders who tend to trade at the extremes.

As I mentioned, most trend lines you will see will be of the external variety, with the internal lines used most by technical analysts.

These days, once a trendline is drawn, most traders are concerned with the direction of the line. Is it moving up or down? They are generally concerned with determining the direction of the trend.

Have you ever given any consideration of the angle of the line? You should; because the angle of a line can give you valuable information about what you can expect when you encounter a trendline violation.

For example, the steeper the trendline in a breakout, the poorer the performance in terms of potential gain. This research by Thomas Bulkowski shows empirically that a breakout angle of 30 to 45 degrees travelled the furthest to the upside or the downside, depending on whether the departure is a breakout or breakdown. On the other hand, break outs with a slope angle of 60 degrees or more tended to travel the least amount of distance. The conclusion? Departures from a trendline that were between 30 and 45 degree tended put the most money in a traders pocket, and sharp departures of 60 degrees or more tended put the least money in the traders pocket. Angle is important, yet it is seldom part of the trade consideration process of most e-mini traders. Why? They simply don't know the facts.

In summary, we have identified two distinct types of trend lines and defined each in a coherent manner. Further, we have discussed the angle of departure (relative to a horizontal line) of a breakout or breakdown and identified specific characteristics of each angle. We favor angle of departure in the 30 to 45 degree range, and understand that departure angles of 60 degrees or more tend to produce substandard results.