For Business

Trading Psychology

Bad Trade vs Losing Trade

A losing trade is a fact about the money and a bad trade is a fact about the doing, and the two are graded apart because they do not line up. This paper shows you four real trades on the euro in 2025 that fall in all four combinations, good and won, good and lost, bad and won, bad and lost; the idea as an archer in a crosswind, judged at the bow rather than the target; the four panes of one window; a month in two rows that disagree on eight days; and the Comment column beside the Profit column on your platform, where the doing can be written next to the money.

Difficulty
Advanced
Reading time
5 min
Pages
8
Reviewed by
Saman Rahbar

This paper is locked

Read it in the browser and keep the PDF with Premium, or buy this one paper.

Buy this paper — $3Get Premium

Four real trades, two columns

Two columns that do not line up. Four real trades on the euro against the dollar in 2025. On 17 December the plan's picture appeared, the trade closed at the target, plus 100 at 0.40 lot: good, and a winner. On 24 December the plan's pending order filled and closed at its stop, minus 100: good, and a loser. On 12 December a trade with no picture behind it was closed by hand for plus 53: bad, and a winner. On 28 July a stop was moved seven times and the trade sat 198 down at 0.10 lot: bad, and a loser. A losing trade is a fact about the money. A bad trade is a fact about the doing. Two of the four are one without being the other, and the account cannot tell which.

An archer in a crosswind

Picture an archer in a crosswind. The form is judged at the bow, before the arrow leaves, and the arrow is judged at the target, after the wind has had its vote. A good release can land in the white, and a snatched one can land in the gold; the coach grades the release, because the release is the only part the archer did. A trade is judged at the bow, by whether the plan was followed, and the money is judged at the target, where the market has been. The wind between them is why the two columns do not line up, and why only one of them can be practised.

This paper is locked

Read next