Follow your Plan! Must have rules to avoid being liquidityFollowing your trade entry rules is the key to avoiding Following your trading plan is the key to being a consistent trader! Make sure you have thought out objectives that are being hit prior to entering a trade.
We want to create a system where once your initial signal is hit (such as a HTF supply zone mitigation, strong level hit, FVG mitigation), we then have further rules that help us avoid false breakouts/liquidity grabs and stop loss hits.
The simple truth that all traders eventually find out is the market doesn't do what you expect it to do when you expect it. Even the most advanced and sound calculations will be losers if the point of entry is treated as a secondary factor.
Our psychology refuses to account for smaller (LTF) price fluctuations but they happen at usually prior to doing exactly what we predicted!
So, have your strict rules - a set of guidelines that this, this, and this need to happen before entering a trade - and if they do, you did your job win or lose.
On this trade specifically, I had pointed out the potential for a wedge breakout and had a bias toward the downside. As mentioned and as I highlight above, if I would have entered the trade prior to awaiting my entry signals, I would have been stopped out on a major liquidity grab to the upside.
Therefore, when preparing for the trade, I identified upper zones that were potential price objectives that went against my bias. If price did reach these zones and other factors were still supporting my former bias, this upper liquidity grab would be an even greater opportunity for my short trade - but only once the LTF entry signals start blaring.
TL;DR: Even though the HTF signs and confluence for a drop were there, I awaiting a lower time frame CHoCH and reversal (my trade entry rules) in order to enter the trade. This led me to a winning trade as opposed to being stopped out earlier for a losing trade.
This is the key to consistency!
