Every trader needs a trade entry system. In chapter 3 we covered the first fundamental step of trading, that is, to choose the market in which you want to trade. But, within each market, there is a plethora of trading opportunities to choose from – I call this the universe of securities. So how do you choose from this vast universe? Simple. Predefine your entry rules.
Trade entry rules are a stringent set of conditions that you develop, document and then apply, to decide when you are going to enter a trade. It doesn’t matter what securities you’re trading, you just need a consistent method of entry. Like sifting through a bucket of sand trying to find pieces of gold, the same approach is used to reduce your universe of securities to a shortlist of those that meet your criteria.
Developing your trade entry rules
As in all aspects of trading, there are many theories on trade entry and how to exit trades. I believe the best way to approach entries should be simple, direct and leave nothing to human judgement.
This is contrary to the philosophy of many traders who buy stocks based on media reports, ‘expert’ opinion, rumours and/or gut feel. The good news is that by acting contrarily, you will do what most traders never do… make a profit.
Reinventing the wheel
I spent a lot of time in chapter 3 telling you why you shouldn’t copycat someone else’s system, but that’s not to say you can’t take elements of a proven trading plan and stitch them together into something that will suit your personality.
Let’s revisit the example of Richard Dennis and his Turtles. Dennis’ protégés were successful because they were under his direction at all times. Every trade was heavily scrutinised and made according to his strict rules. The students had to follow these rules or be dropped from the project.
The fear of loss forced the traders to follow the system no matter what. In the real world, most people would not have the discipline to do this. And nor should they; it wasn’t designed for them.
Furthermore, the Turtles were trading with someone else’s money. When it’s your own money on the table, you need to be completely comfortable with the decisions you make, and you can’t do that unless your system suits your personality.
Dennis’ students went on to become successful traders in their own right because they learnt discipline from their mentor, not because they continued to trade his system out of the box. They adapted it to suit themselves. And that’s what you should do.
Think of it this way: how many people do you know who have stayed in a job or field of work just because it’s what they’re used to? They may not love it, but they persist just the same.Maybe you’re one of those people. But, while these people might be able to do that job with their eyes closed, they will never excel at it if they’re not passionate about it. Their heart needs to be in it.
Trading is the same. If you’re not 100% behind your trading system, chances are you won’t be able to stick to it, and if you can’t stick to your system, you will never reap the benefits you are hoping for.
Keeping trade entry rules in perspective
Most traders believe the key to success is being able to pick the bottom of the market. This is why 99% of traders spend most of their time fidgeting with the entry; they are looking for that elusive secret, That one setup that will ensure ongoing success.
But let me tell you from experience – that setup rule doesn’t exist. And, in actual fact, it’s not that important. Spending countless hours optimising your trade entry rules, trying to find that ‘perfect’ indicator, can actually do more harm than good. Over optimisation based on historical data actually decreases the profitability of your trading system when trading in real-time. Typically, the more you optimise, the less robust your system tends to be.
Remember Tharp’s chart? (refer to chapter 2). He said that the trading system, which includes your trade entry rules, accounts for only 10% of what it takes to be a successful trader. That means, there is another 90% of ‘stuff’ you should be concentrating on, such as money management (discussed in chapter 6).
Amazingly, a system can have a very random entry signal and still be profitable as long as money management is in place. Take the following real-life example from Tharp.
Example:
Tom Basso designed a simple, random-entry trading system … We determined the volatility of the market by a 10-day exponential moving average of the average true range. Our initial stop was three times that volatility reading.
Once entry occurred by a coin flip, the same three-times-volatility stop was trailed from the close. However, the stop could only move in our favor. Thus, the stop moved closer whenever the markets moved in our favor or whenever volatility shrank. We also used a 1% risk model for our position-sizing system…
We ran it on 10 markets. And it was always, in each market, either long or short depending upon a coin flip… It made money 100% of the time when a simple 1% risk money management system was added… The system had a [trade success] reliability of 38%, which is about average for a trend-following system.
Although a little convoluted in its explanation, this example illustrates that an entry strategy as simple as a coin toss can turn solid profits.Most traders spin their wheels trying to get in at the ‘best’ price, even though this is not where the money is made.
So what’s the take-home rule here? It is easier to copycat your way to success than to try to re-invent the wheel. According to Anthony Robbins, the way to become as healthy as possible is to find the healthiest person you know, ask them how they do it and copy them.
Similarly, the way to select your trade entry rules is to find the best, proven entry system you can for your selected market and model your entry on that system..Sure, you can waste months and spend thousands of dollars testing different methods, but why put yourself through that? Would you rather be a wealthy copycat or a broke trailblazer?
Trading is one of the few industries where people actively share their methods. In other areas of business, people tend to keep their success secrets to themselves; in trading, there are innumerable proven systems and models out there that you can access.Admittedly, you have to pay for most of them, but they are readily available.
So now you have two choices: you can design your own trade entry rules (which includes appropriate back testing) or you can apply a ready-made entry system, confident that someone else has done all the hard work for you.
The better choice seems obvious to me, but I’m not here to make your decisions for you. I’m here to pass on as much information as I can and help set you on a course that will suit your situation.
SOURCES : V K THARP
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