A trading journal is the book a trader writes about their own trading. A trading journal records decisions made in the market so you can see any errors in discipline, risk management, or process. If you can measure it, you can change it. If you are mindful of your behavior you can learn from your own errors and stop making the same mistakes over and over.
The dynamics of a trading journal:
- Date trade opened.
- Date trade closed.
- Currency pair, stock, or futures contract.
- Position size.
- Direction of trade bet.
- Entry price.
- Stop loss.
- Profit target.
- Exit price.
- Risk/reward ratio.
- Win or loss.
- Loss size and percentage.
- Profit size and percentage.
- Signal.
- Comments on emotions and any errors.
Record, learn, adjust, and grow as a trader.
Here is an example of a free trading journal template in Microsoft Excel: Trade Journal.zip Source
