Grade 10 of 10
Graduation
Put it together: a pre-trade checklist, sizing in detail and moving from demo to live.
18 lessons · about 55 minutes · Badge: Graduate
0/18
Start Grade 10After this grade you can
- Run a pre-trade checklist every time
- Size trades with a fixed percent of your account
- Decide if you are ready to leave demo
- Make a plan for your first small live trade
Lessons
First Live Trade
- 1The pre-trade checklistApply a ten-item pre-trade checklist before clicking the buy or sell button.3 min
- 2Sizing your first live trade at 0.5RJustify halving normal position size on the very first live trade.3 min
- 3The first-loss reactionDistinguish a normal first-loss reaction from a quit-signal reaction.3 min
- 4Accept the loss before you enterApply a pre-entry acceptance ritual that detaches the trader from the outcome.3 min
- 5Why screen-staring after entry hurtsExplain how anchoring and recency bias degrade decisions when you watch every tick.3 min
- 6Close-trade disciplineJustify letting the stop or target close the trade instead of managing it manually.3 min
- 7Logging the first 50 tradesIdentify the fields that must appear in every entry of your first-50-trades journal.3 min
- 8When to scale up sizeDerive the criteria for raising position size after a clean sample of live trades.3 min
- 9Graduating $500 to $5kJustify why a 10x account size requires 10x emotional capacity, not just a deposit.3 min
Position Sizing in Detail
- 10Fixed fractional sizing: the trader's defaultDefine fixed fractional position sizing, compute share size from account, risk percent, and stop distance, and explain why size scales as the account grows or shrinks.3 min
- 11Fixed dollar risk: simpler, but it doesn't scaleDefine fixed dollar risk sizing, contrast it with fixed fractional, and identify when each is appropriate.3 min
- 12Volatility-adjusted sizing with ATRUse Average True Range to scale position size — larger when volatility is low, smaller when volatility is high — and compute a sample trade.3 min
- 13Sizing across correlated positionsIdentify when two open positions are correlated, explain how correlation multiplies real exposure, and adjust sizes across a multi-position book.3 min
- 14The correlation penaltyApply a correlation-based size haircut when opening a second position in the same exposure bucket.3 min
- 15Portfolio heat: capping your total riskDefine portfolio heat, calculate total open risk across positions, and set a sensible cap for active exposure.3 min
- 16Sizing during drawdownAdjust risk percent downward when your account hits a drawdown threshold, and describe how the de-leveraging schedule protects equity and psychology.3 min
- 17Scaling up after winsDefine a disciplined schedule for increasing risk percent after demonstrated consistency, and reject recency-bias upsizing.3 min
- 18Sizing tools: software vs spreadsheetCompare dedicated position-sizing software with a self-built spreadsheet, and build a working sizing spreadsheet from the chapter's formulas.3 min
Need a broker? Start with a demo.
Practice with pretend money first. Genesis is the broker Vino uses, and it offers demo access. Check the regulator, the costs and a small test withdrawal before you ever fund a live account.
Trading has risk of loss. Education, not financial advice.