Swing Trading: Bigger Charts, Longer Trends, Wider Stops
I’m thinking of Tom T. Hall singing an old song that went something like faster horses, older whiskey, younger women and more money…
The fact has not been lost on me that I’ve recently been stopped out of two excellent swing trades by mere pennies, and if I ever want to get on board for a longer move than my typical 2-5 days, I’m gonna have to make some changes. So, one of my resolutions for 2007 is going to be to switch from swing trading off of charts like this:
And relax it a bit to trading off of charts like this:
This will necessitate my waiting patiently for days or weeks after I spot topping or bottoming action and not jumping in on the first break and setting a tight stop, as much as that pains me. I may need some rehab.
The good part of this change is that my swing trading should become positively laid back. I can go about the business of fatherhood, work, etc and not have to worry what the stock is doing at that particular hour, or even on that particular day.
No definitive resolutions on the daytrading yet. But there are gonna be some. 