What To Do When You are on a Winning Streak

While a lot of people talk about how to break a losing streak, or what to do when you are on a losing streak, they all neglect to talk about the key things you need to do when you are on a prolonged winning streak.

Now, that may sound weird to some of you, but if you end a winning streak in the wrong way, it can really mess you up for the future.

A lot of people when they see green day after day after day and have several massive profits in a row, they will size up eventually to an extreme point and blow most of their profits on one poor setup they didn’t manage properly.

Traders on a winning streak can get too euphoric and optimistic fast… Almost seeming like they feel like they can walk in water. They think nothing can hurt them and they are invincible.

At that moment, the market can easily humble you.

Today, I wanted to take a quick moment to help you keep a clear mind on that winning streak, keep it alive for as long as possible, and safely “exit” it if you have a loss.

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1. Check Your Ego

Like I talked about above, the #1 killer of a losing stream and set back after having one is your ego. If you have 4 or 5 sizable winning trades in a row, your mind starts to naturally feel unstoppable. At that point, you are the most susceptible to emotional pitfalls and ultimately large losses.

Your mind thinks you can safely take more size. It wants more profit. It wants bigger positions. And it makes you feel like you are ready for all of that immediately.

Taking a step back, remaining humble, and checking your ego at the door will help you come to the desk every day fresh as you were when your streak just began. Every day you must come to the station like nothing happened the prior days. Start each day with a clean slate, and don’t let your ego make you euphoric and cocky.

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2. Keep Size Consistent

On a winning streak, it is tempting to size up day by day. People size up too quickly, take a loss they cannot handle and mentally control, and end up giving back a majority of the profits. This leaves their mental and physical capital destroyed.

While you are on a winning streak, it is ok to size up if the stats and data tell you to but size up by a comfortable amount. Do not overdo it. You should not feel uncomfortable with your new sizing parameters and risk reward profile. If you are, scale it back immediately.

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3. Take a Day Off

You may be thinking, why should I take time off when I am on fire?

Well, if you have a blank day, your streak is still technically intact. Taking a day off as well helps to detach yourself from the market and clear your mind. This will allow you to show up cool, calm, and collected the next day at the screens.

Take a day off and enjoy it because you earned it. Come back tomorrow with a clear and stronger mind.

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4. Be Extra Cautious with Your Setups

The common theme here is getting too euphoric while you’re on a winning streak. That can cause you to start to deviate from your core strategy and take bad setups. As you keep winning day after day, it becomes even more important that you analyze the setups you are taking with more precision and get extremely selective. You may want to force things due to your emotions, and that is not the way to continue a streak. Keep scaling up slowly yet surely and take the proper setups that got you there in the first place. Do not try to get creative.

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