Start With the Session Plan
Write down the planned session window, setup conditions, size, and stop conditions before judging the result. A losing session can still contain trades that respected the plan.
- Was the setup valid?
- Did the trade respect the plan?
- Did trading continue beyond the planned session?
Separate Strategy Losses From Execution Errors
Label each completed trade by process, not outcome. A valid loss and a chased entry may both lose money, but they point to different next actions.
Review the First Clear Invalidation
Find the earliest moment the original idea was no longer valid. Then compare what happened after that point: did you exit, reduce, re-enter, or keep trading without a new reason? This is a process check, not a prediction exercise.
Check What Changed After the First Loss
Compare position size, time between trades, setup quality, and trade frequency before and after the first loss. Smaller gaps between trades or larger size after losses are measurable observations worth reviewing.
Identify One Repeatable Behavior
Avoid writing a long list of fixes. Select one pattern, such as extending the session after consecutive losses, and turn it into one guardrail for the next session. Review whether it appears again in future completed trade history.