I didn't want to short, but entry criteria had been met so I took the trade. Concern stemmed from the series of higher lows setting up a 1-2-3 breakout http://www.nobrainertrades.com/2009/06/1-2-3-breakout.html , and similarities to a previous AUDJPY loss http://modoforex.blogspot.com.au/2012/06/trade-closed-audjpy-113-bps.html .
Soon after entry we moved to +0.4R, but given concerns I trailed more aggressively, and stopped out for a small gain of +0.1R.
In hindsight, this was good management, but afterwards I felt it lacked discipline to not wait for 1R before moving to break even. I felt I was trading scared, trading what I thought rather than what I saw, and feared the trade would work but I hadn't taken the signal. I reasoned I'd rather take a loss following my plan, than miss an opportunity by not.
So the next day I entered short for a second time. Again it moved to +0.4R but just wouldn't break convincingly. Time was ticking by, and the symmetry of the original pattern was gone. Buy stops (including my own) had now accumulated above the top of the ascending triangle. Trading had been quiet, holiday-like, thanks to Hurricane Sandy, and you just knew that when volume returned we'd blow through the stops...which we did...fuck!
It's never easy to lose, but I'm not too upset with myself.I can see how I became confused and indecisive when experience and gut feel conflicted with the trading plan. I was unsure whether to exercise discretion, and thought I was doing the right thing at the time. One positive is that I got one step closer (by closing the initial position) to avoiding danger than on the similar AUDJPY position. Next time I'll trust my experience and play more defensively. Having both trades documented will be a good resource.
