Anatomy of a Trade  |  APR 1997

The Failed Trade by Thomas Bulkowski

The Failed Trade by Thomas Bulkowski Sometimes a trade doesn't work out the way you hoped it would, but you can always learn from your mistakes if you take the time to review your trades. Take a lesson from this failed trade. After I began trading in the stock market in earnest, I started a notebook with commentary about all my trades. In it, I discuss the reasons for buying a stock and note them shortly after purchase. When I sell a stock, I note reasons for the success or failure of the trade. The notebook is divided into investment styles: Trend channel trade, triangles, 1-2-3 trend change, long-term holding, fundamental value and so forth. I can review my trades by investment style and recall the lessons I learned from each trade. Experience allows us to recognize a mistake when we make it again. Well, I want to minimize my mistakes, and so I use the notebook to help identify patterns before they become significant problems.

by Thomas Bulkowski