Tilt does not need losses, a winning streak wrecks accounts too

[Amanhasnoname]

Everyone watches for revenge trading. Far fewer watch for the opposite: four wins in a row before the London open settles, and suddenly the size creeps up, the criteria loosen, and the setups start to look obvious in a way they were not an hour earlier. Confidence turns into a belief that the market is being read perfectly.

What usually happens next is one oversized or off-plan trade that gives back the whole streak. Because the equity curve was green, that loss does not feel like a lesson. It feels like bad luck, so nothing changes.

Concrete things to look for in a log: position size by trade number, and average time between entries after consecutive wins. If lots creep up after the third win, or entries come faster, the streak is changing behaviour. Rules that blunt it:

- fixed size per session, no adjusting mid-day
- after three wins in a row, a mandatory five-minute break and a re-read of the criteria
- daily profit target that ends the session, not just a loss limit

The profit stop feels wrong, since the edge seems to be working. But the edge is the plan, and the plan was written by someone calmer than the one clicking at that moment.

Has a streak ever cost more than a bad day did, and what was the first sign?