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A running list of rules I've broken, with a count next to each

I keep a list in my journal of every rule I've broken, with a count beside each one. It started as a way to be honest, and it turned out to be one of the most useful things I do.

The list has things like: entered before the candle closed, moved a stop away, traded outside my sessions, took a trade after my daily limit, ignored the news filter. Each time I do one, I add a tally mark. At the end of the month, I look at which ones have the highest counts.

What surprised me was that the top two rules accounted for most of the breaks. I had assumed I was making a wide range of errors, but it was the same couple again and again. Knowing that made it much easier to work on. I could put a specific safeguard for those two, such as an alarm or a checklist item.

The count also shows progress. When a number goes down over a few months, I can see the habit changing. That's more motivating than a general feeling of improvement.

I keep something very similar and the same thing happened: two rules made up most of the breaks. For me it was entering before the candle closed and trading after my planned stop time. Seeing the tally made me realise I did not need a whole new system, I needed two specific fixes. For the first one I added a candle timer, and for the second I set an alarm and close the platform when it goes off. Both counts dropped a lot over a couple of months.

Something I added is a note next to each tally about the situation, just a few words like after a loss or tired or news day. After a while those notes showed a pattern too. Most of my breaks happened late in the session or right after a loss. So now I have a rule about the situation, not just the action. When I am in that situation, I take a break before the next trade. It is a small change to the journal, but it moved the problem from willpower to a clear trigger I can spot.