Why 0.01 lots still deserve a full checklist
Posted: Tue Oct 27, 2026 8:20 am
A lot of traders treat micro size like a free pass. "It's only 0.01, I'll just take it." I did the same for months and it cost me far more than the dollars on the statement.
The problem is that the habit you build at 0.01 is the habit you bring to 0.5. If you skip the news check at micro size, you will skip it at real size too, because skipping has become normal. The brain doesn't track lot size, it tracks routine.
So my micro trades go through the same five lines as everything else:
The other benefit is data. Micro trades with a checklist give you clean stats you can scale later. Micro trades without one just give you noise with a P&L attached.
Do you run small size with the same rules, or do you allow yourself a looser mode for practice?
The problem is that the habit you build at 0.01 is the habit you bring to 0.5. If you skip the news check at micro size, you will skip it at real size too, because skipping has become normal. The brain doesn't track lot size, it tracks routine.
So my micro trades go through the same five lines as everything else:
- Is there a red-folder event in the next 20 minutes?
- Is the spread at or below my normal for this hour?
- Is the setup on my written list, or am I improvising?
- Where is the stop, and is it placed before entry?
- How many trades have I already taken today?
The other benefit is data. Micro trades with a checklist give you clean stats you can scale later. Micro trades without one just give you noise with a P&L attached.
Do you run small size with the same rules, or do you allow yourself a looser mode for practice?