Draft a One-Page Strategy Specification From a Blank Sheet
Posted: Wed Oct 28, 2026 7:16 pm
Draft a One-Page Strategy Specification From a Blank Sheet
Time to put the pieces together. Here is the structure of a one-page specification, with the kinds of entries each line needs. Fill it with your own strategy, using a pair and setup you actually plan to trade.
Header: name of the setup, pair or pairs, timeframes for bias, setup, and trigger, sessions allowed.
Conditions: three to five checkable statements about trend, location, and trigger. Each one must be answerable yes or no from a chart.
Orders: order type, entry price rule, stop rule with a number or formula, target rule, and the minimum reward-to-risk ratio after spread.
Sizing: risk per trade in percent, the formula for lot size, the maximum total open risk, and the rounding rule.
Filters: the news window you avoid, the maximum spread relative to the stop, any volatility or trend filters.
Management: when and how the stop moves, partial exit rules, the time stop, and what is never allowed, such as widening a stop.
Limits: daily and weekly loss limits, maximum trades per day, and the rule after consecutive losses.
Evidence: the date and size of the backtest, the key statistics, and the criteria for reviewing or retiring the strategy.
Count the lines. A page holds about twenty. If you cannot fill a line, you have found a gap in the plan.
Exercise: complete the sheet, and give it to a friend to see whether they could identify the trade you would take on a chart.
Time to put the pieces together. Here is the structure of a one-page specification, with the kinds of entries each line needs. Fill it with your own strategy, using a pair and setup you actually plan to trade.
Header: name of the setup, pair or pairs, timeframes for bias, setup, and trigger, sessions allowed.
Conditions: three to five checkable statements about trend, location, and trigger. Each one must be answerable yes or no from a chart.
Orders: order type, entry price rule, stop rule with a number or formula, target rule, and the minimum reward-to-risk ratio after spread.
Sizing: risk per trade in percent, the formula for lot size, the maximum total open risk, and the rounding rule.
Filters: the news window you avoid, the maximum spread relative to the stop, any volatility or trend filters.
Management: when and how the stop moves, partial exit rules, the time stop, and what is never allowed, such as widening a stop.
Limits: daily and weekly loss limits, maximum trades per day, and the rule after consecutive losses.
Evidence: the date and size of the backtest, the key statistics, and the criteria for reviewing or retiring the strategy.
Count the lines. A page holds about twenty. If you cannot fill a line, you have found a gap in the plan.
Exercise: complete the sheet, and give it to a friend to see whether they could identify the trade you would take on a chart.