Trade Result and Context Analysis

An effective trade review includes analysis of several key aspects. It’s not enough to just log profit or loss—you must understand the full context of the decision and its execution.

Basic trade review metrics:

• Entry/exit date and time

• Instrument (trading pair)

• Direction (long/short)

• Entry and exit price

• Position size

• Absolute profit/loss (in USDT or account currency)

• Relative profit/loss (as % of equity)

• Risk-reward ratio (realized vs. initial risk).

The importance of context in trade analysis
The trade result alone is not very informative. A losing trade may have been the right decision (you followed your plan but the market went the other way), while a winning trade might have been a mistake (you broke your rules but got lucky). Analyze not just what happened, but how and why it happened.

Entry reason and trade quality are critically important elements that many ignore. It’s not enough to say “entered with the trend”—you need a detailed reconstruction of your decision logic.

Entry Analysis

When analyzing trade entries, consider technical signals, market context, and personal factors.

• a) Technical signal:

• What specific pattern or setup did you see? (bounce off a level, breakout, candlestick pattern)

• Did the signal match your trading system?

• Was there additional signal confirmation? (volume, indicators, higher timeframe)

• How clear was the signal on a scale from 1 to 5?

• b) Market context:

• Overall trend direction on a higher timeframe

• Proximity to key support/resistance levels

• Time of day and trading session

• Presence of important upcoming news

• c) Personal factor:

• Your emotional state at entry (calm, excited, frustrated)

• Was this a planned trade or impulsive?

• Was position size in line with risk management rules?

• How confident were you in the setup? (1–5 scale)

Example of detailed trade entry description:

"13:45, BTC/USDT, long. Price approached 29,800 (marked in the morning as key support), a pin bar with a long lower wick formed on the 5m chart. EMA20 on 15m was above the price, overall trend was upward. Volume on the pin bar was above average. Entered on the next candle after confirmation. Position size: 0.5% risk, stop at 29,750, target 30,000. Emotionally calm, this was the fourth trade of the day, the first three were profitable. Confidence in the setup: 4/5."

Such a description provides a complete picture for follow-up analysis.

Analysis of Exit from Trade

Exiting a trade is just as important as entering it, but it is often analyzed superficially.
The main types of exits from a trade and their analysis are as follows:

• a) Exit by Take Profit:

• Did the price reach the planned target?

• Was there movement after the exit that you missed?

• Was the take profit set optimally, or was it too close/far?

• b) Exit by Stop Loss:

• Did the stop trigger due to technical reasons (level broken) or volatility?

• Was the stop placed correctly, or was it too close to the entry?

• Was there any movement in your direction after the stop was triggered?

• c) Manual Exit:

• What made you exit manually?

• Was the decision rational or emotional?

• What would the result have been if you hadn't intervened?

• d) Exit by Time:

• Did the time limit for holding the position trigger?

• Was the time exit rule justified in this case?

Critical question: if the exit happens manually before the preset conditions are met, it’s important to analyze its cause and result.
If manual exits consistently allow you to close trades on time, based on price behavior, volume, and market reaction, it means that this exit method is part of your working logic. In this case, attention should be paid not to the manual exit itself, but to how consciously it is made and how consistently it improves the result.

If manual exits are chaotic and driven by emotions, fear, or doubts, it can indeed negatively affect profitability. The purpose of analysis is to separate the conscious manual exit based on market conditions from the premature exit without objective grounds.

Trade Classification and Error Categories

Not every losing trade is a mistake, and not every profitable trade is the right action. It’s important to classify trades based on the applied trading methodology and the quality of its execution, not just on the financial result.

This classification helps understand how consistently you follow your strategy: whether you choose the right instruments for trading, whether you enter the trade according to your signals, and whether you exit positions in a disciplined manner. The specific criteria for a "good" or "bad" trade may differ for different traders—evaluation is always done in relation to your working methodology, not a universal template.

• a) A-Trade (Excellent):

• Clear signal according to strategy

• All risk management rules followed

• Emotional control at all stages

• Any result — this is correct system execution.

• b) B-Trade (Good):

• Signal corresponds to the system, but it’s not perfect

• Small deviations from the plan (e.g., entering 2-3 points later than optimal)

• Overall disciplined execution.

• c) C-Trade (Average):

• Doubtful signal, taken with stretch

• Violations of discipline (modified stop during the trade, exited early without reason)

• Emotional influence on decisions.

• d) D-Trade (Bad):

• Signal does not match strategy

• Gross violations of risk management

• Impulsive, emotional decisions

• Even if profitable — it’s a dangerous trade.

Goal of Analysis:
Maximize the number of A and B trades, minimize C, and completely eliminate D.
A profitable D trade is more dangerous than a losing A trade because it reinforces the wrong behavior.

Typical Error Categories

To systematize your analysis, it’s helpful to classify mistakes by type:

• a) Technical errors:

• Incorrect pattern identification

• Entry without signal confirmation

• Ignoring the higher time frame context

• Trading against the trend without valid reasons.

• b) Risk management errors:

• Oversized position

• No stop-loss or moving the stop

• Exceeding the daily loss limit

• Averaging down on a losing position.

• c) Emotional errors:

• Revenge trading after a loss

• Greed (holding a position longer than planned)

• Fear (premature exit from a profitable position)

• FOMO (entering a trade out of fear of missing a move).

• d) Discipline errors:

• Trading at the wrong time (fatigue, distractions)

• Changing the plan mid-trade

• Impulsive entries without preparation

• Skipping market analysis before trading.

Each error should be documented with its category — this helps you identify which types of mistakes you make most often.