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What is a Trading Journal?

August 12, 2025
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Trading Journal: What It Is, Why It Matters, and How to Start

A trading journal is a record of your trades and the decisions behind them.
Done right, it turns raw executions into insights—so you can repeat what works and fix what doesn’t.

What is a trading journal?

A trading journal is a structured log of:

  • What you traded (ticker/contract), when, and how (entry/exit, size, costs)

  • Why you took the trade (strategy/setup, thesis, rules)

  • How it performed (P&L, R:R, max adverse excursion, slippage)

  • What you learned (mistakes, notes, tags)

Why it matters

  • Improves consistency: you’ll spot patterns in winners/losers.

  • Raises expectancy: focus capital on your best setups.

  • Controls risk: exposes over-sizing, revenge trades, rule breaks.

  • Speeds feedback: shortens the loop between action → lesson.

What to record in a good trading journal

At a minimum, you should log:

  • Date/time, market/session

  • Instrument (e.g., AAPL, ES, XAUUSD), side (long/short), size

  • Entry, stop, target(s), exit(s), fees

  • Setup/strategies, emotions, tag(s) and screenshots

  • Pre-trade plan vs. post-trade notes

  • Outcome: P&L, R multiple, win/loss reason

How to start a trading journal (step-by-step)

    1. 1
      Pick a format
      Spreadsheet (free) or software (faster, auto-import, more analytics).

    1. 2
      Define your fields
      Use the list above; don’t overbuild—add later.

    1. 3
      Create strategy tags
      5–10 that truly describe your edge (e.g., “Opening Range Breakout”, “Trend Pullback”, “News Fade”).

    1. 4
      Log trades the same day
      Capture context while it’s fresh (screenshots!).

    1. 5
      Weekly review (60–90 min)
      Top/worst trades, rule breaks, metrics by tag.

    1. 6
      Monthly upgrade
      Keep the tags/metrics that predict P&L; kill the rest.

  1. 7
    Automate what you can
    Broker imports, P&L, charts, and tagging rules.

Free template (download & copy)

Excel trading Journal stocks, options, forex, futures, crypto, and CFD's

Download here -> https://tradefuse.app/Downloads/

Common mistakes (and quick fixes)

    1. 1
      Journaling only wins
      Log every trade → your patterns hide in losses.

    1. 2
      No screenshots
      Add before/after images; memory is unreliable.

    1. 3
      No review cadence
      Book weekly and monthly sessions like meetings.

    1. 4
      No tags
      Without tags, you can’t slice results by setup/strategy.

Spreadsheet vs. software: which should you use?

Task Spreadsheet Software (e.g., TradeFuse)
Data entry Manual typing Auto-import from brokers
Accuracy Typos & missed fees As-executed fills/fees pulled
Speed Slow at scale Instant dashboards
Insights Formulas you build AI insights, MAE/MFE, Ready-made reports
Setup tagging Manual text tags Rules & auto-tagging
Media & charts Awkward screenshots One-click charts/images
Risk metrics Basic P&L only R multiple, drawdown, slippage
Broker support CSV exports Native imports (NinjaTrader/MT4/MT5/…)
Cost of time High as trades scale Low (minutes per session)
Best for Starting out, very few trades Improving fast & scaling

How to review your trading journal (weekly checklist)

    •  
      Top 3 winning trades: what was common?
      Setup, time of day, market context, risk taken, exit style.
    •  
      Top 3 losing trades: what rule did I break?
      Entry quality, stop discipline, revenge/chase, news, boredom.
    •  
      Setup stats: win rate, avg R, drawdown by tag
      Trust tags with sample ≥ 20; prune or merge weak tags.
    •  
      Risk discipline: position size vs. plan, stop adherence
      % oversized, % moved stops, average risk per trade (R).
    •  
      One improvement for next week (write it, commit to it)
      One-line rule + trigger (e.g., “No fills within 1 min after a loss”). Add to pre-trade checklist.

  •  
    Equity curve & drawdown trend (optional)
    Slope stable? New equity highs or prolonged chop? Current max DD vs plan.
  •  
    Missed & out-of-plan trades (optional)
    Count & reasons (late, fear, platform). Reduce both week over week.
  •  
    Journal completeness & speed (optional)
    % of trades journaled same day (target ≥ 90%); avg minutes per trade.

FAQs

What’s the point if my broker shows P&L?

P&L tells you what happened. A journal tells you why—so you can change it.

Do I need to journal every trade?

For learning, yes. For high-frequency strategies, journal by setup and session summaries, or use an automated journal to capture all your trades seamlessly.

How long until I see results?

Most traders see clearer patterns in 2–4 weeks and measurable performance shifts in 1–3 months—if they review weekly.

Should I include emotions?

Yes. A simple 1–5 scale plus a note (“chased after loss”) uncovers powerful patterns.

Try a modern trading journal (with AI)