Mistake 1 — skipping losing trades
Skipping a log entry out of embarrassment distorts your entire journal. You end up looking at an inflated win rate, and the exact failures you most need to learn from disappear from the data. Log every trade, win or lose, with no exceptions.
Mistake 2 — recording numbers but not reasons
Logging only the balance change tells you "how much" but never "why." Months later, if you can’t remember why you took a trade, there’s nothing left to learn from it.
Mistake 3 — never reviewing it
A journal you never look back on is just a ledger. Set aside at least once a week to actually go back through your entries.
Mistake 4 — delaying the start to build the "perfect" system
Some people spend weeks perfecting a spreadsheet template or choosing the right app. What actually matters is consistency, not the format. Logging just balance, leverage, and time is already enough — start with your very next trade.
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