in how many directions can stock market go?

theoretically there are 10

- north

- south

- east

- west

- northeast

- southeast

- northwest

- southwest

- into the screen

- out of the screen (to hit you!)

but in practice, it has only two directions to its disposal

either north or south...rest all are trader's fears induced by market fluctuations and bluffs.

every trader has 50% straight chance of making profit (1/2)

versus 2.7% in roulette (1/35)

it is understandable why roulette casino players are losing 97.3%, but what is the reason behind 80-90% loss of a stock market traders?

it is... fiddling

...due to fear of loss, pressure of bet size... 

if any trader was to trade without applying mind, with all parameters fixed, then he/she is likely to win 50% in the long run... things start slipping below 50% when that dumb trader tries to be smart on emotions instead of logic or system. market induced emotions as well as self-inflicted emotions.

market forces have no power to beat the trader except emotions... be it through sharp move or bluff or both...

most traders can't stand the loss (because of bet size, and lack of logic of trade, defined entry exits) and hence lose frequently. 

decide, on the basis of your trading system where the market or stock is going to go, as per what timeline, take bet size which you can afford to lose if all goes wrong (which wont go wrong that often as system improves), decide a stoploss (which should be the point where the logic behind your trade would seem to no longer hold), and take the trade.... after that, expect market to do all kind of bluffs and hold your trade tight (ofcourse till your stoploss definition above)... 

only logic-based system with some edge can take you above 50% chance of profit... all the way upto 60-70-80%...or more... (the higher you go, the more challenging it is)

most of the times, if not always, markets and stocks go in the direction they are pre-decided to go (on various timelines).

once you take a trade, exit only if your target comes or stop loss is hit, don't touch it in any other condition. 

example = suppose you decide to take a long trade when price cuts sma 34 from below (say)(after closing candle), then one possible logical SL will be when price cuts it from above (after closing candle). 

similarly, if you take a long trade if rsi has given a bullish divergence, then u hold the trade till bullish divergence doesn't melt away, whatever the price... till bullish divergence is there, long trade is valid. 

price SL is risky because it is visible to everyone and is very basic logic. also, because some vibration in price is bound to happen.

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we should not add to positions ever once trade is initiated. when we add position, it should be considered a totally new trade depending upon setup at that time

in most cases, trade goes your way within "short time" of your taking the trade. you can "feel" it. you can also feel and tell if it isn't going your way,....of course, you still need to stick to SL, but your gut feeling tells you that you perhaps have entered a bit too soon, even before proper signal.

if your SL is hit once or twice despite system, it is ok. but more than that it is a signal that you tweak your system. 

SL needs calibration