This is the structure we use in workshops and coaching. Each step produces a written section you can test against live charts before risking capital.
Build yours in a workshop
Work through these sections in order. Skip none — traders who jump straight to entry rules usually discover their stops and sizing do not fit the setups they chose.
Name the instruments, timeframes, and trading sessions you will operate in. Equally important: list what you will not trade. A plan that says "FX majors on four-hour charts during London and New York" is executable; one that says "anything with good momentum" is not.
Document two or three setups maximum to start. Each setup gets a name, a chart example, and an IF/THEN rule. Example: "IF price retests prior day high as support on the daily chart AND the four-hour candle closes above the level, THEN consider a long entry on the next session open."
For every entry rule, define the exact point where the thesis fails. Stops attach to structure — below the retest low, beyond the range boundary — not to a round pip number you picked without reference to the chart.
State whether you scale out, hold to a measured move, or trail behind structure. Minimum reward-to-risk ratios belong here, tied to how often your setup historically reaches each target level.
Fix a percentage of account equity risked per trade. Show the arithmetic: account size, risk percentage, stop distance in points, resulting lot size. This section prevents the most common plan failure — correct analysis with incorrect size.
Pre-market: mark levels, check economic calendar, confirm no open positions violate the plan. Post-market: log each trade against plan adherence, not just profit. Weekly: review whether signals still match current volatility.
Workshop participants receive a printed template mapped to these six sections. Coaching clients often arrive with partial plans — we identify which sections are missing or vague and work through them in priority order.
If you prefer to start alone, read our guides on support and resistance, entry rule wording, and risk-reward planning.
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