JD,I have to say those are some great questions.
Sounds as if you do a reasonable amount of day trading: going in and out of the same stock, sometimes multiple times per day, hesitating to hold overnight.
But the charts in your blog cover longer time frames. What charts/indicators/timeframes do you watch during the day? And how do you manage to watch the markets and do your job?!
The trading my wife and I do has tended to be on longer time frames, usually days to weeks, on rare occasions, months. We spend half the morning on financial matters, then switch back to film work, trying not to get distracted by the markets (not easy, especially these days.)
Let's tackle the easiest question of how I trade and do my job!
This is not that hard for a few reasons. Most of the trading takes place the first hour of the day and in CA that's well before I go to work, and then the last hour of the day, which is my lunch time. Most of my actual trades fit those time frames.
Secondly, a solid portion of my day is spent in front of a computer at work analyzing financial statements and underwriting business loans. So, I have my charts up with software that automatically updates the chart every 15 seconds. Unless the market is moving really fast, I usually have a pretty good idea of what the market is doing.
Lastly, I usually get enough homework in at night or just before the market opens, so I have an idea of what I'm looking for and if it happens I have a trade, if not I look for something.
Trading days, weeks, and month!
Congratulations on being a swing trader and if that works for you, please do not change a thing!
What am I looking at during the day?
The short answer is everything I can. I'm a chart geek, and I love scrolling through charts looking for price patterns. It's like turning over rocks looking for treasury.
But more specifically, when I have open trades or looking to make a trade, I'm usually watching the 15 minute, 60 minute and daily chart. I'm looking for technical opportunities to enter or exit a trade.
Charts: exclusively a candlestick chart.
Indicators: I use the RSI and MACD because those work the best for me. If you use something else that's fine, as long as you use at least two things and they work for you.
Bollinger Bands: A must.
The reason I put up mostly daily and weekly charts for trading ideas is because I want the long term time frames behind me. I want to trade with the wind as much as possible. So, if I'm trading using the 15 minute, 60 minute and daily, then the daily and weekly charts need to support the trading idea so I don't get Time Frame Indifference riding against me.
Hope all is well.
J.D. Rosendahl, Rosey