Stocks trading journal: how to start

For each trade, log the ticker, direction, number of shares, entry and exit, stop, and result — and always include commissions and fees, which matter more on smaller accounts and active day trading.

Add a chart screenshot at entry so your review shows the setup you actually took.

Equities behave very differently at the open, midday and into the close. Tag the time of your entries so you can see whether your edge lives in the first hour, the power hour, or somewhere you should stop trading.

Record the percentage of your account you risked and your intended reward. A big winner taken with oversized risk is still a process failure — judge the decision, not only the result.

Name each setup (breakout, pullback, reversal) and tag mistakes like chasing or averaging down. Over time the tags reveal which setups pay and which habits cost you.

Re-read your journal on a schedule to see win rate and average reward-to-risk by setup and time. And in DIONFX, let the Setup Checker weigh your next idea against your own history before you buy — so structure comes before the click.