This statement nails my thoughts exactly - although I couldn’t find a way to directly say it!
@ bobbillbrone, it’s surprising how many ‘old timers’ are still here from time to time. I often come back for a read and to see what’s going on (although really nothing changes 
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I completely agree, and this sums it up very neatly.
It seems to me to be true on an overall/monthly level and on a daily/trade-by-trade level, too.
(Every time I see “systems” offered with some instruction along the lines of “target for EUR/USD = 15 pips” I find myself thinking much the same thing: “What? You’re going to have the same target for a trade at 9.00 in the morning as you are at 4.00 in the afternoon, when there’s a third of that volume being transacted - how’s that working out for you?”).
Indeed. 
Hi Bob
I never mention targeting for fixed pip returns.
What I was trying to illustrate was this
Daily volatility is never the same.
Targeting for fixed pip return doesn’t makes sense to me as well.
Personally, i aim for a weekly target base on past week volatility.
Once I hit that target I’m more or less done for the week.
Along the way, I do add many other (quick in quick out) position to my main trade, base on trend following, counter trend, breakout, scalping and hedging strategy. I quite a chaotic trader. Usually I make an assumption base on weekly candlestick. If price close below previous weekly candlestick mean price. I assume that current weekly candlestick will close below mean as well.
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Whats good fellas,
At first, I was a pip counter, then I was about percentages not long ago, now, its all about alotted time you have to tend to the price action, in my instance anyway. Im more a chunk trader as you guys know.
So now, I wake up at 5am, and work the price for 4 good hours, till 9am, then, im usually done by that time.
So, it really depends on your style. Long term would be maybe pips, and percentages, but to gauge progression, Youd have to look at percentages.
The problem i ran into, was seemed that last sqeeze trade to get those remaining pips or percentages so you can , " Call it a day", always seemed to backfire.
So now, I use a block of time, rather then a typical goal for daily targets.
Some days your on your game, some days your not. If you hit your goal early in that timeframe, then call it a day. Look at it like, “clocking out early”…
G’day old mate. Maybe we both have miss-interpreted what the other is trying to say, maybe we haven’t. But I read this and think WTF. I’m sure Lexy gets sick of posting “your system either has a statistic edge or it doesn’t” and it’s so so true. Therefor what does it matter if pip movement has been “x”% of daily range. As long as your following your rules and your system has a statistic edge, you take the good with the bad.
G’day Truth, been great reading your work recently. I think however, there might be a big difference in how you trade to someone like myself and many others here. And that comes down to capital base. Everything in this game is so much easier (not that it’s an easy game, minute to learn, lifetime to master) with the correct capital base. I’ve crunched the numbers and for how I’m doing things there is no statistical advantage to letting trades run over locking in profits at 1:1. In fact, because of my low capital base, freeing up that money for the next trade is critical for growth.
Hmmm… i prefer to use the term strategy rather than system.
Well, like you said as long as you follow your system, you take the good with the bad one. Thats true.
moneynvrsleep mentioned call it a day by block of time, i have the same sentiments as well.
i tend to like gann’s rule that a trend usually last for 3 days. After which market either reverse or movesideways for some period of time.
Lastly, for a system to be effcient. Applying the right system during the most accurate block of time or most accurate market condition, can maximise the potential of a system.
For example, if a previous weekly candlestick is an inside range weekly candlestick for a particular currency pair. i would definitely not use a trend following system for the current week. either i dont trade, change system or trade other currency pair. what i am trying to say is that backtesting by crunching number for a particular system is not an accurate way to determine if a system is good or bad. Every system have their merits and pitfalls. applying an appropriate system during the right market conditions would be best. there ways to maximise the good and minimise the bad. start thinking about time base strategy.
Man that’s crazy talk. Either the system has a statistical advantage or it doesn’t. The only way to determine this is through a process of back testing, forward testing, then apply to a real account. Otherwise you are gambling. Plain and simple.
All your talk here indicates you’re a discretionary trader, and as I am myself a discretionary trader, taking one trade, one pair once a day, it is the most stupidest way to trade. So you work hard in the background running back test after back test after back test in order to to remove discretion out of your trading. Finding out how your system gets the statistical edge. And from my own work and back to the subject of the thread, pips have nothing to do with measuring success. The only thing I use pips for is determining my risk allocation.
And for you information, I work with only one filter, time. But you and that crazy MoFo Money have got it completely wrong in regards to blocks of time. You have to look at specific hours on specific days. And think not in terms of supply and demand, thing in terms of inventory management, cause at the end of the day that’s what the big boys are doing.
So if you wish to debate this some more I suggest you start another thread. Lets not hijack this one.
Sorry… i rest my case.
Billy, I use the block of time because I have to much going on at home that i cant be 100% in the game. My day ends at 9am because I have a 3 yr old that accompanies me all day till 5pm, and get to play for the rest of the day, go to the park, play with play0doh, eat a ton of fake food, and drink gallons of fake tea, its a good life…lol…
I like to scalp the price action, i like to be fixed on the screen, I enjoy that part, i just dont have the time, and really, i hit my goals anyways, by then…
Well it was interesting whilst it lasted, as i said before not much changes around here! haha
I’m afraid that’s so, indeed: it would require some simple changes in the forum’s moderation policies for the situation to be improved, but unfortunately the necessary willingness for that to happen remains absent.
You can’t measure the success in pips, it has to be in percentages. Sometimes you can make big profit on less pips and sometime you will get less amount as profit in more number of pips depending on your lot size used.
Translated, what forexcrisp is saying here is if the glass isn’t half full it must be half empty.
G’day Money
Unfortunately you might like to think as yourself as different to others but we all face our own set of unique challenges. First congrats on being a dad. That is something I don’t think many of us knew about you. There is no greater honor in life for any man. Personally I have a dyslexic, insomniac 10 yo daughter who also suffers from anxiety. A 6 year old boy who is autistic and also suffers from sensory perception disorder. Myself, I am a dyslexic bipolar Gemini. So it’s a pretty interesting household filled with it’s own challenges.
But my experience is that speculating, as an action in it’s own right actually takes up very little of my time. Especially over the past couple of months since I discovered Binary approximation (nothing to do with binary options) and rough set theory. Things you won’t find discussed here at Babypips, or in the forex community but available if you use the search button on google scholar. Probably 95% of my time now-a-days, is research and back testing. Forward testing, review, wash rinse repeat. In the business world we call it the PDCA cycle. Plan, Do, Check, Act. Then it’s wash rinse repeat.
So I am disappointed to know you still spend so much time watching the screen discretionary PA trading. I know from my own style it is a very dumb way to trade with little reward for effort. And are you really scalping or have you man-crush on the notion of scalping. Scalping to us retail traders using retail brokers is unobtainable. Simple as that. The fact you said you are squeezing out those last pips of the day indicates you are still gambling and you have no statistical evidence you system/strategy has a market edge. Which is also disappointing cause I thought you had reasonable programming skills.
So as the subject of the thread suggests, those who focus on pips are destined to loss. Those whom accept what the market has to offer and know how to convert that offering to a dollar value stand a better chance of success. Those that have the correct capital base, well the game then becomes a pleasure and a lifestyle.
Putting every aspect of trading to one side, regardless of ones approach or technique, the above statement really is key. I think it’s statements like this that should be weighted far more in the FX community. Rather than reinforcing the critical requirement of needing a large capital base to trade from, traders are otherwise covered by a blanket of ‘dreams’ which suggests you can start small and aim big.
Sure, there is always going to be the one in a million shot where a trader does indeed turn $1K into over $1M, however if you give enough monkeys a typewriter one monkey will [by absolute luck] produce an exact copy of a Shakespeare novel. So if you’re entering trading where your dreams are based on the one in a million shot because that’s your motivation then you are in the wrong game - you also don’t understand statistics as you’re already heavily bound to fail. The odds are against you
A large capital base however, with realistic gains is the way forward. I’m sure most people would be able to live with 5% of $200,000 per month as a primary or secondary income [$10,000]. But try achieving that with an undercapitalized account of just $25,000.
If you don’t have the cash then this is the quickest way to burn whatever you do have. No wonder retail brokers are opening every week of the year - they call the retail trading community ‘monopoly money’ - because it’s almost printable and guaranteed.
Sadly, but i have to agree. Thanks for the inspiring thoughts. I am all fired up now.:mad:
Jezz is always on point, good stuff.
Billy, Man, I have an 24 yr old girl, ( College) a 19 yr old son, in college (Police criminology) , police Sargent in my City’s junior cadet Police department. a 15yr old son, ( 6’4") Throws a perfect football, but doesnt like football, or basketball, orrrrr baseball, and a 3 yr old girl, who acts 10, and smarter then most 10 yr olds. She knows alot about forex too. Can read the charts, knows direction, its actually funny, because she will ask me about my trades, if day is going good, if its a buy or sell day, lol… I crap you not. We dont allow her to eat sugar, so she knows how to check the nutrient profile on packages to check for sugar.
OK, sorry for the sideline stuff, Im proud,
I told ya, I dont squeeze out the trades anymore, I run the time block, and it is what it is at that time. Im done already today, hit my goal, still have 2 hours left in my “Day”, about to go for my 20m walk, Brrrr, its cold, then make wife breakfast before work. Busy day today, I cook the Thanksgiving meal, so getting things prepd and ready…
Hope everyone has a safe and happy thanksgiving,
PS. Billy, not sure why your always so static with me dude,
In my view success is not measured in pips. Because pips depend on lot size how big or small lot you take for trading your profit is up to it. However profit % is best way to measure how much you are getting form forex trading.