I did not state that the goal for this month was a monthly goal, and my goal last month could have been $200. Also you have no idea what is involved in each trader’s road to get to that $1000 for that month.
For some strange reason your response reminds me of another thread on this website called…Unconscious Greed, lol. Not much difference from the people who tell me I should do this and that be a billionaire in two years.
Please dont take my response personal or be offended. I value the input and hope others reading the exchange will gain something.
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Well english is not my first language. I assumed maybe your goal is for example 10R with a risk this month of $100 per trade. Which is a monthly goal? It is my monthly goal (10R).
You asked for our opinion. If you are dissatisfied with our answers then maybe you should elaborate more your individual situation. But without that, i already told you my opinion that i wouldnt stop trading and why.
And i also wouldnt set arbitrary goals like $200 this and $1000 next month. I set my goals according my statistical based expecations of my strategies average performance.
And i know you didnt say your goal was chosen random or arbitrary. You said in fact nothing about how you get to your goal.
Thank you for the interaction.
Like I said dont take my responses personal, but if I disagree with something you say I have to make my point in the same way that you might disagree with me and make your point. If someone disagrees with your argument it does not mean they are dissatisfied.
I dont think that English not being your first language is the problem here. I have come to realize that on this forum for whatever reason people insist on answering a simple yes or no question with longwinded replies which most of the times dont even answer the questions asked (not saying that is the case with you). Also I should have said this earlier but it slipped me. It seems you are assuming a lot of things. The scenario I presented is hypothetical, meaning it is not my case or a real case. I was just using that to make a point. It seems you assume I have a set monthly goal and I see you now saying something about an assumed risk reward ratio. I dont do risk rewards, I dont do stop losses as well as a few other things.
And in response to your last point what does my saying anything about how I get to my goal have to do with the question posed?
How did you conclude that setting that $1000 goal was arbitrary? What if based on an additional influx of capital at the start of the month plus my balance carried over from the previous month I decided that IN LINE WITH MY STRATEGY $1000 would be a suitable target? That is not arbitrary?
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It may surprise some people but…I totally agree with the point you’ve made here.
Yes, I would continue trading for the rest of the month. Reaching a certain profit level does not mean that my trading will suddenly deteriorate. If I am trading normally then I will continue trading normally. The net profit at any one point is not relevant.
One could expand the issue by also asking if your target for August 2022 is to make one thousand dollars and you are actually minus $1000 by today the 18th would you do anymore trading…
In my mind, it would not make any logical sense to stop trading when one is currently winning but continue whenever one is currently losing?
But this is not a simple question in a broader sense. For example, if I lived solely off my earnings and need that $1000 to cover the month’s expenses, and only have a small capital reserve, then there would certainly be pressure to stop there for the month.
Equally, if I had achieved that goal for the month by taking abnormally high risks on a couple of rash “all-or-nothing” trades (like in a trading competition) then I would certainly quit for the rest of the month.
But, as @dushimes hinted at:
Whatever our target (if we even have one, I usually don’t) it is the markets that provide the opportunities, or not. I am sure most of us have trading strategies that perform better in certain types of markets, trending or ranging, for example. So if one has achieved one’s goal for August already by the 18th then it would indicate that the markets are currently performing in synch with our strategy - so why stop?
I guess this is just a stupid response to what you had in mind but it is what came to my mind anyway about the question and I apologise beforehand! 
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Cool down. I was answering the question. What I do is up to me, not you.
I would personally keep trading, because if there’s a good set up that appears there’s no point of not taking it. It feels like limitation to me that once you have achieved your goal you stop at it and don’t try to exceed it (in no greedy manner). If you fear losing what you have earned just paper trade all the other set ups or reduce your lot size. But I wouldn’t recommend not trading for the rest of the month.
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This is pretty much my thinking too. I don’t have a monthly goal though. If I see a valid set up then I take it regardless of where my performance is in the month.
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This is a really good qestion!
Since I don’t have any profit-goal I would continue trading. My main goal is to PROTECT my capital instead of getting a millionair. So I would act the “opposite” and only stop trading (today) if I reached my maximal loss but if it isn’t reached yet I just continue trading for the rest of the month since there is a high probailty to make further gains 
Just to put this out there. I know my mind doesnt work like the ordinary person so I totally understand your positions.
In a way this could be compared to a person who steals. they know it has consequences if they are caught but the “rewards” make them continue to do it. Then when they are caught and thrown in jail they wring their hands and say woe is me.
That extra trade you make could very well be the difference between making a profit or a loss for the month.
There is a reason why people rarely think overtrading is real…until they get badly burnt.
I was going to make a separate forum question of this but I’ll ask it now. At what point do you decide you are overtrading? When you get caught out?
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On the contrary, it is like a person who is performing their work based on skill and experience and knows what they are doing and are in control of the situation (as witnessed by their result so far) - and therefore there is no reason why they should cease working just because they have reached a profit milestone prematurely.
Not at all likely if it has taken 18 days to reach $1000, Why would the “extra trade” suddenly lose it all in one go if one continues in the same manner?
I didn’t see anything in the original question that pointed towards a possible overtrading situation. And there is nothing to suggest that reaching one’s goal earlier than expected is only due to excessive risk taking via overtrading.
But, as a separate issue, I would tend to agree with you that a trader is most likely to finally admit to overtrading at the point when things turn nasty.
I suppose one could kind of define overtrading as being the point where a trader starts taking additional trades in addition to those that are defined by the rules of their strategy. But even that is insufficient. If a trader is having a good month there is absolutely no reason why they shouldn’t speculate on another set-up that they like the look of. But the point would be that the trader should be aware of the risk and would set the position potential risk at a moderate level compared with the gains so far. That is simply controlled personal choice.
What are your views on these issues?
I agree. Why stop? You mean, you DON’T want more money? If your strategy is working, you’re getting entry signals, you have no other obligations to tend to, etc…why stop? What if next month has fewer opportunities? Get while the getting is good.
Agreed. An extra trade would be the same risk as all the other trades. It would be a small loss if proper risk management is used.
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I totally understand the views expressed by all the posters so far and I am merely picking the brains of people on here which I hope the answers they provide can assist others who read this thread. Dushimes especially resonated with me despite my position that I would cease until the next month.
The answer like a lot of things is relative. If one can make one thousand dollars in a month why stop there? Why not make it 2 or 3 or 4? Various factors come into play one of which is one’s strategy. In my opinion pacing one’d self is important too as well as one’s account balance. For me trading goals have a purpose, I dont just trade into infinity to get to one billion in a month. Taking a break is a reward for reaching my target ahead of time.
I dont expect anyone else to agree but that is my view.
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My philosophy of life.
Thanks for your last post @THE_GOATE, there is a lot of great wisdom in what you say there. In particular:
The key words here are “one’s strategy”. There are all kinds of strategies and some are rigid and some are quite loose. Some are totally/highly mechanical, even automated, whereas others are discretionary and require varying degrees of trader input.
Whether one decides to quit for the rest of the month might depend a lot on what type of strategy is being used. For example, if the goal is achieved on the basis of a “windfall” profit from a couple of exceptional trades then I could understand the desire to rest on one’s laurals and take a break, whereas a more mechanical trader might just shrug their shoulders and decide to let the ball keep on rolling …which leads to your next excellent point:
You are absolutely right that one has to feel comfortable with one’s trading. I believe it is very important that traders find the level of exposure that they can handle without creating stress factors. If one aims too high and takes excessively risky trades then the stress rises, panic sets in - and mistakes are made.
When one trades within one’s own risk comfort zone then progress is made, confidence rises, and the position sizes can gradually increase with it. It is a growth process.
Setting goals is a good idea when it sets a yardstick to measure your progess against. But whether one ceases when it is reached becomes a personal issue for the trader depending on how important and rigid these goals are.
Again, a very important point. Measuring one’s success in time divisions like month -ends is somewhat arbitrary but it does give us a means of measuring and comparing our progress over time. In the same way, it is important to maintain our personal enthusiasm and to feel some kind of reward for our efforts. Taking a break is one way of doing that. It is often very beneficial to step back from our work for a while and reflect and relax. I.e. do we work to live - or live to work?
Well I certainly agree with all that you wisely said here! It shows a professionality towards your trading seldom found here.
You also describe a very healthy attitude towards forums. In my opinion a forum is like an open-ended, multi-authored, interactive book where all can both contribute and receive. Trading is an exceptional type of activity in that we are all on the same side swimming in the same tidal waters and all with the same ambitions. There is no “us and them”. There is just “swim or sink”. And the more we can help one another to develop our own swimming techniques the more likely that eventually more beginners will make it to their treasure island!
Thanks for your post
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Whatever about stopping trading mid month, as a day trader I like to stop trading each day once I reach either my target profit or loss.
Most of the time when the market is in a range I set my target at 20 or 30 pips depending how big I think the range is that day once I get my profit (or loss) I’m out - that will do me thank you very much.
If I believe the market is moving I might set a larger target for the day maybe 100 pips on a big move day.
I find whenever I go back to the market for more I end up Messing up - so make my profit and then close the charts for the day.
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Frankly I don’t have any trading goal; here I’m just trying to follow my trading process with my plan! I don’t force myself to fulfill my monthly target!
Why not? Actually, if market offers me any good entry point then surely I’m going to take this advantage according to my own trading plan!
I dont think profesional traders have a “goal” per month in dollars…
It makes no sense
Pros trade whenever they see oportunity. If market gives you a chance… why let It go?
It’s not overtrading if you are following your strategy/rules.
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