Whether you’re here or there: keep it simple, have a plan, and follow that plan. That’s all you have to do.

can you relate...

When an archer is shooting for nothing . . . he has all his skill.

If he shoots for a brass buckle . . . he is already nervous.

If he shoots for a prize of gold . . . he goes blind;

or sees two targets . . . he is out of his mind!

His skill has not changed.  But the prize . . . divides him.  He cares.

He thinks more of winning than of shooting . . . 

and the need to win drains him of power.

            – Chuang Tzu, 400 B.C../
                                                    ...if you are a trader, you can

markets so far in 2016

Here are 10 great technical trading rules that will help you build a systematic approach to trading:

1.  Start with the weekly price chart to establish the long term trend, and then work down through the daily and hourly charts to trade in the direction of that trend. The odds are better if you are trading in the direction of the long term trend.

2.  In Bull Markets, the best strategy is to buy the dips. In Bear Markets, the best strategy is to sell short into each rally. Always go with the path of least resistance.

3.  Support and resistance levels can hold for long periods of time; the first few breakout attempts usually fail.

4.  The more times a support or resistance level is tested, the greater the odds that it will be broken. Old resistance can become the new support, and the old support may become the new resistance.

5.  Trend lines are the easiest way to measure trends by connecting higher highs or lower lows, and they must always go from left to right.

6.  Chart patterns are visible representations of the price ranges that buyers and sellers are creating. Chart Patterns are connected trend lines that signal a possible breakout buy point if one line is broken.

7.  Moving averages quantify trends and create signals for entries, exits, and trailing stops.

8.  Moving averages are great tools for a trader to use, but they are best used along with an overbought/oversold oscillator like the RSI. This maximizes exit profitability on extensions from a moving average.

9.  52 week highs are bullish, and 52 week lows are bearish. All-time highs are more bullish, and all-time lows are more bearish. Bull Markets have no long term resistance, and Bear Markets have no long term support.

10.  Above the 200 day is where bulls create uptrends. Bad things happen below the 200 day; down trends, distribution, bear markets, crashes, and bankruptcies.