C
Context
State the higher-timeframe structure and the location that makes the setup relevant.
Lesson · Trade Setup and Execution
Trade Thesis
Convert market context into a conditional plan with a defined setup, trigger, invalidation, target, and no-trade condition.
Synthetic educational examples
Core concepts
Use these concepts as explicit rules rather than changing them after seeing the outcome.
T
Trigger
Define the observable event that permits entry. Directional bias alone is not a trigger.
I
Invalidation
Specify the price or condition that proves the thesis wrong before position size is calculated.
Interactive lesson
Change the inputs, inspect the chart, and evaluate the decision before revealing the answer.
A complete thesis, worked — the bullish pullback tab
Every line below is checkable against the chart at the decision candle. Read it once, then complete the other three tabs without it.
CONTEXT: Daily bullish structure — higher highs 107.0 and 111.2,
higher lows 102.5, 106.4, 108.1 — corrected to the 108.0
area it broke out from.
DECISION: LONG
SETUP: Pullback — a correction inside an established trend,
ending at a planned location.
TRIGGER: Close above trigger — the 111.7 close (candle 15) is the
first close back above the whole correction. Before it,
the location alone is not an entry.
INVALIDATION: 107.0 — under the 108.1 low the correction made,
with room for a wick. Below it there is no higher
low left and the reading is gone.
TARGET: 115.0 — the prior high, the next level where an advance
has already been stopped. Not chosen to make a ratio.
NO-TRADE: If price closes below 108.1 before the trigger prints,
the plan is cancelled. A lower price is not a better
entry once the structure that justified it has failed.
Complete is not the same as worth taking. From the 111.7 trigger this plan risks 4.7 points to make 3.3 — Risk-to-Reward calls that 0.70R and explains why it matters. This lesson’s job is narrower: every line is written, and every line can be checked after the trade without anyone rewriting it.
Trade thesis process
A thesis is complete only when every decision can be evaluated objectively after the trade.
1
Describe context
Identify structure, location, and any higher-timeframe conflict.
2
Name the setup
Use one defined setup such as pullback, breakout, or reversal.
3
Require a trigger
Write the exact close, retest, or structure event required for entry.
4
Define failure and objective
Set structural invalidation, target, and the no-trade condition.
Thesis completeness drill
Score 0 / 0Identify the missing or invalid component.
Minimum thesis template
1
ContextState the higher-timeframe structure and current location.
2
ConditionDescribe what price must do before an entry is allowed.
3
InvalidationUse the price that disproves the thesis—not the amount you hope to lose.
4
ObjectiveChoose the next opposing structural level and verify sufficient reward.
Common mistakes
1
Bias presented as a trade plan“Bullish” or “bearish” does not specify when to enter or when the idea is wrong.
2
Invalidation selected from desired dollar lossDetermine structural invalidation first, then reduce position size to fit the risk budget.
3
Target selected only to force 2RA mathematical target is not useful when structural resistance or support appears first.
4
Changing conditions after entryA thesis that can be rewritten after every candle cannot be tested.
Completion standard
✓
Finish when you can write all five lines on a tab you have not seen resolved.
Decision, setup, trigger, invalidation and target, with the evaluator agreeing — and not one line changed after the later candles are shown. On the range and conflict tabs the five lines are the no-trade condition, written out.
Scope: This lesson teaches process and measurement. It does not provide live market data, personalized recommendations, or trade signals.