Trading Journal Audit
The stock was not the mistake. The repeat was.
You can do this in a notebook. Framework 07 is the same audit, written up from a history you provide. It is useless on an empty account. If you have not placed a first buy yet, use How to Start Investing and stop here.
When to run it
- After a stretch of wins or losses, when the story you tell yourself is getting smooth.
- Monthly or quarterly, not every session.
- When you notice you keep "just adding" after a red day.
Do not run Framework 07 to get a pep talk. If the write-up only cheers, throw it out.
What the write-up is supposed to contain
A Framework 07 output should force:
- The pattern that shows up more than once (cutting winners, holding a broken thesis, chasing a tape, doubling a loser)
- One example trade, named, with the reason at entry and the reason at exit
- Whether Framework 05 was written before the buy
- Whether Framework 06 had a max size before the buy
- One rule you will run on the next trade — written as a sentence, not a vibe
If the output is generic "avoid emotion," the run failed.
What this framework cannot do
- It does not pick a stock.
- It does not promise better returns.
- It is not therapy and not a coach.
- It cannot audit trades you did not give it.
- It does not replace the checklist.
Walkthrough: one pattern, not a ticker pitch
Notes a first audit should produce
- Pattern: added after a red day because the feeling was "it has to bounce," not because the invalidator was checked.
- Entry reason on that trade was the tape. Exit reason, if any, was the same tape. No 05 sentence existed.
- Second lot sat on top of an index that already held the name. 06 was skipped.
- Rule for next time: no add unless section 7 and a max percent are on paper.
Still open: the actual last ten closed trades, exported, with dates. Without that list this page is a sermon. Pull the list or do not run 07.
Method: How to Research a Stock.
Filled example of the stock work, not the journal: How to Analyze a Stock.
Do it yourself, then run 07
Before a credit:
- List the last ten closed trades. Ticker, date in, date out, why in, why out.
- Mark which ones had an invalidator written first.
- Mark which ones had a max size written first.
- Circle the reason that appears more than twice.
Then run Framework 07. If the list has two trades, wait until you have ten. The pattern is the point.
Common questions
I only buy index funds on a schedule. Do I need 07?
No. 07 is for people who keep making discretionary clicks. The schedule is the system.
Can I run 07 on one disaster trade?
You can. You will get a eulogy. The audit gets useful when the same move happens again.
What do I run next?
Nothing in the 15. Write checklist sections 7 and 8 before the next click.
Run Trading Journal Audit
Same demand as the ten-line list. Your history, not a ticker briefing. This is the optional faster pass — not a substitute for writing the pattern down.
Try AlphaLens Free → Use code REDDIT-FREE-TRIAL · No card required · Then $39/mo or $299/yrThen write the rule. Or do not click.