A trading journal should preserve the decision you made, not the explanation that looks convincing afterward. If a winning news trade becomes “good analysis” while a losing technical trade becomes “bad discipline,” your review has changed its standard with the result.
Use the same fields for both approaches, complete the decision fields before acting, and add the outcome afterward. CME Group’s trade-log lesson recommends recording the reasons, timing and levels behind trades and reviewing how they happened alongside profit or loss. The worksheet below is our original adaptation for crypto decisions.
Separate the thesis from the trigger
The thesis is why an opportunity might exist. The trigger is the observable condition that permits an action. A confirmed announcement might support a demand thesis; a completed candle above a recorded level might trigger entry. Requiring both makes the method mixed. Label it before the result, and do not count that trade twice.
Here, news trading means trading around information or catalysts, not merger arbitrage. Our news-versus-technical comparison explains the broader distinction. A price indicator does not read the news, and a chart move alone cannot establish which event caused it.
Copy one worksheet for both approaches
Give each opportunity an ID, rule version, instrument, venue, timeframe and timezone. Save the first four rows before entry; append actual fills and the review later. Keep the original note and timestamp any revision. If evidence is missing, write “unknown.”
| Field | What to record |
|---|---|
| Thesis | News, technical or mixed; expected mechanism; evidence that would contradict it. |
| Trigger | Exact entry condition, confirmation requirement, deadline and reasons to stand aside. |
| Information | Original source or data snapshot, version, publication or candle-close time, and when you received it. |
| Risk plan | Quantity, acceptable entry, invalidation, exit instructions and cost allowance. Link the sizing calculation. |
| Execution | Order type, submission and fill times, actual quantities and prices; partial fills, cancellations and discrepancies. |
| Outcome | Realized profit or loss after costs, holding time, and separately identified open exposure. |
| Review | Rules followed or violated, supporting evidence, unresolved questions and the next review action. |
Save the release you actually read, not just its latest edited webpage. For a technical trigger, retain the data available at that moment, including whether the candle had closed. Publication time and receipt time are different fields; the look-ahead lesson explains why later information cannot repair an earlier decision.
Fill two fictional records before revealing outcomes
These are two separate invented spot-trading cases, not observations, a backtest or recommended rules. All times are UTC. Both plans buy 2 tokens without leverage, accept an entry price no higher than 100.50 USD, and specify a stop-market exit triggered at 99 USD and a take-profit limit at 101 USD. The examples illustrate selected journal fields, not a complete strategy or emergency procedure.
Record N — news. An invented project notice supports a hypothesis of increased demand. The condition is to verify the original notice before 09:01 and satisfy the entry-price limit. Record publication at 09:00:00, receipt at 09:00:20 and the fictional original notice as the evidence. Assume a full entry fill at 09:00:25 for 100 USD per token. A contrary correction would invalidate the thesis and require an exit under the plan; none occurs in this example.
Record T — technical. The thesis concerns a break above a prewritten 100 USD level. Require the completed 09:00–09:05 candle to close above that level and entry before 09:06 within the same price limit. The hypothetical close is 100.20 USD, received at 09:05:02. Assume a full entry fill at 09:05:05 for 100 USD after price moves back. No headline is required. The recorded stop defines the price-based invalidation.
Both records satisfy their stated entry conditions. Keep that assessment fixed while adding the results.
Record fills without rewriting the plan
Assume N’s stop fills completely at 99 USD at 09:10; T’s target fills completely at 101 USD at 09:12. Each case has total entry-and-exit fees of 0.40 USD. No other costs or taxes are included. These exact fills are teaching assumptions, not promised execution.
- N: 2 × (99 − 100) − 0.40 = −2.40 USD.
- T: 2 × (101 − 100) − 0.40 = +1.60 USD.
Actual fill prices already reflect any spread or slippage experienced; do not subtract those effects again as a second estimated loss. Record fees and any other applicable charges separately. For partial fills, use the executed quantities, and keep unclosed positions separate from realized results.
Investor.gov’s order explanation distinguishes market execution from price limits in securities markets. Check your crypto venue’s own rules: a stop trigger is not a guaranteed exit price, and submitting an order is not evidence of a fill. The risk guide connects execution uncertainty with position sizing.
Compare groups on the same basis
The two fictional results do not establish that technical trading beats news trading. They are different invented opportunities. For your own review, define the window and classification rules in advance. Keep venue, instrument type, position risk, holding horizon and cost treatment visible; a leveraged perpetual trade and an unleveraged spot trade are not interchangeable observations.
Record every opportunity qualifying under the monitored rules, including rejected entries and unfilled orders with reasons. Keep opportunity counts separate from completed-trade statistics. Do not invent a fill or profit for a skipped trade from the final chart. If collection was incomplete, state that limitation instead of presenting the sample as exhaustive.
Review process and outcome separately
Read the saved decision first, then its outcome. Ask what was known, whether the planned action occurred, and what needs investigation. A loss can follow the rules; a profitable deviation remains a deviation. Neither establishes the method’s profitability.
Review net results, sample size, losses, exposure and execution discrepancies together. If you change a rule, assign a new version and preserve the earlier record. The next action may be to repair missing data, investigate costs or stop using an unsupported method. A more complete journal makes those questions easier to examine; it cannot guarantee returns.
Educational information, not financial advice. All worked cases are fictional, and trading can produce losses.
