Trading and Investments. What is your Goal?

Are You Trading But Not Progressing? Do You Have a Goal and a System?

Instead of chasing the next level — try building your own system.

Sometimes you feel like you know it all. You've tried dozens of strategies. Studied with the best. But in your head — there’s no clarity, in your trades — chaos, and in the end — you’re stuck in the same place. I’ve been there too. If this sounds familiar — keep reading.

Every day, thousands of traders enter the market and do everything "by the book": they open their terminal, draw levels, learn from the pros, read the analysis. Yet years later, they’re still in the same spot. Their results are random, unstable, or negative. Why?
🔹 Not because you didn’t study enough.
🔹 Not because you can’t read a chart.
💡 Most likely, your system isn’t fully built — or your goal is still unclear.

A goal is not a wish. "I want to make money" is not a goal. A real goal sounds like: to consistently earn $1,000 a month, spending 3 hours a day on trading. Or: to live off trading income and leave my job.
Different goals require different systems: daily routines, trade evaluation criteria, analysis frequency, and risk approaches.

Here are some examples of goals and the systems they require:
Goal: Consistent side income $1,000 a month with 3 hours of trading a day → You need a system with a clear schedule, ready-made analysis templates, minimal manual effort, asset/time priorities, clear trade filters, trade logging, and weekly/monthly feedback loops (what works, what doesn’t).
Goal: Passive income through investments (e.g. 15% annual return on capital) → You need a system that includes regular fundamental analysis, long-term trend evaluation, clear rules for portfolio formation and rebalancing, risk limits per asset, profit/loss realization strategies, trade logging, and quarterly feedback reviews.
Goal: Full-time trading income, consistently earning $10,000 per month → You need a system with strict risk control, a daily trading rhythm, emotional stability support, trade tracking, and daily/weekly feedback (what’s working, what’s not).

What happens without a goal and system?
The trader opens a chart and starts "looking for an opportunity." Today it’s scalping, tomorrow swing, the next day — "I’m just observing."
📉 They don’t know what to focus on.
📉 They lose concentration.
📉 They jump into trades because "something must be done."
📉 They burn out. Because there’s no sense of progress.
Without a goal, you can’t build the system you need. A goal sets the direction and evaluation criteria. Without a system, you can’t reach the goal: you might have knowledge, actions, and effort — but they don’t add up to results. Just noise, fatigue, and the feeling of being out of sync with the market.
A system is what connects your goal and actions. It gives you stability, filters out distractions, keeps you focused, and reduces impulsive behavior.

If this feels familiar — it’s a signal. Your system and goal need an upgrade. Many start with a random mix of actions hoping for results. Few take the step toward clarifying their goal and building their system. You can be one of them — if you have a map and a direction.

Everything starts with a clear personal goal — not a generic one, but truly yours. Here are 3 practices to help you:

Define a specific trading goal.
Break it down into realistic sub-goals.
Turn the first sub-goal into a testable hypothesis.

These are the first steps before building your system.

🔹 Practice 1. "What Do I Want from Trading?" — Formulate the Goal
Purpose: To establish a clear reference point — what exactly you want to achieve through trading as an activity. Focus only on the result, not the technical details.
How to do it: Answer these 3 questions:

What monthly income do you want to earn from trading?
In how much time do you want to reach that level?
What role should trading play in your life by that point? (main income / side income / learning & growth zone)

Outcome: A short, clear goal statement to guide your planning and system building.

🔹 Practice 2. "How Will I Get There?" — Resource Audit and Sub-Goal
Purpose: To turn your big goal into a step-by-step plan and make sure each step is based on real resources: time, capital, technical capacity, and experience.
🔸 Preparation. Resource Audit
Answer these four questions honestly — they are your "fuel tank":

Capital: What is your current deposit? Will you be adding funds? How much?
Time: How many hours per week can you realistically dedicate to trading (learning + analysis + trading)?
Tech: What equipment and software do you already use? Do you need upgrades or automation?
Experience: Which strategies are you confident in? Which ones are you still learning?

Save these answers — they’ll define the limits of each sub-goal and the future system.

🔸 Sub-Goal Ladder
How to do it: Break your goal from Practice 1 into 3–4 steps. For each step, define:

Timeline (e.g. 3 months / 6 months / 1 year)
Target income at this stage
Knowledge, skills, and emotional competencies to acquire
Key success metric (e.g. monthly profit, better risk/reward ratio, higher win rate, fewer impulsive trades, sticking to your trading plan)
Key constraints: time you’re willing to invest, acceptable risk levels

Outcome: A trajectory of realistic sub-goals, each based on your time, capital, and current skill set. Now the path feels tangible.

🔹 Practice 3. "What Am I Testing Right Now?" — Define a Hypothesis for the Current Sub-Goal
Purpose: To stay focused on the nearest step — not the big vision, but a specific challenge for the next 1–3 months. This makes the process manageable.
How to do it: Formulate a hypothesis:
"If I trade ___ hours per day using [this strategy], then within ___ weeks I’ll reach a monthly income of ___, while keeping drawdown below ___%."
In parallel, I will learn ___ (new knowledge), practice ___ (skills), and develop ___ (emotional competencies).
Outcome: A concrete, testable hypothesis. Not a dream — a working tool. Your first step toward a system.

Important: Your defined goal and sub-goals are not carved in stone. As you gain experience or your life or market conditions change — review and revise them. This isn’t weakness — it’s awareness. You’re adjusting your route, not abandoning the journey.

📌 Define your goal — and keep it. It’s your starting point. It marks the transition from reactive trader to conscious professional.

See you in Part Two — where we’ll build the system that brings you to that goal.

Let your chosen goal inspire and support you on the journey. Value every step and your own effort.
Take care — and trust your path.

Warmly, Alex Wolf