Market Milestones: 100 Days of Discipline

[Image] Good morning ! Welcome to another terrific Friday morning. Since last Fridays close the SPY has moved an incredible -0.10%. Yes, you read that correctly, the SPY is incredibly sideways. It has been trading around this same level for the last 39 days. The bulls or the bears cannot seem to move us in either direction. However, QQQ did break out to a new relative high. This was mostly driven by GOOGL and AMZN which finally broke out and put in a very solid bullish week. When we look at the price action of this market, we can see that bulls and bears are fighting it out, trench warfare style, not gaining any ground. In the bear trench we have financials and insurance companies cratering and in the other trench you have mega tech companies closing in on their all-time highs. The main question is, will everything catch up and join mega tech with some bull moves, or will mega tech eventually join in on the bear action. On the QQQ and mega tech, but I repeat myself, the risk reward is at levels where it is skewed to the downside. We talked about this the last time QQQ was at $321, and it still holds true. As we move higher up to the $335 resistance on the QQQ, it is a great area to lock in bullish gains, get into collars, sell covered calls, and possibly get short. This bullish move could continue for a few more months before we get a decent pullback, or it could happen this month. Either way, the market will pull back. If we are in a new bull trend, we will still get a nice buyable pullback and if this is a bear market rally, we will be in for a heck of a lot more than just a pullback. Either way, there should be better bullish risk reward for those willing to stay patient and disciplined. QQQ Daily Chart [Image]( On the topic of discipline, yesterday marked the 100th day in a row that I did a Murph workout. For those of you who do not know, the “Murph” is a hero workout named after Lieutenant Michael Murphy, a navy SEAL who died serving in Afghanistan in 2005. It consists of a 1-mile run, 100 pullups, 200 push-ups, 300 squats and another 1-mile run. This is all done while wearing a 20lb weight vest. I started the “Murph-A-Day” challenge in February to push me out of my comfort zone. I wanted to challenge my consistency, improve my discipline and commit to something really hard every single day. Discipline and consistency are critically important for a trader. With discipline, hard work, and consistent action we have the ability to transcend obstacles and excel toward our goals. The harder we push ourselves, and the further we move beyond our comfort zones, the more mental and physical endurance we develop. Not every step of the journey will be enjoyable or fun, but it is through embracing the challenging moments that we truly grow. When it was -7 degrees outside and snowing it would have been a heck of a lot easier to stay inside, lay on the couch watch NFLX. It’s in those decisions between the easy path and the hard path that we either become the person we aspire to be, or we waste yet another day wallowing in mediocrity. In those moments, I am choosing to embody the best version of myself – someone devoid of excuses, relentlessly pursuing excellence no matter the circumstances. As I approach the final leg of this 120 day self-imposed challenge, I reflect on the hardships endured. Every minute of struggle has been an opportunity for growth, a chance to tap into untapped potential and push the boundaries of what I thought possible. Life's journey is a perpetual quest for improvement, and self-imposed hardships that push us from our comfort zones can be just the boost we need to level up. ETF of the Week Our ETF of the week this week is Global X Copper Miners ETF (COPX). Gold, silver and copper all took big hits on Thursday as expectations for rate cuts from the Fed increase and more money flows into risk assets. Copper is also retreating as recession fears grow and slower growth would impact the price of copper. On a technical basis, COPX just had a very strong bearish retest gap below a strong support. If it can retest back into that gap and into the small double top neckline, that would give a pretty good risk reward for a quick short. COPX [Image]( Enjoy your weekend, Yates Craig, RLT & TPN Market Analyst Disclosure: You are responsible for your own trading decisions. ALWAYS, do your own research before investing in any of the above securities. This is not a solicitation to buy/sell ETFs or securities. NEVER invest money in ETFs or stocks that you can't afford to lose. You can lose all of your capital by trading any securities mentioned. These ETFs/securities are very volatile and gain and lose value quickly. We reserve the right to freely trade in any mentioned ETFs or securities. We are not compensated by any mentioned companies. We trade ETFs and securities based on our opinion of intrinsic/possible future value only. We are not registered investment advisors, so always do your own research before buying any securities. Unable to view? Read it [online]( If you no longer wish to receive mail from us, you can [unsubscribe]( Sent from: Real Life Trading in Nashville TN 37221