Here's excerpts from an email I sent out to everyone on July 23, 2009:

"What's the single biggest "Missing Link" you feel that if you only
could get a better handle on, would help you WIN with big breakouts
more often?

Could be a trading signal you're missing, or the confidence to pull the
trigger, or your timing. You tell me.

It's EASY -- just let me know what you think you're missing out on, when it comes to "how to catch breakout wins" in your personal stock swing and day trades?

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And here's some of the interesting replies I received from traders via email (thanks! - feel free to register for the forum and post your reply as well):

Note I'll be starting a blog at the soon-to-be-updated TradeMastery.com site so that replying will be easier than ever...stay tuned!
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Ken, I find my biggest challenges in trading breakouts are

1. Finding stocks, narrowing range of stocks to watch. Seems that by the time I recognize move the risk/reward seems too low.
2. How to tell when run is over vs rest for next leg up.
3. trinq vs trin do both need to less than .75, what if divergence ie one )1 one (1
4. learning the 7 levels of scanning

Hope this helps you, I appreciate your help

-J

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Finding out which are the fastest movers.
What makes you choose those stocks when the volume was not that great?

P

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Hi, Ken,

The TRIN and TRINQ were divergent this morning, so maybe that meant that one should stay on the sidelines, but if the TRINQ is usually a lead indicator, I could not figure out why it was not going down when the NASDAQ was making a fairly good rally (unless the TRIN takes into consideration that the market may just be in a temporary bullish move but that it is overall down today.)

Maybe I just need to get out some of my original trading books and read up on how it is calculated. I am still fascinated with this TRIN stuff, but obviously one has to keep looking at all the other things during a trade.

Have a wonderful day!

S

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Hi Ken,

Your email came just the right time since I was just thinking a few days ago looking at my trading journal about the issue I have. I do find hot stocks of the day but I fail to reenter especially if the first breakout got me stopped out.

So no reentry would be my issue and I don't know why I keep doing it. It is true though that you teach if a stock makes 3/4 of previous day move, don't trade it.


Regards,

L.


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Biggest problems are lack of timing. Always late to the action. Also, the confidence to pull the trigger, always needing some kind of confirmation. I spend too much time looking for "the breakout with the most relative strength" and never get around to pulling the trigger!
S
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Hi Ken,

Probably the biggest issue is not seeing them until after the fact. I am
more of a swing trader, but I miss catching them until after they have moved for a few days. Like GS recently.

Thanks,

C
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Ken,
i am the eternal pessimist.... and just cannot believe the market and stocks will go up. consequently i only short... but i wish there was a way i could have confidence in going long..... but in the last 6 years i have only shorted..... any suggestions?
-E

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Hi Ken,

I think you said it pretty well. I am 'OK comfortable' with the breakout trades; and if they do not work I have a tight stop, but I am not sure how to find what to trade on a regular basis. Added to that, the part of 'pulling the trigger' is always an issue.

S
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No trouble pulling the trigger, but deciding on a list of candidates that go up big, although I know about ATR, I should use or look up the ATR of stocks. Is that the trick, the ATR of a stock and volume?

Thanks,
C

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(names truncated for privacy).

Thanks, traders for sharing your insights; that's helpful. I didn't post all the comments (sorry if yours didn't appear, I had a lot).... I just took a sample of them for this forum post. Feel free to register/post your thoughts on "why do you miss breakouts" here as well - it would be great to hear your thoughts if they don't appear above.

One key strategy I'm developing, the "Momentum Doubler", is specifically designed to help traders scale into positions more easily when the breakouts appear; more is coming on that in the weeks ahead.


To profits,

Ken