Sometimes the most insidious mistake is the one that appears to be correct. I call it the 'correct trader' mistake. This is when you do everything by the rules: you adhere to risk management, you don’t open positions without a setup, you keep a journal. Externally disciplined, internally waiting for perfection. And it is this pressure that subtly transforms trading from a process into an exam that you try to pass every day without a single mistake.
It manifests itself very quietly, almost imperceptibly. For example, you enter a trade according to plan, see that the price is moving in your direction, but you can't make yourself hold on to the movement you initially expected. You close earlier. Not because the market gave a new signal. Not because the structure broke. But because fear of ruining the 'perfect day' awakens inside you. It's as if you envisioned in advance how the price would reverse, and that becomes your 'mistake', although in fact, the mistake happens right now — you exit without respect for your own plan.
Another manifestation is the fear of a stop. Many think this is a problem only for beginners, but this is a mistake that can easily catch even experienced traders. You hold a trade, see that it's close to the stop, and start to interfere: you move it, adjust it, close it manually. And all this is just because you want to avoid the feeling of failure. Although a stop is not a failure. It's a tool, part of the system, and it does its job. But when the mindset 'I must trade perfectly' sits in your head, any stop turns into a blow to self-esteem.
There is also a subtle form of this mistake — micromanagement. You seem to enter according to the rules, but internal anxiety makes you check the chart every two minutes, adjust your position, and move levels. It looks like control, but in fact, it's an attempt to avoid the slightest uncertainty. You don't trust the system, yourself, or the market. And the more you interfere, the worse the result becomes.
This mistake is also deceptive in that a person begins to confuse discipline with perfectionism. Discipline is when you follow your rules. Perfectionism is when you try to eliminate any possible flaw, any deviation, any 'terrible situation' that could ruin the picture. And because of this, a trader stops allowing positions to live their own lives and achieve natural results. Instead, they try to make the chart obedient. And the market doesn't like it when you try to make it convenient.
I have seen many traders who did everything by the books, but because of this one mistake, they were stuck in place for years. They were afraid to make mistakes, and because of that, they made more mistakes. I was trapped in this as well. It's a state where you trade not for the result but to prove to yourself that you can be flawless. But perfection is an illusion. The market is alive, and if you try to be perfect, you simply become less flexible.
To get out of this trap, you need to take several steps.
First, stop expecting perfection from yourself. Allow yourself to take losses, allow trades to develop, allow statistics to be alive. This is not an exam; you are not submitting anything to anyone.
Secondly, start recording why you closed a trade prematurely. If the reason is emotion, that's already a signal.
Thirdly, try trading for a month in a way that you don't touch trades after entering if there is no objective change in the structure. It's tough, but incredibly useful — this is how trust in yourself and the system is formed.
And most importantly — remember: true discipline is not about being perfect. It's about being consistent. The mistake of a correct trader is dangerous because it seems like a virtue. But when you peel away that layer, simple things emerge — fear, pressure, the desire to please yourself. You can work with these feelings. And when you stop striving for perfection, you finally start trading like an adult, not like a straight-A student afraid to crumple a page in a notebook.
