Trading Plan Template: The 7 Rules to Write Before You Trade
A practical trading plan template covering market, setup, entry, stop, size, exit, and review rules for paper-trading practice.
· 6 min read · trading-plan, discipline, risk, checklist
A trading plan is a written decision system for one trade type. It defines what you trade, what setup qualifies, where you enter, where you are wrong, how much you risk, how you exit, and how you review the result. Without that written boundary, every chart starts to look tradable.
The 7-rule template
Write the plan as rules, not wishes. A useful template is: market, time frame, setup, entry trigger, invalidation, position size, and exit plan. If any line is blank, the trade is not ready.
- Market: stocks, crypto, or one watchlist only.
- Time frame: the chart you judge and the chart you execute.
- Setup: trend pullback, breakout retest, range fade, or another named pattern.
- Invalidation: the price action that proves the idea wrong.
- Size: risk dollars first, position units second.
Good plans reject trades
Three-node practice loop: predict the next candle, reveal the outcome, journal the lesson — then repeat.
The plan is doing its job when it says no. If the stop is too wide, the volume is weak, the level is untested, or the candle closes back inside the range, the answer is no trade. A rejected trade is not missed profit; it is protected attention.
Use the plan inside the simulator
In One Candle Ahead, choose one setup and run 30 reps before changing rules. For every rep, write the reason before revealing the next candle. The goal is not to win every candle; the goal is to learn whether the rule produces repeatable decisions.
Test a trading plan on real candles →
Frequently asked questions
How long should a trading plan be?
One page is usually enough. If you cannot read the plan before a trade, it is too long. Keep detailed notes in the journal, not in the execution checklist.
Should beginners trade multiple setups?
No. Beginners learn faster by drilling one setup across many charts. Add a second setup only after the first has at least 50 reviewed examples.