Why Doing Less Made Me a Better Trader
One of the biggest shifts in my trading journey was realizing that doing less actually moved me forward.
When you come from a 9–5 world, you’re wired to believe that being busy = being productive. You’re rewarded for effort, presence, and filling your day with tasks. The more you do, the more it feels like progress.
But trading isn’t like that.
That mindset — trying to stay active and always involved in something — is what hurts most traders early on. I used to chase setups all day, thinking I had to be constantly engaged to move forward. More alerts, more tickers, more action. But the only thing that really grew was my frustration and drawdowns.
Over time, I realized that most of my real progress came from restraint. From doing less, but doing it with focus and intent. Some of my best stretches came from trading just a few names, over and over — the ones I understood deeply. I sized up only when conditions were aligned: the setup, the structure, the market, and my state of mind.
Doing less isn’t lazy. It’s strategic. It’s letting the market come to you, not forcing your will on it. That’s what creates consistency and peace of mind.
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SITUATIONAL AWARENESS, GAMEPLAN, and TOP IDEAS 6/16
THE MARKET PICTURE (5-pillars checklist)
1. $QQQ Price Action — risk-on
Giveback day off the recent push, closing 729.86 (-1.90%). Backtesting the rising 21dma-structure + recent swing high pivot around 720/723 — exactly the zone I want to see hold.
ATR Dist. 21ema at 0.74, ATR Dist. 10wma at 2.55. Not extended. Healthy digestion of a powerful 3-day move, not a character change.
2. Breadth Regime — mixed
MCSI on the LL Composite remains above the 10dma and tilting, but MCO back oversold (-1.09) on the same composite — that’s the setup hook I want to see for follow-through.
On QQQ, MCO back to neutral and MCSI back oversold (!!). Short-term breadth reset into a strong intermediate structure. Constructive.
3. Internals — risk-on
Credit Spreads (SHY/HYG) still tame, sitting below the 21dma-structure and backtesting the recent swing low pivot. No red flags.
VIX continues to tame below 21dma-structure. Both pillars still saying risk-on.
4. Liquid Leaders Action — risk-on
Same story as the index — leaders digesting after extension. AMD ran 25% in 3 days, of course it digests. Backtest of the prior swing high pivot is normal action unless we start breaking structure.
Focus list names like $FLEX, $CRDO, $CRWD, $CLS all sitting at or just above rising 21dma-structure. The board is coiling, not breaking.
5. Portfolio & NER Feedback — neutral
Constructive digestion day. After 3 days of doing nothing, started layering exposure back on.
Action: NEW BE, FLEX / ADDED — / TRIMMED — / CLOSED TSLA, CLS, NOK
NER -1.33%, OH -11.33%, NE Δ -0.55%, NE/CE 0.40x, Total Exposure 94.6% — fresh layer on but contained, off margin, exactly where I want to be overnight into FOMC.
THE GAMEPLAN
Constructive digestion, and that’s OK — part of the game to ride a trend. Everything we talked about in EMS the last few days played out: the names that ran to R just backtested, structure remains healthy, and internals aren’t flashing anything. Today is not a surprise.
The make-or-break pillar is internals + the declining 21dma-structure on Credit Spreads and VIX. As long as both stay below their declining 21dma-structure, I’m good. A reclaim there is what flips the picture — not today’s giveback. Watching that more than price.
Posture for tomorrow: leaning into a red open. After doing nothing for 3 sessions I’m already layering back, and if we get weakness on the FOMC print into 720/723 with LLs MCO back oversold, that’s exactly the spot I want to be engaged. A lot of setups need that backtest — close-near-low bars today are the tell. If we get the red open with decoupling and support holding, I push more exposure. If internals crack instead, I pull back fast. Metrics under control, off margin, FOMC + new Fed chairman tomorrow means vol — book is clean and ready to act.
TOP IDEAS FOCUS LIST
Focus is on leaders sitting at or pulling back into rising 21dma-structure — that’s where the cleanest risk/reward shows up in a constructive digestion regime.
$DOCN (54) — Technology • Software - Infrastructure
$FLEX (373) — Technology • Hardware, Equipment & Parts
$NVT (443) — Industrials • Electrical Equipment & Parts
$CRDO (490) — Technology • Communication Equipment
$PENG (579) — Technology • Hardware, Equipment & Parts
$OUST (745) — Technology • Hardware, Equipment & Parts
$FROG (828) — Technology • Software - Application
$CLS (936) — Technology • Hardware, Equipment & Parts
$CSCO (1069) — Technology • Communication Equipment
$CRWD (1141) — Technology • Software - Infrastructure
PORTFOLIO UPDATE 6/16
Hey guys, constructive digestion day. Giveback on QQQ was expected — we talked about it in EMS — and most of the names that ran to R in the last 3 days just backtested. Nothing broken.
Market picture
QQQ gave back as anticipated. We’ve almost filled the gap, and the next real spot is the rising 21dma-structure + recent swing high pivot around 720/723. That’s the level I’m watching tomorrow on a red open.
Breadth cooled off — MCO back to neutral on QQQ, but LLs MCO is back oversold (!!!). VIX still tamed below 21dma-structure. Credit spreads below 21dma-structure backtesting recent swing low pivot. Five pillars still constructive.
LLs themselves — same story. AMD ran 25% in 3 days, of course it digests for a session. Backtest of the prior swing high pivot is normal action unless we start breaking structure.
So all in all, I see this as constructive action. No guarantees, but the setup tomorrow on a red open into structure with LLs MCO back OS is exactly the kind of spot I want to be engaged for — if the action confirms it.
On my book
NER: -1.33% — fresh layer on but contained
NE Δ: -0.55%
NE/CE: 0.40x — pulled back in line after the afternoon trims
OH: -11.33%
UER: 17.8%
FER: 6.4%
Total Exposure: 94.6% — off margin, where I want to be overnight
The afternoon cuts were pure risk mngmt. Pre-close, UER was >50% and NE/CE was at 0.85x — too green, too fresh, and I was on margin without the NE delta to justify it. Closed TSLA and CLS to bring the book back in line. NOK also stopped same-day. If those new names had given me real traction and a working NE delta, different story — but that wasn’t the case, so I’m not going to babysit unproven exposure on margin overnight.
Also worth flagging: FOMC tomorrow. 14:00 decision, 14:30 conference, and a new Fed chairman — could bring more vol than usual. Another reason to keep the book clean tonight and let tomorrow tell me what to do.
Stayed engaged in the weakness as opportunity (added FLEX, BE earlier in the day) but kept NE focused on strong setups only. If tomorrow we get the red open into 720/723 with decoupling and support holding, I’ll push more exposure again. For now, metrics under control and waiting.
Good luck guys ✌️
Today’s action
NEW: BE, FLEX
ADDED:
TRIMMED:
OUT:
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Themes Lab — 6/16 🧪
Top-down read across 180+ themes — where the real RS is concentrated and which names are coiling at the 21dma-structure area.
LEADING THEMES (RS)
• Memory — RS 92 (#1)
• Semiconductor Equipment — RS 89 (#2)
• Power Semiconductors — RS 85 (#3)
• AI Infrastructure — RS 75 (#4)
• Analog Semiconductors — RS 78 (#5)
Semis dominating the tape at +85% 3M with broad strength across memory, equipment, and analog — top 5 is a clean semi sweep.
TOP SETUPS @ 21dma-structure area
• $FLEX 97 — Electronics Mfg Services
• $BWA 93 — Automotive Technology
• $BE 68 — Hydrogen (trophy carry)
THEMES SETTING UP (full breadth)
Watch the themes where the whole leadership board is coiling at the 21dma-structure area together — that’s where the cleanest follow-through tends to come from:
• Electronics Mfg Services — $FLEX anchoring with $CLS, $JBL, $TTMI all in the 97-98 RS band
TAKEAWAY
Tape is a semis tape — Memory, Semi Equipment, Power Semis, AI Infrastructure and Analog all sit at the top of the board, with Memory leaders ($SNDK, $MU, $STX, $WDC) at near-perfection RS. Cleanest individual coil sits outside semis in Electronics Mfg Services with $FLEX carrying the trophy, and $BWA flagging the first real auto-tech setup. Watch for semi follow-through to drag the EMS and analog cohorts higher.
By: @TradersLab_
LEADERS STALKLIST
Liquid Leaders Universe (top RS)
SNDK, WDC, MU, BE, STX, LITE, VSCO, ICHR, INTC, AEHR, UCTT, LRCX, DOCN, AMAT, MKSI, GTX, TSEM, TER, TTMI, KLAC, STLD, STM, AMD, VECO, ATI, M, ONTO, ASML, COHU, TIGO, VIAV, JBHT, VSH, AMKR, FORM, MT, ALAB, SATS, KNX, ACMR, SMTC, DELL, CHRW, MRVL, ODFL, ARM, TKR, DAL, JBL, CAT
Liquid Leaders 21dma-structure Pullback scan (LONG)
BE, DOCN, TSEM, AEHR, INTC, STM, APLD, MXL, SMTC, COHR, MT, LSCC, FLEX, NVT, CORZ, KEYS, BWA, MOD, CRDO, TIGO, KNX, PENG, MTSI, POWI, GM, CGNX, ENTG, OUST, ON, JCI, GFS, INOD, ODFL, BURL, FLNC, ADI, FROG, TXN, ST, PWR
Liquid Leaders Episodic Pivot (EP) sorted by Gap (Potential new Leader/Catalyst)
None
REFERENCES
PT Wiki Is Now Live!!
After weeks of building, writing, editing, and organizing... I’ve finally wrapped up the Free PrimeTrading Wiki. This is the central place where I’ve documented my entire swing trading system — the mindset, process, setups, tools, and how I actually execute.
If you’ve ever wanted a full breakdown of how I approach the market day in and day out, this is it.
What’s Inside:
Alex's Swing Trading System – full framework, entries, sizing, market timing
TradersLab Scans – the exact filters I use to build my Focus List
Trading Psychology Reflections – key mindset shifts and lessons
Glossary of Terms – clear definitions so we’re all speaking the same language
Education Articles – deep dives on Risk Management and Market Structure
Education Sessions – recorded walkthroughs: system, TLMM, process building
Tools – my Trading Journal + TradingView scripts (21dma structure, ATR extensions)
The only piece still missing is the Discord Onboarding section — it’ll be added in the next few days. This project is for you — to help you understand the why, not just the what. Let me know what you think.
https://traderslab.gitbook.io/primetrading
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