if you ever asked me,

what chore i hated most in this world,

i would tell you without a pause,

it was standing at the sink,

washing the dishes.

i’d rather scrub the dust from every floorboard,

fold endless mountains of heavy sheets,

clean every forgotten corner of the house,

and cook a feast for a hundred strangers,

before i let my hands sink,

into that stagnant, grey water.

the thought of it made my skin crawl,

the cold, abandoned remnants of a meal,

the grease clinging stubbornly to porcelain,

the sickening textures under my fingers,

and the way the hot water stole the softness,

leaving my hands tight, pale, and wrinkled.

it always felt like a cruel, invisible loop,

like pouring yourself into a drain,

a thankless, silent routine,

that no one ever notices or praises,

until the day the sink is left full,

and the silence turns heavy.

but then the front door clicks,

and you walk in from another brutal day,

bringing the cold air inside with you,

carrying the weight of a dozen unseen battles,

on shoulders that look just a little heavier,

a little more curved than yesterday.

i watch you wander into the kitchen,

and before you even speak a word,

i see that quiet flicker of defeat,

the sigh trapped behind your lips,

when your eyes land on the mess,

and you realize the day is still asking,

for more than you have left to give.

i see the slow erosion time has carved,

the sharp lines settling into your forehead,

the fading embers where light used to live,

the silver quietly threading through your hair,

and the callouses on your tired fingers,

hands that have worked so hard to build,

only to come home and break a little more.

and standing there, watching you,

the truth hit me like a quiet ache.

it was never really about the dishes.

it was about the loneliness of being the only one,

the slow poison of feeling entirely unheld,

the exhausted prayer for a soft place to land,

where you don’t have to carry every single piece,

just to keep the world from falling apart.

it was about needing someone to notice,

without you having to ask.

so now, without a single bitter thought,

i roll back my sleeves,

and i turn the hot tap on.

i’d wash the dishss

a hundred times over,

if it means you get to lay your armor down,

close your eyes in the quiet,

and finally,

let yourself breathe.

Join the Snail Mail Club

Now that we’ve cleared out the noise and debunked those myths, the next logical step is The Pre-Market Routine.

Think of this like setting up your space before getting into a groove. If you open your laptop the exact second the opening bell rings, you’re already behind, stressed, and reacting instead of executing. A quick 15-minute check-in beforehand is how you stay completely grounded and in control.

The biggest mistake beginners make is opening the charts in a rush and trying to catch a move they haven’t planned for. When you trade on pure adrenaline, you make impulsive mistakes.

Professional traders don’t rush. They treat their prep like a calm, standard checklist so they know exactly what they’re looking for before the candles start jumping.

Here is the straightforward 4-step checklist to run through before your session:

1. The News Check (Economic Calendar)

Before you do anything, check a site like ForexFactory for high-impact news releases. If major economic numbers drop at 8:30 AM, the market will whip around violently. You don’t guess the news; you just wait for the dust to settle before taking a position.

2. The Big Picture Direction

Pull up the Daily or 4-Hour chart. Remind yourself of the main trend. Are buyers in control or are sellers running the show? Decide your bias upfront so you aren’t fighting the larger momentum.

3. Mark the Key Zones

Drop down to the 1-Hour chart and outline your main levels: clean highs, lows, or discount areas. These are your waiting rooms. If price isn’t at one of these levels, there is literally nothing for you to do.

4. Set Alerts and Step Back

Instead of hyper-focusing on every tiny 1-minute wiggle, set price alerts near your zones. Let the market come to you while you sit back and relax.

When you show up prepared, trading stops feeling chaotic. You aren’t guessing—you’re just waiting for your criteria to be met.

The Homework: The 15-Minute Prep

Step 1: Check the Calendar

Head to an economic calendar and check if there are high-impact news events scheduled during your trading window today.

Step 2: Map Your Levels

Pick one ticker, zoom out to the 1-Hour chart, and mark the clearest high and low you see on the screen.

Step 3: Set One Alert

Set a price alert right before your chosen level so your platform notifies you when price gets close.

Step 4: Post Your Setup

In the comments, share your plan: “On [Ticker], my high-timeframe bias is [Bullish/Bearish], and I have an alert set at[Price]. No red-folder news until [Time / Clear today].”

my eyes hurt

it’s because you’re always on that damn phone

my head hurts

it’s that damn phone

i’m not hungry

maybe if you drop that damn phone

i’m too lazy

quit using that damn phone

i don’t have the energy

it’s that damn phone

we grew up hearing it from the other side of the room,

like a broken record skipping on the same old track.

how could it be the phone?

that makes no sense, right?

just a slab of glass and metal, cold in the palm.

how could a pocket-sized window hold so much weight?

but

i want a body like hers, chiseled and airbrushed out of reality.

i want a life like hers, packaged neatly in a pastel aesthetic.

wow, look at this vacation spot, tucked into a digital postcard.

i wish i had that kind of money.

i wish i looked like her.

wait... who is this person i’m staring at while the room goes dark?

oh, a notification. you want to get to know me?

whats your favorite color?

mine too, obviously.

wait, why aren’t they responding?

did they leave me on read? did they hate my story?

i only posted that for them,

just to flash a neon sign

screaming look at me, i’m living an interesting life,

as i sit and lay in bed like a ghost in my own sheets,

rewatching and refreshing and scrolling,

a captive audience waiting for my own life to finally start,

borrowing the pulse of someone else’s highlight reel.

whats your screen time?

5 hours? thats cute, mines 9.

woah, 9 hours?

a day? a third of a lifetime spent glowing in the dark?

dread creeps in like cold water rising up to my chest.

okay, i’ll stop and i’ll quit, i swear.

i’ll leave my phone at home today, step out naked into the real world.

but the phantom limbs ache

the ghost vibrations trick my thigh.

i look around on the street

and i see

what feels like

more glowing screens than breathing people.

i get on the bus

and no one makes eye contact, everyone staring downward like mourners at a funeral.

i walk around the park

and i dont see a single soul

whose attention isnt hijacked,

leashed to the blue light bleeding across their face.

ring, ring

a phantom chime.

and as if by pure reflex,

my hand darts to my pocket like a stray dog lunging for scraps,

trying to pick up a call that isn’t there,

clawing for a hit that never came.

so i try taking a real walk,

forcing myself to sit with my own mind

instead of reaching for a constant, intravenous drip

of short-form content

that i consume at double speed

because my attention span

has been fried down to cinders.

and i walk up a mountain,

dragging my feet,

still consumed in the static of my own thoughts,

wondering what gossip or news or trends i’m missing out on while i climb.

brain rot. is that what my brain has turned into?

ive made my way up a mountain, foot by heavy foot,

and at some point, high above the city noise,

something shifts.

my chest stops heaving, i started breathing easier.

woah. the sky is so big and blue,

and that cloud looks like a sprawling frog leaping across the horizon.

and look, that squirrel finally cracked open that stubborn nut.

and woah...

the world is so impossibly big,

and the grass beneath my boots feels so soft, so undeniably real.

i didnt realize how far i could see, how much horizon was waiting for me,

when for so long it felt like the whole world was right here in my hands,

trapped just 20 inches away behind a sheet of glass.

but that’s not the world.

that’s a curated illusion, a stage set by unseen hands.

you see the perfect life,

and the impossible views,

and the flawless food,

and the ancient cultural dances,

and i’ve experienced it all

in a hollow, second-hand way.

why buy a ticket and sweat on the trail

when i can just consume it all from the comfort of my mattress?

when did this subtle erosion happen?

i miss the raw clumsiness of old conversations,

the messy nights we spent arguing about things no one actually knew the answers to,

when we had to guess, and wonder, and talk,

way before algorithms, and twitter feeds, and zoom meetings,

when you actually had to meet people face to face without a digital resume preceding you.

back when there wasn’t this polished, impossible image

of the ideal life

and the ideal person you were supposed to morph into.

you had the ragged freedom to just live your life the way you chose,

and no one else kept score.

your life wasn’t plastered across a global database,

you didn’t carry the low-grade panic of being cancelled for an awkward sentence,

and you didn’t compare every microscopic flaw of your tuesday

to someone else’s heavily filtered saturday.

when did likes,

and validation comments,

and hollow shares

become the currency of our entire existence?

when did we trade the messy warmth of actual human contact

for flat pictures glowing on an 8-inch screen?

when did we collectively decide we’d rather

enjoy the sunset through a camera lens

than stand in the dirt and let the wind hit our faces?

when did we accept that our own quiet dreams

were too small, and too boring?

when did we decide that life can only be validated if it’s witnessed,

instead of experienced firsthand?

maybe it really was the damn phones all along.

and now it’s metastasized,

come to the point

where it’s no longer a luxury choice, it’s an anchor.

you need it for education,

you need it for money,

you need it for digital payment at the counter,

you need it for driving directions when you’re lost,

you need it for quick questions and instant answers,

for communicating,

for art,

for expression,

for survival in a world built entirely around a microchip.

for anything you want to do in life,

you are tethered to that damn phone.

we sit in the dark watching hollywood movies

where rogue AI and towering robots take over the world in a sci-fi war,

and we nod, thinking the threat is metal skeletons marching down the street.

but what about the quiet, invisible takeover?

the fact that your every micro-movement is harvested,

your media diet meticulously engineered

to feed your insecurities and show you exactly what keeps you hooked.

you only see the world

through a lens designed to hold your gaze.

they hear what you type,

they map the hesitation in your keystrokes,

they know what keeps you awake at 2 AM.

every scroll,

every algorithmic click,

every half-erased letter typed out in a text box

is monitored, weighed, and monetized.

the way your eyes dart across a screen

and the exact cadence of your voice

can be replicated, harvested, and transformed.

the life you think is yours,

your tastes, your aesthetics, your quiet despairs,

is just an echo chamber of the content you consume.

so are we really worried about robots taking over the world

when all you are

is just a manufactured product

of what the internet raised you to be?

Join the Snail Mail Club 💌

hello my loves <3

for a while now, becoming that girl has lived right here on your screens, a space where we talk about growth, quiet moments, and navigating life together.

but honestly, this idea has been sitting on my heart and in the back of my mind for months: i really wanted to create something tangible for you.

something slow paced, intentional, and real. a little excuse to step away from the fast scroll, make your favorite drink, and just pause.

i am so excited to finally tell you that snail mail is officially happening, and the very first package goes out on september 15th! 💌

i’ve spent so much time quietly researching, planning, and figuring out the details to get everything ready. it’s almost time, and i truly hope this grows into something you all love as much as i do.

here is what will be inside your envelope each month:

exclusive letters and original poems: little pieces of writing meant just for your hands. these are completely private and will only go out to you in the mail, they won’t be posted here on substack or anywhere else online.

art prints and keepsakes: things you can slip into your journal, tape up, or keep on your desk.

mindful prompts/stickers: gentle reflections to sit with during your quiet hours.

im sure i’ll make some mistakes along the way since this is a whole new venture for me, but i really can’t wait to start this journey with you and learn as i go :)

if you want to join and get the very first envelope on september 15th, you can subscribe right here: https://ko-fi.com/becomingthatgirl

thank you for always being here and supporting this space. i can’t wait for these to reach your mailbox. <3

subscribe to monthly snail mail 💌

Now that we’ve talked about finding your session and checking the big picture, we have to clear away the noise that stops people from ever opening a chart in the first place.

Let’s talk about Trading Myths.

When most people picture trading, they imagine stressful finance guys yelling at screens, doing high-level math, or gambling away thousands of dollars. But real trading looks completely different, and it is way simpler than people make it out to be.

It’s super easy to talk yourself out of starting when the myths are that loud. But once you strip away the drama, trading isn’t a high-stress gambling match, it’s just a skill you learn at your own pace.

Here are four big myths standing between you and the charts:

Myth 1: “You need thousands of dollars to start.”

Absolutely not! You don’t need a huge bankroll to learn the ropes. Most brokers let you start small, and even better, you can start on a Paper Trading (Demo) account for free. It lets you practice with fake money until you feel completely confident in your setup.

Myth 2: “You have to be a math genius.”

If you can add and subtract, you have all the math skills you need. Trading isn’t complex calculus, it’s visual pattern recognition. It’s simply reading the story the chart is telling, spotting repetitive shapes, and following basic rules.

Myth 3: “You have to sit at a screen for 8 hours a day.”

Staring at candlesticks all day actually leads to burnout and silly mistakes. Most successful traders log on for a specific 1 to 2-hour window during their chosen session, execute their trade if the setup is there, and then close the laptop to go live their life. Quality over quantity, always.

Myth 4: “You need 6 crazy monitors.”

A simple laptop, a clean desk, and a quiet space are all you need. Extra screens don’t make you extra profitable. Keeping your workspace simple helps keep your mind calm and focused.

Trading isn’t about fitting a certain stereotype. It’s about creating a calm, structured routine that fits into your actual lifestyle.

The Homework: The Mindset Check

Step 1: Identify the Trap

Which of these four myths was secretly keeping you from getting started or making you feel overwhelmed?

Step 2: Clean Your Workspace

Set up a clean, quiet space where you can focus for 20 minutes without any distractions.

Step 3: Post Your Realization

In the comments, drop a quick note: “I used to think Myth #[Number] was true, but now I know I just need [A Demo Account / 1 Hour / 1 Laptop / Simple Patterns]!”

if you read my piece called “a time to reflect”, you know i’ve been sitting in that heavy, frustrating space of feeling like a background character in my own life. wondering if i’ll ever truly find my thing.

well, i told you i was working on that reflection exercise, and honestly? doing the work is messy, uncomfortable, and completely necessary. i finally sat down, opened up the pages, and let myself be brutally honest about what i want, what’s holding me back, and who i actually want to become.

here is what came out of it. no filters, no pretending i have it all figured out, just the raw process of trying to figure it out.

My Reflection Journal

1. Goals: Write them in artistic detail.

hmm, this is a tough one. i haven’t really sat back and thought about my goals in a long time, and now that i do, i’m not entirely sure what i want. i definitely don’t want a 9-5, but i also don’t want to stay home…nope, definitely not that. i know i want financial freedom, something engaging to do, and the ability to spend my days however i choose. i want to build a business. growing up around business people, i realized that’s the kind of life i want to live, just a bit simpler: a successful business that provides real value to society, a steady income for me, and good opportunities for others. something that builds a solid reputation while still being something i genuinely enjoy. something that gives me the freedom to travel when i want, spend money freely, enjoy my free time, and live without constant stress.

at first, i liked the thought of a bakery, but unless it scales into a massive franchise like Crumbl, it wouldn’t be very profitable, and i don’t think i have that level of scale in me right now. or perhaps a marketing agency, something that gives new grads an edge in a horrible job market. honestly, why not both?

but first, i want to become a profitable trader. i need to know i have a high-income skill i can rely on when things get rocky or when businesses hit a slow patch. trading will let me work from anywhere, fund my future businesses, and hire top talent to run them day-to-day. that’s the vision: a profitable trader who uses her gains to create opportunities for others during tough times, with a peaceful life waiting at home. eventually, the businesses will run themselves while i spend my days traveling, learning new skills, meeting new people, creating art, and writing. and when i come home, i’ll spend time with family and friends, enjoy nature, drop by the bakery or the agency just to watch everything run smoothly from behind the scenes.

i picture having two homes. one near a lake, a redwood lodge-style house with a stone fireplace, the go-to spot for get-togethers, tucked near a beach, hiking trails, and a cozy local diner. the other house will be near the city: a quiet, hacienda-style home with an open courtyard, a pool, a lush garden, and an open-concept kitchen filled with flowers. it’ll have an outdoor art studio, a piano in the living room, and a balcony with an incredible view of the city.

2. Reminders & Affirmations

i’m a strong, independent woman

i’m in my feminine era

i’m successful

i’m at peace

i’m calm and collected

i’m profitable

i’m a good person

i’m helping society

i’m doing my best, and it’s enough

i know what i’m doing; i’m not an imposter

i can do anything i put my mind to

don’t let anyone else define who you are

i am enough

the right person will find and accept me exactly as i am

3. Visualisation

it’s a monday morning. i wake up composed, free of anxiety, with an open schedule and nothing heavy hanging over me. it’s 6:30 am and i’m looking at the charts, but i’m completely cool, knowing that whether this trade wins or loses, my emotional baseline remains steady. i set my trade and walk away. around 8:00, i make my coffee and pre-workout, catching up on a show or reading a bit while sitting on the verandah, soaking in the morning sun. i water my plants, smell the flowers, and check on the tomatoes i started growing.

then i head to the gym for a solid workout and a deep stretch, maybe a light run or jog if it isn’t leg day. coming home, i shower and enjoy a high-protein breakfast made with vegetables picked straight from my own garden, followed by more reading. later, inspiration hits, so i paint for a while. i check in on how the agency is running, and since a friend wants to grab lunch around 2:00, we head out for tacos. by 5:00, i’m at the boxing gym ready to train. it’s sparring day, and my partner pushes me, i learn a ton. after training, i stop by the bakery to see what’s fresh, head home to clean up, and maybe drop by the local bar for a nice drink. tomorrow i’ll go for a hike, and maybe next week i’ll take a trip. but today was a good day. i close it out by jotting down a few thoughts, drifting off to sleep without a single worry in the world.

4. Inquiry

how do i become a profitable trader?

how do i become independent?

how do i get over my fear of not being good enough or feeling like an imposter?

how do i convince my mind not to give up the moment things get hard?

what are some of the underlying issues i need to work on?

what are the specific skills i need to develop?

why don’t i have my ideal life yet? what’s actually stopping me?

what am i doing right?

what am i doing wrong?

what are the exact steps i need to take to bridge the gap to my ideal life?

what’s holding me back from becoming this version of myself?

5. Presence

in this moment, i feel a tightness in my chest rather than a heavy weight. i feel stuck, as if i don’t quite know what i’m doing or why i’m doing it. i’m a natural planner, but right now, i don’t have a plan…i feel like a fish just being swept along by the current. i’m at work, surrounded by the very habits and comforts i’ve been trying to step away from. they feel familiar and comforting, right up until the moment they don’t.

right now, i feel lost and confused. i want so much from life, but it feels like i lack the mental capacity, the discipline, or the patience to juggle it all. my expectations feel too high, leaving a massive, glaring gap between the person i am today and the person i want to become. everyone tells me “life doesn’t go according to plan,” which makes planning feel entirely useless, yet without goals, what am i even working toward? i just want a life that feels peaceful, calm, and easy to inhabit. sometimes, asking for that feels like asking for too much. i feel a wave of hopelessness and dread, battling between two voices: one that knows i have the capability to do great things, and another whispering that i’m just an imposter with a lot of external potential that’s ultimately going to go to waste.

6. Synthesis

how do i become a profitable trader?

i need to tighten my focus on my strategy, lean into real discipline, and actually sit through my trades. waking up consistently at 6:20 am gets me prepared to fully execute according to my rules, staying put until the trade plays out. i need to actively manage my fomo and greed, stop procrastinating on my backtesting, and figure out my exact win rate. most importantly, i need to be patient when things don’t go my way and hold myself fully accountable. in trading, the only variable for profit or loss is you. the market does whatever it wants, and i can’t blame anyone else for my failures.

how do i become independent?

i need my own income and the courage to stand up to my family. i can’t be a pushover anymore. if i want to build the life i’m dreaming of, i have to let go of the need to be flawless in their eyes and accept that changing their expectations will be uncomfortable. but if i keep trying to be who they want me to be, i’ll sacrifice the person i am meant to be. as soon as i have the financial foundation to back it up, it’s time to step into that independence. sometimes, stepping into your own life means accepting that you will disappoint people who have a rigid script written for you.

how do i get over my fear of not being good enough or imposter syndrome?

by making peace with myself. i’ve said it before: the only person i am guaranteed to live with for the rest of my life is myself. i need to stop demanding perfection and just allow myself to be human. people fail; no one is good at everything, and you don’t need to be. as long as i enjoy what i’m doing and feel satisfied with it, external opinions don’t matter. i’m so quick to grant grace and accept flaws in everyone else, why do i treat myself like the sole exception? i need to learn how to be genuinely content with who i am right now.

how do i convince my mind to not give up as soon as i start failing?

by treating failure as a data point, not a verdict. you can’t learn anything worthwhile without making mistakes. when someone points out what you did wrong, or when you aren’t great at something the first time around, don’t take it personally. think back to when you first tried accounting, you weren’t good at it then, either, but look how that turned out because you gave yourself permission to learn. all it takes is practice, patience, and a willingness to be teachable. you aren’t always going to be the smartest person in the room, and if you ever are, you’re in the wrong room.

what are some of the issues i need to work on?

my imposter syndrome, my fear of not being good enough, my fear of being alone or abandoned, my anxiety around disappointing others, my short attention span, my fomo, my lack of patience, my inconsistent discipline, my default pessimism, and the tendency to feel things far too deeply and personally.

what are some of the skills i need to develop?

discipline, patience, self-acceptance, and healthy habits like journaling and emotional release. alongside those, tangible skills: mastering the art of trading, improving my painting technique, expanding my vocabulary, language learning, better investment habits, sharp time management, open communication, and everyday assertiveness.

why don’t i have my ideal life yet? what’s stopping me?

my lack of sustained patience, scattered direction, poor daily discipline, and the urge to try and do everything all at once. this is a marathon, not a sprint. i need to slow down, because life isn’t about rushing to some final destination; it’s entirely about the journey.

what am i doing right?

right now, it’s easy to feel like nothing is going right, but that’s just the hopelessness talking. let’s be fair: as of right now, i’ve stopped risking real capital and stepped back to paper trade so i can calm my nerves. i’m learning to filter out things that aren’t meant for me. by writing all of this down, i’m actively acknowledging the problem, which is the hardest first step. i’m trying out new baking recipes, and i’m making a conscious effort to cut down my screen time so i have actual space to live my life.

what am i doing wrong?

honestly, listing this part is almost too easy… which is just the pessimism talking again. i haven’t been waking up at 6:00. i’ve been skipping workouts and isolating myself. my diet and boxing technique have slipped. i’ve been putting off backtesting my strategy, letting laziness creep into my trading and business goals, and occasionally prioritizing the wrong things entirely.

what are the steps i need to take to get my ideal life?

the best way to step into your ideal life is to act like it’s already yours, which should be simple enough to start practicing. tomorrow morning, i wake up at 6:30 to paper trade my strategy with full focus. i’ll make my coffee and pre-workout snack, hit the gym with genuine intent, and stock the fridge with groceries tailored to my high-protein goals. i’ll trade mindless screen time for reading, writing, or painting. i’ll stay 100% present, refine my strategy through consistent backtesting, spend quality time with family without losing my temper, and map out a concrete business plan. i’ll show up fully to boxing instead of half-assing it, cook a new recipe when i get home, journal my thoughts before bed, and repeat the rhythm the next day.

what’s stopping me from becoming this version of myself?

literally nothing except my own mind. i set my own limits, and it is long past time to take my foot off the brake.

Now that we’ve talked about finding the right time of day to trade, the next easy step is understanding Top-Down Analysis.

Don’t let the name confuse you, it’s just the practice of looking at the big picture before you zoom in on the smaller details. Think of it like using Google Maps, you zoom out to see what city you’re in before zooming in to find a specific house.

When you open up a chart for the first time, it’s super easy to get lost in all the little 1-minute or 5-minute candles. If you only look at a tiny slice of time, a quick jump in price can look like a huge rally, even if the stock is actually dropping like a stone on the bigger scale.

This is why traders look at multiple timeframes before making any decisions.

It’s as simple as checking three different views:

The High-Level View (Daily or 4-Hour Chart): This is your main compass. You look at this chart to see the overall trend. Is the price climbing up a mountain or sliding down a hill? You always want to trade in the same direction as this big trend.

The Story View (1-Hour Chart): This is where you look for key levels like strong floors, ceilings, or gaps where the price previously reacted. It gives context to the big picture.

The Detailed View (15-Minute or 5-Minute Chart): This is where you zoom in to look for your actual setup and find a clean entry.

If the daily chart shows the market is in a strong uptrend, you only want to look for buy setups on your smaller chart. Trading against the big picture is like swimming upstream, it takes a lot of effort for very little payoff.

Taking two minutes to zoom out first keeps you on the right side of the road.

The Homework: The Zoom Check

Step 1: The Big View

Open a chart and set the timeframe to Daily (1D). Is the overall price moving up, moving down, or just bouncing sideways?

Step 2: The Medium View

Switch the chart to 1-Hour (1H). Mark down the highest peak and the lowest valley you see on the screen.

Step 3: The Detailed View

Switch down to 15-Minute (15M). Notice how those big moves on the 1-hour chart are actually made up of lots of tiny candles.

Step 4: Post Your Map

In the comments, share your view: “On [$Ticker], the Daily chart trend is [Up / Down / Sideways], so on my 15-minute chart, I’m only looking for [Buy / Sell] opportunities.”

would you say falling in love is easy?

how easy is it to find your person,

the one who seems painted in gold light?

and yes, i realize nobody is perfect.

but the way your eyes catch the sunlight,

the way your smile pulls the air right out of the room,

and your laugh,

oh, that amazing laugh

that echoes in every room you enter,

makes choosing you feel like the easiest thing in the world.

the way your hair falls across your forehead,

practically begging for a hand to push it back.

the way your touch lands,

gentle as a feather carried by a steady wind.

your lips meet mine like a missing puzzle piece,

and for the first time, my pulse slows.

the armor shatters, and my body finally knows

what it means to step out of flight mode.

even the mechanics of your mind fascinate me,

the way your thoughts turn gears mine could never touch.

your sudden goofiness,

your quiet patience when my silence stretches too long,

it all weaves together to feel like we belong.

but what happens when the day burns out and you become your shadow?

will i still reach for you then?

will you reach for me?

it’s easy to love someone in the high noon of their joy,

but what happens when the lights go dark?

will you still see grace in the mirror

when my face is flushed red with anger,

when life fractures and nothing goes our way?

in sickness and in health, the vows say,

but do they survive the quiet erosion of reality?

what happens when the honeymoon air thins

and the landscape stops looking like a postcard?

if i let you walk down into the heavy parts of me,

if i open the cellar doors and show you the dark,

would you still want me?

if i told you the whole truth,

the broken pieces i had to shatter and bury

just to claw my way into becoming who i am today,

would you stay?

would you be able to stomach

that i was never the pristine picture you built in your head?

or is that the exact moment you start backing away?

and if you do,

was it ever really love at all,

if it only lived in the light?

Up until now, we’ve looked at charts as if the candles move at the exact same pace all day long. But the market actually runs on a 24-hour global clock, divided into three big shifts: Tokyo, London, and New York.

Here is the ultimate golden rule: There is no single “best” time to trade. Different hours work for different people, and you have to find out what session works best for your schedule and your personality.

Think of the sessions like different vibes at a gym, each running during its own specific window:

The Tokyo Session (The Calm Hours) | 7:00 PM – 4:00 AM EST

The market is usually quiet, and prices tend to bounce slowly and steadily sideways. If you want a low-stress environment where you can practice reading the charts without things moving too fast, this evening slot might be your sweet spot.

The London Session (The Trend Starter) | 3:00 AM – 12:00 PM EST

Big international banks wake up, and the volume starts pumping. London is famous for creating sudden, fast moves. If you are a total early bird who likes catching a wave right as it starts, this is your time to shine.

The New York Session (The Main Event) | 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM EST

When Wall Street opens, billions of dollars flood the system in seconds. The candles get huge, and the moves are fast and explosive. If you thrive on excitement and want to get in and out of trades quickly during the day, New York is the arena.

The beautiful thing about trading is that you get to build a business that fits your life. A strategy that works perfectly in the quiet evening hours might fail in the crazy morning rush, and that’s completely okay.

Success isn’t about staring at your screen all day. It’s about testing out these different windows, adjusting them to your local time zone, and picking the one slot where you feel the most comfortable.

The Homework: The Vibe Check

Step 1: Check Your Schedule

Look at your daily routine. Are you a night owl who wants to look at charts calmly before bed, or a morning person who thrives on high energy?

Step 2: Watch the Clock

Open up your chart app and take a peek at the candles during two different times: once in the evening during Tokyo hours and once during the day during New York hours. Notice how the speed changes.

Step 3: Convert the Hours

Look at the EST times above and figure out what hours those are in your own local time zone so you know exactly when to log on.

Step 4: Post Your Answer

In the comments, tell us what fits you: “Based on my schedule, the [Tokyo / London / New York] session fits me best! In my local time zone, that means I’ll be looking at the charts between [Start Time] and [End Time].”

i’m frustrated.

you know that feeling you get that you aren’t really good at anything,

or you don’t know yourself enough as a person?

i feel like everyone has a thing - someone is an artist, someone is a great athlete, someone is super crazy about anime and collects figures.

everyone seems to have a passion for something in life,

but i can’t seem to find mine.

sure i have interests and hobbies,

but i don’t feel good enough at them to be that person.

you ever feel like a background character in your own life?

like someone who’s just barely there, a shadow of everyone else.

not interesting enough for anyone to involve themselves with.

yeah, that’s me.

but i feel like that’s something you have to overcome,

after all, the only person you have to live with is yourself.

and i realized that if i’m going to change the narrative,

i have to start by actually showing up.

i’m tired of watching from the sidelines,

and i have a feeling some of you are, too.

i recently stumbled across this reflection exercise, and i wanted to share it.

i’m still working through mine, and i’ll post my results soon,

but for the time being,

i wanted to give you a chance to work on your own thoughts.

the themes for each page of this reflection journal are:

1. goals: write them in artistic detail.

2. reminders & affirmations: focus on the person you’re becoming, your motivations, and your mindset.

3. visualisation: imagine a scene of your ideal life. write it and feel it in detail, specificity, and vividness.

4. inquiry: a list of questions that are important to you or your goals to answer today.

5. presence: write how you feel in the moment, and what you see in the space around you.

6. synthesis: go back to page 4 and answer those questions now that you’ve checked in with yourself.

The Fibonacci Retracement tool is what we use to measure that pullback.

When you pull this tool from the very bottom of a move (the Low) to the very top of the move (the High), it automatically maps out percentages. We ignore almost all of them except for the 0.50 level, which represents exactly 50%.

This halfway point is called Equilibrium.

Think of the market like a rubber band. When an institution stretches the price up to a new high, the market naturally wants to snap back toward balance before deciding where to go next. Equilibrium is that point of perfect balance.

The Premium Half (Above 50%): Anything trading in the top half of the expansion move is considered expensive relative to the recent run.

The Discount Half (Below 50%): Anything trading in the bottom half of the expansion move is considered cheap or on sale.

By simply drawing a line right through the center of a major price move, you instantly gain clarity. It removes the guesswork of wondering whether a price drop is a minor dip or a major discount, it tells you mathematically exactly where the balance of power sits.

The Homework: Find the 50% Mark

Step 1: Locate an Explosion

Open up TradingView and find a recent, clean vertical run on a chart, a clear low point that rocketed up to a clear peak.

Step 2: Pull the Tool

Select the Fibonacci Retracement tool from the left sidebar. Click on the absolute lowest wick of that move, and drag it up to the absolute highest wick.

Step 3: Spot the Center

Look closely at the line labeled 0.5. Note the exact price matching that line.

Step 4: Post Your Coordinates

In the comments, tell us your stock’s balance point: “For [$Ticker], the recent move went from $[Low] to $[High]. The exact Equilibrium line is sitting right at $[Price].”

i went shopping today.

i haven’t really shopped in two years,

maybe a piece here and there,

but i never bothered to check the size.

same size i’ve always been,

i thought to myself

before placing an order,

never feeling like there was a problem.

but something was different today.

i grabbed a pair of jeans,

sized large,

and two t-shirts

that had full sleeves

to cover my flabby arms

and just loose enough

to hide my stomach rolls.

but when i tried them on,

huh… too loose.

let me size down.

i grabbed a medium,

then a small.

and as i walked into the fitting room area

holding a size small,

i felt like an imposter,

waiting for that look

from the girl handing out numbered cards

“those will never fit her”

but i didn’t get that look.

and as i tried on those jeans,

a slight snug as i pulled them up my thighs,

and they fit perfectly.

the top too,

one that showed my arms a bit more

than the ones i chose previously.

and when i looked in the mirror,

i didn’t see that girl.

the one who acted like she wasn’t hungry in public.

the one who avoided any social events

where she might embarrass herself.

the nice girl who couldn’t say what was on her mind

because she didn’t want to be more unlikable.

the girl who was always in the corner of the photo,

so she didn’t cover anyone else.

the one who didn’t feel comfortable dancing at events.

the one who was afraid

that people would see her

the way she saw herself.

but now i can say

the hard work paid off.

In our previous posts, we learned how to spot where the big players hunt for liquidity and how they leave behind empty spaces (Imbalances). An Order Block (OB) is the actual candle that started the whole chain reaction.

It is the specific zone where smart money accumulated or distributed their orders right before an explosive move.

Bullish Order Block (The Buy Zone): This is the last red candle right before a massive, explosive rally that breaks through an old ceiling (Market Structure Shift).

Bearish Order Block (The Sell Zone): This is the last green candle right before a heavy, aggressive drop that crashes through an old floor.

Why do they matter?

When institutions launch a massive move, they often don’t get all of their billions of dollars filled at once. They leave “unfilled orders” sitting at the source.

The market algorithm will naturally drive the price all the way back down to that exact last opposite candle to “collect” those remaining institutional orders. Traders call this Mitigation.

When the price taps into a valid order block, it’s like a rocket hitting a refueling station. The resting orders get triggered, and the price instantly snaps back in the direction of the main trend.

Instead of guessing where a stock might bounce, you draw a box around that very last opposite candle. That box becomes your high-probability entry zone with a very tight safety net (Stop Loss) placed just outside the block.

The Homework: Find the Launchpad

Step 1: Find a Breakout

Open TradingView and find a chart that recently had a massive, structural shift (a huge move that broke an old high or low).

Step 2: Trace it Back to the Source

Look at the very beginning of that explosive move. Find the final opposite-colored candle right before the explosion took off.

Step 3: Draw Your Box

Draw a horizontal box from the top wick to the bottom wick of that single candle, extending it to the right. Has the price returned to touch that box yet?

Step 4: Post Your Coordinates

In the comments, tell us: “On [$Ticker], I found a [Bullish/Bearish] order block on the [Time Frame] chart at $[Price]. I’m waiting for a tap and bounce.”

halfway through the year. i decided to actually look back at the new year’s resolution list today, and even though we haven’t been keeping up with all of it, it’s kind of crazy to see how much has actually happened.

obviously, the big stuff is still a work in progress. no full time job or profitable trading yet. 600 applications out there and getting ghosted by 90% of them is honestly brutal, but it is what it is. and with trading, i got those payouts earlier in the year but then let the fear and greed get into my head. the losing streak the last few months totally messed with my mindset, so taking a break right now is definitely the right call to reset.

the book is also stuck at 75% because the inspiration completely died out lately, and i haven’t even finished a single book to read this year. skin is doing okay. the pasta goal got sidelined by the new diet, and i still hate being in front of the camera, so zero progress on the photo front.

but looking closer at everything else, i’m actually really proud of how things are going.

i can officially run 3 miles in 30 minutes now. i know i need to stop making excuses and get back to it consistently after my trip, but the fact that i hit that baseline is huge. i’m also sparring once a week, and even though it feels like it’ll take years to get to where i want to be, i can feel myself getting better and sharper every session.

and the weight loss thing turned out to be a blessing in disguise. i realized dropping those extra 10 pounds made me feel awful physically, so i actually stopped trying to lose weight. i’m finally at a weight i’m genuinely happy with, and i feel so much more comfortable wearing the clothes i’ve always wanted to wear.

rejection 100 times? way more than that with the job hunt, so at least we absolutely crushed that one lol. but i’ve been networking like crazy and using all my resources, which is a massive win for getting out of my comfort zone. i’m also trying way more than just one new thing a month, and i am literally learning to dance now, going to salsa and country line dancing every single week which has been so fun.

with the painting, i decided to focus on canvases and spray can control first instead of just rushing straight into a full mural. i need to find my own style first, and practicing on the canvases has been a sweet process.

and with learning about sikhi, shifting the focus to the spiritual side and internal peace instead of just the historical facts has been so good for my mindset and keeping me grounded through the stressful moments.

so yeah, the list isn’t fully checked off and i’ve definitely been lazy with a few things. but seeing it all laid out like this, i’m doing a lot better than i give myself credit for. i’m not stuck at all.

the second half of the year is here, and i’m excited to just keep working through it and see where we’re at by december.

love,

me

A few posts ago, we learned that an uptrend is just a healthy staircase of Higher Highs and Higher Lows. The market is climbing, and everything feels great.

But trends don’t last forever. Eventually, the buyers get tired, or the big institutions start selling off their positions. A Market Structure Shift (MSS) is the literal point on the chart where the old staircase breaks.

The Setup: Imagine a stock climbing up, making higher valleys (Higher Lows).

The Shift: Suddenly, a massive red candle slams down and breaks right through the very last valley that was holding the price up.

This isn’t just a regular pullback, it’s a structural failure. When the market fails to protect its last low and aggressively closes below it, the algorithm is signaling that the bears have taken control. The uptrend is dead, and a downtrend is born.

How to Trade It:

Amateurs panic and try to sell at the very bottom of that scary red drop. Professionals do the opposite: they wait.

Once the structure shifts, the price almost always bounces back up one last time to fill a Fair Value Gap or test an old ceiling. That bounce is your queue to enter a short position right before the real downward staircase begins.

The Homework: Spot the Flip

Step 1: Find a Peak

Open up TradingView and look at a chart that recently topped out and started crashing.

Step 2: Identify the Last Safe Low

Look at the very last valley (the lowest point between green and red candles) right before the highest peak.

Step 3: Find the Break

Look for the candle that finally punched below that valley line. Did it happen with a big, aggressive candle?

Step 4: Post Your Breakout

In the comments, tell us: “On [$Ticker], the last major low was at $[Price]. The market structure officially shifted when it broke below that level on the [Time Frame] chart.”

i feel paralyzed.

that sickening feeling

of wanting to do so much

you don’t know where to start.

i want to be the writer

and the painter,

the solo traveler

who disappears into coffee shops.

the adventurer

always chasing the novel,

and the homebody

who crochets her own clothes.

the skateboarder, the motorcyclist

painting murals across the city.

the musician with a guitar,

bleeding into her own lyrics.

the athlete with a flawless record.

the ceo.

the director of a non-profit.

the runner throwing down sub-6-minute miles

and racing marathons just for the joy of flight.

the independent trader

who conquers the market in an hour a day.

the baker crafting extravagant cakes,

the girl who speaks five different languages.

and more.

but it’s so intimidating to start.

where do you begin?

what do you begin?

it feels like there aren’t enough hours in a lifetime,

let alone a single day,

for everything i want to hold.

and so, i am stuck.

i map out the plan.

i research the projects.

everything burns bright for the first forty-eight hours.

and then the crash hits,

i am running out of time.

i can’t do everything at once,

so i choose to do nothing at all.

and now all those plans,

all those brilliant, breathing dreams,

sit buried in my notes app.

grave markers of a life

i haven’t figured out how to live.

This causes the price to rocket up or slam down so fast that the market machine can’t keep up. It creates an Imbalance (often called a Fair Value Gap or FVG).

Imagine a line of three candlesticks during a massive upward spike:

Candle 1: The starting point.

Candle 2: A giant, explosive green candle in the middle.

Candle 3: The next candle that keeps going.

If you look closely at a normal chart, the thin wicks of Candle 1 and Candle 3 usually overlap or touch. But during an imbalance, Candle 2 is so big that the top wick of Candle 1 and the bottom wick of Candle 3 never touch. It leaves an open gap of pure, unnegotiated price territory inside that middle candle.

The Magnet Effect:

The market algorithm hates inefficiency, it loves balance. Think of an imbalance like a vacuum or a dent in a pillow. Over time, the price has a strong tendency to drift back down into that gap to fill it and balance out the orders before continuing its true direction.

When you know how to spot these gaps, you stop chasing the big, scary green candles out of fear of missing out (FOMO). Instead, you calmly wait for the price to return to the gap, using it as a highly accurate entry zone.

The Homework: Spot the Gap

Step 1: Find a Rocket Ship

Open up TradingView and look at a chart that recently had a massive, explosive move (a giant red or green candle).

Step 2: Check the Neighbors

Look at the candle before the explosion and the candle after it.

Step 3: Measure the Gap

Look at the space between the wick of the first candle and the wick of the third candle. Do they touch? If there is a clear empty space in the middle, you just found a Fair Value Gap.

Step 4: Post Your Trailing Zone

In the comments, tell us: “On [$Ticker], I see a major imbalance on the [Time Frame] chart between $[Price] and $[Price]. I’m waiting for the price to fill this gap.”

there’s a quiet, heavy space between first and second. it’s the extra inch on a tape measure, the split second on a stopwatch.

for as long as i can remember, i have lived in that space.

in school, all the kids were ranked by their grades. neatly lined up from top to bottom like inventory. i was always sitting right under the crown, never quite wearing it.

everyone thought i could do better. my parents, my teachers, my classmates. they thought being second was a failure of effort.

but they didn’t understand the math of my life. i did my best, and i was happy with it.

on graduation day, the guy who was first in the class came up to me. he told me he regretted it.

he spent sixteen hours a day studying. eight hours of school and eight hours of private tutoring. for years, he never got a break. he never made friends, never went out, never explored. he was number one, but he was completely empty.

in that moment, i didn’t mind being second.

i looked at my own life and saw something beautiful. i went out, i explored, i got in trouble. i tried everything i wanted to do. the price of admission for number one was just too high.

but peace is a fragile thing, and it changes when you enter different arenas.

sports is a different scenario. boxing is a two man sport. if you’re second, then you lost.

knowing that’s how it plays out, i chose not to compete. the weight of never being good enough was too suffocating.

and that same thing stops me now. every hobby i try, everything i do. if i am not good enough to be great at it right away, i wont do it. if i cant guarantee a masterpiece, i leave the brush untouched.

then there is the deepest sting. the place where being second isn’t about grades, but about the heart.

i put my all into a relationship. i poured out my loyalty and my devotion, leaving nothing in reserve.

only to find out i was just a placeholder. the second choice. the moment he found someone else, he left.

being second in a competition is frustrating. being second in love tells you that your absolute maximum is still less than what someone else can offer just by existing.

so i’m left sitting with this paradox.

being second saved my youth. it gave me the freedom to breathe and live. but it also built a wall of defense, making me quit before i can fail, and leaving me wounded by a love that didn’t choose me first.

maybe the trick is tearing down the ranking system entirely.

the ring, the canvas, and the heart don’t belong on the same leaderboard. i don’t need to be great at something immediately to find meaning in it. and the right love won’t look at me as a runner up.

sometimes, being second is okay. it means you walked a path that allowed you to look around, take a breath, and actually enjoy the journey.

In our last few posts, we talked about drawing lines at the floor (Support) and the ceiling (Resistance). But here is a secret that the big institutional banks and professional traders know: Those lines aren’t just boundaries, they are target zones.

When a retail trader buys a stock at a support floor, where do they usually put their safety net (Stop Loss)? Right underneath that floor.

When hundreds of thousands of traders all put their safety nets in the exact same spot, it creates a massive Liquidity Pool.

The Trap: The big players (the “Smart Money”) need huge amounts of buy or sell orders to fill their own massive positions. To do this, they will intentionally push the price just far enough to crash through a floor or ceiling, triggering everyone’s safety nets all at once.

The Sweep: This is called a “Liquidity Sweep” or a stop hunt. It looks like a scary sudden drop or spike on the chart. Retail traders get panicked because they just got knocked out of the trade, but immediately afterward, the price violently reverses and heads in the direction they originally wanted.

The big players didn’t crash the stock because it was failing, they just went fishing for the money resting below the floor to fuel their next big move.

Once you understand liquidity, you stop looking at the market like a series of random patterns. You start looking at it like a map of where the money is hiding, and you learn to wait for the sweep to happen before you place your bet.

The Homework: Spotting the Honey Pot

Step 1: Open a Chart

Go to TradingView or your charting app and find a clear horizontal floor (Support) where a stock has bounced two or three times.

Step 2: Think Like the Big Banks

Look right below that floor. If you were an institutional trader looking to buy millions of shares, why would that zone underneath the floor be the perfect place to hunt?

Step 3: Look for the Tail

Look for a candlestick with a very long wick that pierced right through that floor before the price snapped back up. That thin line is the footprint of a liquidity sweep.

Step 4: Post Your Analysis

In the comments, share your insight: “On the chart for [$Ticker], I see a major liquidity pool sitting right under $[Price] because that’s where the main floor is.”

it’s getting bad again.

the kind of bad that sits in the back of your throat,

thick and quiet,

waiting for the sun to go down.

i can’t drink anymore

without my mind taking a sharp left turn

into that dark place.

that familiar, jagged-edge space where

every little inconvenience,

a dropped glass, a missed call, a heavy sigh,

a key that won’t turn in the lock on the first try,

becomes a reason to hurt.

a reason to break.

suddenly, a minor detour isn’t just a delay,

it’s an eviction notice from the world.

it’s a text message written in a language i can’t decode,

telling me the foundation is giving out.

i am sitting in the quiet, making plans to run.

mapping out roads to get away from everyone i love.

but the math of my mind isn’t mathing, because

how can that be true?

if i loved them, i’d stay, right?

that’s what they tell you.

they tell you love is an anchor,

but right now, the anchor is just dragging the ship to the bottom of the ocean.

so i wrap myself in the guilt of it,

telling myself it’s selfish,

so damn selfish of me,

to think i can just evaporate. to think i can just escape.

we call it selfish to want to leave,

but nobody talks about how cruel it is to force a ghost to keep pretending it has blood.

to keep standing in line at the grocery store,

buying bread while the house burns down inside their chest.

and if you asked me why,

i wish i could give you a blueprint.

i wish i could hand you a map of my malfunctions, but

the truth is, i don’t know myself.

i don’t know why the gears grind this way.

i don’t know how to explain the physics of a body

that feels like it’s falling.

deeper. and deeper.

falling into a grave that i dug with my own two hands,

and now i’m just laying in the dirt, wondering who ordered the shovel.

i’m the architect who designed the prison,

the warden holding the keys,

and the inmate screaming at the bars, all at the exact same time.

all i want,

all i really want,

is for you to hold me.

just hold me until the fractures fuse,

until i feel complete again.

but who are you?

who is you?

whose arms am i supposed to run to when the world feels this empty?

in a world that never left a placeholder,

never carved out a single square inch of space for me.

i’m a stray radio frequency searching for a tower,

blasting music into a static void,

forgetting that everybody else is just listening to their own white noise.

so i’ve stayed here long enough.

trying to drown the noise out.

trying to flood the engine with the alcohol.

the same way you did.

and it didn’t work for you either, did it?

i watched you.

you drank, and you drank, and you drank,

chasing the numbness until your liver swelled up,

and i stood there, looking at the wreckage, and i swore.

i swore on everything i had that i would never be like you.

i built a life out of spite.

i did everything the exact opposite of how you did it.

i kept my room clean, i checked my boxes, i ran the miles,

i grew up to be the most disciplined version of your disaster.

except the bottle.

that was the one ghost we both inherited.

the one thing we had in common.

you can run a thousand miles in the opposite direction,

but if you’re carrying their shadow in your backpack,

you’re just taking their darkness for a walk.

the apple didn’t just fall far from the tree,

it rolled down the hill and landed right back in the same muddy ditch.

i saw you pour.

drink. after drink. after drink.

and from the outside, it looked like magic. it looked like it worked for you.

it looked like you found a trapdoor in the ceiling and just slid out.

so god help me, i followed.

and i hated myself for it, every single drop, but i did it.

just like you.

drink. after drink. after drink.

i’d pour until the glass was glass and the bottle was empty,

but it didn’t help, did it?

it never helped.

because the alcohol doesn’t drown the demons, it just gives them a swim lesson.

it turns out they have gills.

it turns out they’ve been waiting for the flood.

my mind goes right back to that same exact headspace

that i was begging to get away from.

only now, the volume is turned up.

the urge is heavier. the shadows are louder.

when you mix gasoline with a fire you’re trying to put out,

you don’t get peace. you just get a brighter view of the destruction.

i poured liquid mercury down my throat,

and wondered why my internal temperature kept dropping.

and i am left sitting in the quiet of a messy room,

staring at the bottom of a glass,

realizing the trapdoor was just a mirror all along.

asking the walls...

what’s the point?

what is it all... for?