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How to write a trading plan: the seven parts and a filled-in example

By Saad El Soussi, UAE-authorized finfluencer · Updated 2026-11-08

A trading plan (the course calls it your personal trading system) is a one-page set of written rules: what you want from trading and how much time you have, your style and timeframes, exactly when you enter and exit, how much you risk and how you size each trade, and how you record and review trades. The lesson's order is goals first, then a style that fits your life, then timeframes, then entry and exit rules, then risk. Below is a complete example for gold you can copy and change.

The seven parts of a trading plan

Part	The question	From the lesson
1. Goals	What do you want from trading, and how much time can you give it?	Define your goals and be realistic, based on your capital and experience
2. Style	Scalping, day trading, swing or position trading?	Choose a style that matches your lifestyle
3. Timeframes	Which chart for direction, which for the entry?	For example the 1-hour with entries on the 5-minute, or the 4-hour with entries on the 15-minute
4. Entry rules	Exactly what must be on the chart before you buy or sell?	Clear rules for when and how you enter: indicators, patterns, timeframes
5. Exit rules	Where is the stop, where is the target, what if neither is hit?	Clear rules for when and how you exit
6. Risk and size	How much per trade, how is the lot size calculated?	How you manage risk, including stop loss orders and trade size
7. Journal and review	How do you record trades and when do you change the plan?	From the course's backtesting and trade management lessons

Goals: realistic, in time and in money

The lesson starts with what you want: a full-time income, a side income, or learning a skill. Then the constraints: how much time you can give (five hours a day or one hour a day) and what your capital and experience allow. A realistic goal for a beginner is a process goal, such as "follow the plan on every trade for three months", not a monthly return. Most retail CFD accounts lose money, so a plan that keeps losses small while you learn is already a good plan.

Style and timeframes that fit your day

Day trading needs screen time while the market is open; swing and position trading need far less, as the lesson notes. If you work 9 to 5, the 5-minute chart during the London open is not your style. The lesson's pairings, a higher chart for direction and a lower one for the entry, are on the trading timeframes page, and the hours when gold moves most are on forex trading sessions.

A filled-in example plan for gold

An illustration of the format, not a recommendation. Every rule is written so that someone else could follow it and take the same trades.

Part	Example
Goal	Learn to follow a written plan for three months; review results monthly in R, not in money
Time	One hour on weekdays, 16:00 to 17:00 Dubai time (London midday, before New York opens)
Market	Gold (XAU/USD) only
Style and timeframes	Swing-style: direction on the 4-hour chart, entry on the 1-hour chart
Direction rule	Trade only in the direction of the 4-hour structure: buys after a higher low, sells after a lower high (market structure)
Entry rule	A 1-hour close beyond a broken support or resistance level, then a limit order at the retest of that level
Stop	Beyond the retest swing plus one median 1-hour candle range (about $15 on gold in Aug-Nov 2026)
Target	The next opposite level on the 4-hour chart; skip the trade if it is less than 2 times the risk (risk-reward ratio)
Size	1% of the account per trade: lots = risk ÷ (stop in dollars × 100), rounded down; skip if under 0.01 lot (lot size calculator)
Limits	Maximum two trades a day; stop for the day after two losses; no trading 30 minutes either side of high-impact US data
Journal	Date, direction, entry, stop, target, lots, result in R, screenshot, whether every rule was followed
Review	Every month: total R, win rate, rule breaks. Change one rule at a time, and only after a backtest of the change

Check of the size rule: a $5,000 account risks $50; with a $20 stop, 50 ÷ (20 × 100) = 0.025, rounded down to 0.02 lot, which loses $40 at the stop. With a $60 stop, 50 ÷ 6,000 = 0.008, under the 0.01 minimum, so the trade is skipped.

The pre-trade checklist

Is the 4-hour direction clear, and is this trade with it?
Has the entry condition happened on a closed candle, not on a candle still forming?
Are entry, stop and target written down before the order goes in? (The trade management lesson: never enter without them.)
Is the target at least twice the risk, at a level the chart shows?
Is the size from the formula, and is the loss at the stop 1% or less?
Is it inside my trading hour, with no high-impact news in the next 30 minutes, and have I taken fewer than two trades today?

Six yes answers or no trade. The checklist is short on purpose: it is what stops the mistakes on the common trading mistakes page. The buttons that execute the plan are on how to use MetaTrader 5: order types, stop loss and take profit fields, and what the Trade tab shows while the position is open.

Key points from the lesson

A personal trading system is tailored to your preferences, risk tolerance and goals.
Define realistic goals first, based on your capital, experience and the time you can give.
Choose a style that matches your lifestyle, and timeframes that suit the style.
Write clear entry and exit rules: indicators, patterns, timeframes, when to enter and exit.
Decide how you manage risk: stop loss orders and how you determine trade size. Then backtest the plan and journal every trade.

Want to see a plan applied to real gold trades?

The Telegram bot answers in English, explains the VIP gold trades (each with entry, stop loss and targets) and shows where the weekly results are published, losing trades included. Trading is risky; most retail accounts lose money.

Open the SesTrading botOn Telegram

Questions people ask

What should a trading plan include?

Goals and available time, trading style, timeframes, entry rules, exit rules (stop, target, time), risk per trade and position sizing, and how you journal and review trades.

What is the difference between a trading plan and a trading strategy?

The strategy is the entry and exit rules. The plan is wider: it adds your goals, hours, risk per trade, daily limits and the review process around the strategy.

How much should I risk per trade?

The course says half a percent to one percent of your trading capital per trade, with the position size calculated from the stop distance.

How long should a trading plan be?

One page. If a rule needs a paragraph of explanation, it probably needs your judgement in the moment, and then it cannot be backtested or followed consistently.

When should I change my trading plan?

After a review, one rule at a time, and after testing the change on past data. Changing the plan after every losing trade is strategy hopping, one of the common beginner mistakes.

Is this the full lesson?

No. It is a written summary with the key points and an example added. The course has 87 video lessons in three modules; the bot can tell you about it.

Authorized in the UAESaad Nizar El Soussi, founder of SesTrading, is listed by the UAE Capital Market Authority as an authorized finfluencer (entry 193, added 24 September 2026). Check the official list.