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Yesterday I told a struggling trader who had nearly blown out his account late last week (80% drawdown) that the only way to avoid this is to trade just a few times a month (or less). In 2025 I went 4-5 weeks with zero trades. Hence, I’m going to share an article below by Austin Palmer, he says it all perfectly:
“Most retail traders believe they need more—more trades, more setups, more indicators, more signals. But in reality, the traders who survive (and thrive) do the opposite. They trade less frequently, reduce the number of decisions, and lock in a fixed risk-to-reward ratio that keeps their edge stable.
Here’s why simplifying your trading increases your chances of long-term profitability.
1. Trading Less Reduces Mistakes
Every trade is a decision.
Every decision carries emotional and cognitive load.
The more trades you take:
the more tired your brain becomes
the more emotional impulses creep in
the more likely you are to overreact to noise
the more commissions/spreads you pay
the more small errors compound into big losses
By reducing trading frequency, you automatically reduce the number of opportunities for mistakes.
Fewer trades → Higher quality → More consistency.
Elite traders don’t take every “okay” trade.
They wait for the A+ setups that align perfectly with their plan.
2. Fewer Choices = Lower Variance in Outcomes
When you have too many signals, too many strategies, or too many timeframes, your decision-making becomes inconsistent. Choice overload raises the variance in outcomes—you might catch a big win today and then give it all back tomorrow on impulsive trades.
Reducing choices tightens your performance curve.
When you:
trade one setup type
focus on one pair or market
use one timeframe
follow one clear trigger
Your results stabilize. The randomness disappears, and your edge becomes measurable. A stable edge is a profitable edge.
3. A Fixed RRR Protects You From Yourself:
Most traders blow accounts not because of strategy, but because of inconsistent risk-to-reward ratios.
Sometimes they take 1:3, sometimes they settle for 1:1, sometimes they hold for 1:6 and give it back. This inconsistency destroys expectancy.
A fixed RRR:
forces discipline
keeps losses small
standardizes wins
makes your edge mathematically trackable
creates predictable long-term performance
Your job is NOT to predict the market.
Your job is to control the asymmetry between risk and reward.
A consistent 1:2 or 1:3 turns even a 40%-win rate into profitability.”
Palmer nailed it. So, ask yourself this question. If you only took 10-12 trades in the entire YEAR but your ARR was 20-30% would that satisfy you?
Think of the time savings, less stress, higher compounding over time and less tax headache with wash rules etc.
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