Thursday August 14, 2025

Q: What is the key trading advice provided for the month of August?

August is historically challenging. Traders are advised to trade smaller, avoid duplicating trades across accounts, and even consider taking the month off due to market chop and volatility.

Q: What is the 'Tip of the Week' regarding successful trading?

Success is defined by avoiding any single loss greater than your ideal loss. Traders are encouraged to understand their ideal loss by consulting the free 'leverage metrics' training.

Q: How can traders access and utilise the 'Today's Setups' section?

'Today's Setups' is free and public on microtrader.com. Traders should read it the night before to fully absorb the insights. Members also get access to audio versions for convenience.

Q: What is the significance of horizontal and diagonal lines in the trading methodology?

The intersection of horizontal and diagonal lines is viewed as a powerful confluence zone for trade entries, described as a 'key beautiful concept' in the methodology.

Q: What is the current market trend discussed, and what caution is given to traders?

The market is in a parabolic bullish move. Traders are advised to lean bullish and avoid frustration-driven shorts, especially with August chop conditions.

Q: When is it appropriate for traders to drop down in timeframes for a trade entry?

Only when a clean three-minute level is identified. Dropping to a one-minute chart is for improving entry precision and reducing stop size, not for hunting setups.

Q: What spiritual message is shared at the beginning of the briefing?

A Genesis scripture about creation and purpose is shared, encouraging reflection and grounding before the trading session begins.

Micros Trader’s Thursday AM Briefing emphasized the importance of disciplined trading and strategic risk management, particularly during historically volatile August markets. Key principles included avoiding any loss greater than the trader's predefined limit and only entering trades based on clearly defined technical levels. The session highlighted the evolving nature of the daily “battle plan” as a real-time tool for trade preparation and accountability. Traders were cautioned to reduce size and avoid overexposure, given the seasonal patterns and upcoming economic data releases.

☀️ AM BRIEFING

Opening Remarks

In this Thursday’s AM Briefing, Micros Trader focuses on essential trading principles, market preparation strategies, and specific cautions for navigating the August market. The briefing emphasizes disciplined trading habits, precision in execution, and respect for seasonality patterns that often affect market behavior during this time of year.

Foundational Trading Principles and Risk Management

One of the key reminders in this session is: “no single loss greater than your ideal loss.” Micros Trader stresses the need for pre-defined risk parameters and suggests that traders familiarize themselves with their own "leverage metrics"—a concept taught for free in the course strategy academy. These metrics help traders properly size positions and manage exposure.

Micros Trader also reinforces that the setups featured in the “today’s setups” section of the battle plan are designed to drill home the foundational principles that apply not only to ES but to nearly any trading instrument. Emotional trading is discouraged: “Be careful getting so frustrated that you want to be in the massive short that may or may not occur.” Instead, the emphasis is on trading objective levels and leaning into the trend where bulls are in control.

Only enter trades when given a “clean clear crisp level.” This mantra forms the basis of executing the three-minute core strategy. Dropping down to a one-minute chart is permissible only when a valid three-minute level is already established. This prevents impulsive or undisciplined decisions based on short-term noise.

The “Battle Plan” as a Central Resource

Micros Trader reminds traders to read the daily “battle plan” the night before rather than rushing through it during the trading day. This document is not a static forecast but a living guide, built in real-time as the day progresses. It includes reflections on prior trade decisions and analysis of current potential setups.

The “today’s setups” section is free to all and offers transparency in showing what Micros Trader was thinking during key market moves. For members, additional features include audio versions of the setups and access to the full price map, providing even deeper insight into entry logic and market structure.

August is historically a difficult month to trade—reduce size, avoid overexposure, and be aware of increased chop.

August Market Cautions and Seasonality

August is historically a difficult month for trading, and Micros Trader uses the seasonality chart to illustrate the stark contrast between a strong July and the choppy, unreliable price action in August. Traders are encouraged to “dial down everything,” trade smaller, and avoid multiplying positions across multiple accounts.

Micros Trader even goes so far as to say, “If there was a single month of the year to take off from trading, it is August.” The chop and volatility of August often obscure clean setups, making discipline and caution even more critical during this time.

Market Analysis and Trend Observation

On higher timeframes, the market is in a strong “parabolic move to the north” following a clean pullback. Price action is “skating along” key trendlines—both wick-based and body-based—signifying technical strength.

Micros Trader highlights a classic bullish structure of higher highs and higher lows. One historical pattern from June showed 11 straight days of higher highs and lows without taking out a previous day’s low, which made trade decisions clearer and trend-following strategies easier to execute.

Despite strong recent moves, Micros Trader reminds traders to “give the bulls the benefit of the doubt.” A major technical takeaway is the significance of when a horizontal level aligns with a diagonal trendline—“a great place to engage in price that is such a key beautiful concept.”

Economic Data and Market Movers

Traders are alerted to key upcoming economic events, including the Producer Price Index (PPI) release one hour before the market open, unemployment claims, and retail sales sentiment expectations. These releases can be catalysts for increased volatility and should be monitored as part of a comprehensive trading plan.

❓ FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is the primary purpose of the AM Briefing video and Battle Plan?

The AM Briefing video and Battle Plan, presented by microtrader.com, serve to provide traders with daily insights, analysis, and trade setups for the ES and MES (E-mini S&P and Micro E-mini S&P) trading systems. The content aims to equip traders with the "core solid principles of trading" and includes detailed thought processes behind recent trades, a daily price map, and insights into market seasonality and trends. While some content like "Today's Setups" and trade recaps are free, the more in-depth "Battle Plan" with specific entry thoughts and the full price map is available to members or those on a 7-day trial.

What is the key trading advice provided for the month of August?

August is highlighted as a historically difficult month for trading, and traders are strongly advised to "dial down everything." This includes trading smaller, being cautious about multiplying trades across multiple accounts, and even considering taking the month off entirely. The historical seasonality chart is presented to illustrate why August is not the "easiest month to trade."

What is the "Tip of the Week" regarding successful trading?

The "Tip of the Week" emphasizes that a successful trading week is defined by "no single loss greater than your ideal loss." Traders are encouraged to understand their "ideal loss" by consulting the free "leverage metrics" training available on the platform, which is considered a "gift to the trading community."

How can traders access and utilise the "Today's Setups" section?

The "Today's Setups" section is a free resource available to everyone on microtrader.com, requiring no sign-up or email. It contains fundamental trading principles and analysis of trades taken. Traders are strongly encouraged to read this section the night before the trading day, as attempting to consume it on the morning of may lead to simply scrolling to the price map and missing crucial information. Members also have access to an audio version of this section for easier consumption.

What is the significance of horizontal and diagonal lines in the trading methodology?

A key concept highlighted in the trading methodology is that "when a horizontal line matches a diagonal line, this is a great place to engage in price." This intersection is considered a "key beautiful concept" and a "delightful place in which to engage in price," suggesting it's a strong indicator for potential trade entries.

What is the current market trend discussed, and what caution is given to traders?

The market is currently in a "parabolic move to the north after a beautiful pullback," with price "skating along these trend lines." The bulls are described as being "in control," and traders are advised to "lean that direction in our analysis" and "give the bulls the benefit of the doubt." A strong caution is given against becoming frustrated and prematurely attempting a "massive short" position, especially given the "chop of August."

When is it appropriate for traders to drop down in timeframes for a trade entry?

For members using the "three-minute core strategy," dropping down in timeframes (e.g., to a one-minute chart) is only advised when there is a "clear clean crisp three-minute level." The purpose of dropping down is to find a "greedier entry for a smaller stop" or a "smaller ideal stop-loss," especially during a challenging month like August. If a clean three-minute level isn't present, traders should not drop down in timeframes to find one.

What spiritual message is shared at the beginning of the briefing?

The briefing opens with a scripture from Genesis, stating that God "created man in his own image he created him in the image of God he created them male and female god blessed them and said to them 'Be fruitful multiply fill the earth and subdue it rule the fish of the sea the birds of the sky and every creature that crawls on the earth.'" This passage is presented as the "scripture of the week."