AM Briefing #850: Take The Scratch And Wait For The Next Trade
AM BRIEFING
ES CHART | KEY LEVELS | SETUPS
ES Technical Analysis — AM Briefing 850 Timeline
Wednesday September 9, 2026
| TIME | CHAPTER |
|---|---|
| 0:00 | Welcome ES MES Futures Traders |
| 0:36 | Episode 850 and This Week's Scripture God has not given us a spirit of fear. Never FOMO about a missed trade or a break-even day. |
| 1:13 | Rollover Week News Drivers Contract rollover week, a shortened holiday week, PPI tomorrow and CPI near Friday. Price action gets squirrely, so it can be the week to take off. |
| 2:00 | Battle Plan Anatomy Inside the written trade plan: review section, tip of the day, member homework, the free economic calendar, the ES price map and TradingView tools. |
| 3:07 | Journaling Rollover and Holiday Days Tag unusual sessions like rollover and the day after a holiday in Trade Buddy so you can reference the context later. |
| 3:34 | How The Week Traded So Far Monday couldn't reclaim the bull bear line. Tuesday night ran a Battle Plan trade to target for 22 points. Yesterday was two break-evens and a near miss. |
| 4:36 | The Lesson: Take The Scratch, Move On Mario and Michael in Discord on discipline, no FOMO, and the balance between over-trading and under-trading. Not my trade, on my terms. |
| 6:32 | Where We Stand: Battle Plan 3 Price is under the bull bear line at the expected range low. An overnight bounce off a strong level ran a near 20-pointer. |
| 7:13 | Strong Levels As Targets Strong Levels are the week's most important levels, used with the Battle Plan to set targets. The next Strong Level is a good place to consider profit. |
| 8:53 | The 7650 Reclaim And Ladder Back Battle Plan 3 is an expected range long wanting a snappy ladder back and a reclaim of the 7650 strong level as the ideal entry. |
| 11:00 | Follow Your Leverage Metrics Longs must be cautious under the bull bear line. Take the scratch, wait, the next trade could be a 50 or 100-pointer. |
| 11:52 | Another Trade Around The Corner Member Scott joined to make the phrase true. There is always another high probability trade around the corner. We keep proving it. |
| 12:41 | Get Started: Foundations And Boot Camp New traders: check the free Foundations course, live every Tuesday, and attend the free Battle Plan boot camp. |
MES MICROS TRADE PLAN
Take The Scratch And Wait… There's Another High Probability Trade Around The Corner
Posted: Wednesday September 09, 2026
This is AM Briefing #850, and it lands right in the middle of contract rollover week… a shortened holiday week with PPI tomorrow and CPI tucked in near Friday. Price action gets squirrely on weeks like this, so the whole session is a lesson in restraint. Yesterday delivered two break-even scratches and a third trade that missed by a single tick, and George called that the win. The message for every ES futures trader today is simple… take the scratch, wait, and trust that there's another high probability trade around the corner. Right now ES sits under the bull bear line at the edge of the expected range low, and Battle Plan 3 has us watching the 7650 strong level for a reclaim.
ROLLOVER WEEK… THE ONE WEEK TO CONSIDER STANDING DOWN
This week carries three complications stacked on top of each other… contract rollover, a shortened holiday week, and inflation data. Typically the closer we get to Friday, the more squirrely price action gets on contract rollover week. George is blunt about it… if you were ever going to take a week off, four times a year, this is the week.
- Contract rollover: The quarterly transition between futures contract months, which distorts volume and levels.
- Holiday hangover: The session is trading the day after a long holiday, which thins participation.
- Data on deck: PPI tomorrow, CPI near the end of the week… news that can whip a thin tape.
The takeaway is not to force size into a low-conviction tape. Map your levels, keep your leverage metrics tight, and let the week come to you.
Trader Lesson 1
Rollover week runs squirrely. Once a quarter it is completely reasonable to Stand Down, trade smaller, and protect your capital while the tape sorts itself out.
TAKE THE SCRATCH, MOVE ON… NO FOMO
Yesterday was a bunch of "no thank you." George took two break-even trades and a third that missed his entry by one tick… a trade that would have run an easy 15 points. He treated it as a good day, and a trainer in the room flagged it as the real lesson of the session.
Mario put it best in Discord… "the way you took a scratch and moved on. No FOMO, no random entering, no disappointment." That is pure discipline. It is avoiding poor trades and over-trading, AND it is having the courage to take the good ones when they arrive.
Michael added the flip side… under-trading. Sometimes you wait and see, only to watch the move you wanted happen without you. George's answer is a phrase he repeats to himself over and over… "That wasn't my trade. Not my trade, on my terms. That's someone else's trade."
Trader Lesson 2
A scratch is not a loss and a missed move is not a failure. A great trade that did not meet your terms was never your trade… it was someone else's. Say it until it sticks.
Trader Lesson 3
There is always another high probability trade around the corner. Believe it, and you never have to chase. One member joined this group just to make that phrase true for himself… and it is.
WHERE WE STAND… UNDER THE BULL BEAR LINE
The week started with a Battle Plan entry that couldn't reclaim the bull bear line. Just couldn't do it. Tuesday night brought a couple more opportunities, and a Battle Plan trade that ran to target for a nice 22 points. Overnight, an early-published Battle Plan trade bounced off a strong level to the next strong level for a near 20-pointer.
Right now the read is clean and cautious… we are under the bull bear line, sitting at the edge of the expected range low to the south. The VWAP is aggressively downward sloping and price is well under it. We lost yesterday's range. Every session is on the same train lower, so longs need to be trepidatious.
- Bull Bear Line: The key dividing level between bullish and bearish bias. We're beneath it, so bias is defensive.
- Expected Range Low: The southern edge of the day's mapped range… where George looks for a long, not a short.
- VWAP: Volume Weighted Average Price. A steep downward slope with price below it confirms sellers are in control.
George is clear… he is looking for a long here, and he is NOT looking to short at the expected range low. A short is mapped in the Battle Plan, but it lives at a different location.
BATTLE PLAN 3… THE 7650 RECLAIM AND THE LADDER BACK
The setup in play is Battle Plan 3️⃣, an expected range long. The notes call for snappy ladder back price action and a reclaim of the 7650 strong level as the ideal entry. Where George drops the price label is where he believes the best entry sits… and this one is at 7650.
Strong Levels are what George considers the most important levels for the week… placed on your chart by someone with thousands of trading sessions under their belt. We pair the Battle Plan with the Strong Levels to set targets. As price comes into the next Strong Level, that is often a very good place to consider taking profit.
The ladder back is the choice every trader makes for themselves… how greedy do you want to be? You can take the entry right at the label, or you can let price drop deeper and give you a laddering sequence for a better fill. More reward, more risk. On the second trading day of the expected range, if the stars align on a reclaim, the target is the opposite expected range to the north.
Trader Lesson 4
Use the Battle Plan for entries and the Strong Levels for targets. The price label marks the ideal entry… but a snappy ladder back can hand you a deeper, better fill if you're willing to wait for it.
THE BATTLE PLAN ANATOMY AND JOURNALING THE WEEK
Every day George publishes the Battle Plan, the written trade plan for ES. It opens with a review section… what happened today, any recap video, and the tip of the day. Full members get their trader homework, the scoreboard for how the week has gone so far, and the economic calendar for the next two days. The calendar is free and unlocked for everyone.
For members, the plan carries the mapped trade ideas, the market context going into the next day, the ES price map showing where we're looking to go long and short, and updated TradingView indicators. The Battle Plan notes usually run 3 to 5 minutes in audio.
Because it's rollover week and the day after a holiday, George tagged both of those in the Trade Buddy journaling software so he can reference them in the future. You won't remember everything… so mark the unusual days as they happen.
"That wasn't my trade. Not my trade, on my terms. That's someone else's trade."
COMMON QUESTIONS FOR ES FUTURES TRADERS
Why is contract rollover week harder to trade?
A: Contract rollover is the quarterly transition between futures contract months. It distorts volume and levels, and the closer you get to Friday the more squirrely the price action gets. Layer a shortened holiday week and inflation data on top, and conviction drops… which is why it can be a sensible week to trade smaller or stand down.
What does it mean to take a scratch in futures trading?
A: A scratch is a trade you exit at or near break-even because the setup didn't develop on your terms. It is not a loss and it is not a failure. Taking a scratch and moving on without FOMO protects your capital and your mindset for the trade that actually pays.
What is the bull bear line and why does it matter?
A: The Bull Bear Line is the key level that divides bullish bias from bearish bias. When price is trading under it, as it is today, the bias is defensive and longs need to be cautious. Reclaiming it is often the trigger that shifts the read back to the upside.
What is a Strong Level in the Battle Plan?
A: Strong Levels are the levels George considers most important for the week, placed on your chart by someone with thousands of trading sessions of experience. Traders use the Battle Plan for entries and the Strong Levels to set targets… as price approaches the next Strong Level, it's often a good place to consider taking profit.
What is a ladder back entry?
A: A ladder back is when price drops deeper into your mapped zone and gives you a sequence of re-entries at better prices. You can take the trade right at the price label, or wait for the ladder back for a better fill. It's a personal choice of how much risk and reward you want.
How does the three-contract system help with discipline?
A: It is Micros Trader's core position sizing framework, built to let you scale in and out with defined leverage metrics. Following those metrics perfectly is what lets you take a scratch calmly, knowing the next trade could be a 50 or 100-point runner. It removes the pressure to force any single trade.
What is an expected range long?
A: It is a long setup mapped near the low edge of the day's expected range, aiming for a move toward the opposite edge of that range. Today's Battle Plan 3 is an expected range long looking for a reclaim of the 7650 strong level, with a target at the northern edge of the range if the setup develops.
How do you avoid both over-trading and under-trading?
A: Over-trading is chasing setups that aren't yours. Under-trading is hesitating and missing the setups that are. The fix is a written plan with clear entries, so you take your trades when they trigger and pass on everything else without second-guessing. Repeat the rule until it's automatic… not my trade, not my terms.
Why journal rollover and holiday days?
A: You won't remember the context of every session months later. Tagging unusual days like contract rollover and the day after a holiday in your journaling software lets you reference how the market behaved the next time those conditions repeat, so you trade them smarter.
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