There is a harsh truth in trading: many people only realize it after being in the game for a long time — the only thing you can fully control is your stop loss. How much you make is never entirely up to you.

1. Why is the stop loss “your own”? Because at the moment you place an order, there are only three things you can decide: whether to enter the position, how large it is, and whether to cut losses or not. Essentially, it’s about how you price the “cost of mistakes.” How much are you willing to pay for one judgment? People who don’t set a stop loss aren’t confident in the market; they simply refuse to admit they’re wrong. The market won’t stop just because you’re unwilling to accept it — it keeps moving regardless.

2. Why isn’t take profit something you can decide? Many traders think before entering: “How many points do I want to earn on this trade?” “I’ll close everything at price XX.” It sounds very professional, but reality often hits hard. When the market is strong, your take profit is too small — as soon as you sell, it flies away. When the market is weak, your expected take profit is simply unattainable, and you end up with a big bearish candle. Profits aren’t made by plans; they’re made by the market’s movement, and you catch it.

3. Experts don’t earn from “levels,” but from trends. Beginners love to do this: take a little profit and run, then watch the market continue in the same direction. Experienced traders, on the other hand, give their profits room to breathe but are extremely stingy with losses. The reason is simple — once losses grow, you lose the qualification to wait for the trend. How much profit the market is willing to give you depends on whether you can survive the volatility.

4. Stop loss manages life and death; take profit manages expectations. Imagining a stop loss is a survival tool.