In this market environment, if you want to profit from short-term trading, the real competition is not about courage, but about execution. Quick reaction, precise timing, and swift exit—these three seemingly simple requirements are actually rarely simultaneously satisfied by traders.

Why do most people fail at short-term trading? The truth is, they overthink, make mistakes, and regret even more.

**Defeat randomness with a system**

The first pitfall of short-term trading: replacing rules with feelings. Getting excited over a news event today and going all in, or screaming and cutting positions at the sight of red tomorrow—this is not trading, it's gambling.

Whether you use MACD, Bollinger Bands, or pure candlestick analysis, the key is not the tool itself, but whether you truly understand its underlying logic. When is a signal genuine? When is it just a false breakout in the market? If you can't answer these questions clearly, rushing in will only turn you into someone’s leek.

There can be a 10x difference in account outcomes between those with a trading plan and those without.

**Risk management is the secret to survival**

Many people, while trading short-term, start to "play big": increasing position sizes, leveraging higher and higher, believing that the next trade will recover losses. And then? A reversal hits, and the account blows up.

Those who truly survive in this market usually follow a strict rule: never lose more than 2% of total capital on a single trade. Cut losses when wrong—there's no need to hesitate. There will be opportunities tomorrow, next week, and next month.

Short-term profits come from the power of compound interest, not from a single huge gain. Turning $100 into 1.5 times repeatedly, 20 times, results in $360,000. But if you lose everything in one shot, all previous gains are meaningless.

**Psychological drift is the most invisible killer**

This might be the most overlooked yet deadliest point. After losing a trade, the urge to "win it back" can severely impair judgment. You start entering positions where you shouldn’t, holding onto losing trades that should have been stopped out, and eventually sinking deeper.

At that point, you're no longer a trader—you’re a gambler. Once your mindset collapses, no system or rule can save you.

**The truth about short-term trading**

It boils down to four words: discipline and frequency.

When a signal appears, dare to act; when the expectation breaks, decisively exit; don’t obsess over individual gains or losses; maintain a steady trading rhythm—that’s enough. Each trade may not bring huge profits, but with enough trades and over time, your account will grow surprisingly.

The market releases opportunities every day; what’s truly scarce are those who can stay at the table consistently. Most people get wiped out by a single impulsive move.

Control your fingers, let rules speak for you.