A trading journal built for research

After a good trade, a convincing explanation is easy to remember. After a loss, it is too. A research journal needs to preserve what you knew when you made the decision, so the later explanation does not replace the original criterion.

The Deepwick journal records symbol, side, prices, times, P&L, setup, tags, notes and a rating. You can also create a standalone entry without linking it to a paper trade.

Separate observation, hypothesis and execution

Use a tag to describe what an entry represents. For example, observation for a market you are following, paper for a virtual trade and review for subsequent analysis. These are conventions you choose, not special product modes.

If you only observed a breakout, leave entry price, exit price and P&L empty. Record what you saw and when. Filling those fields with an imagined trade would blur the distinction between your decisions and what the chart revealed afterward.

For an executed trade, record its corresponding prices and times. If you import trades from MT5, check symbols, dates and imported information before combining them with manual entries.

A short notes template

You can copy this structure into Notes when creating an entry:

• Context: symbol, provider, timeframe and observation time.
• Hypothesis: the behavior you want to investigate and why.
• Rule: what must happen and what would invalidate the idea.
• Available evidence: information you had before the outcome.
• Later review: what happened and which parts of the rule you followed.
• Next test: one specific question that remains unanswered.

This is an organizational example, not a market signal or an invented result. For an entry originating from a screener, include its condition and run time. For one originating from a backtest, retain the configuration and historical window.

Use tags that support comparison

Keep a small set of setup names and write each consistently. Combine context tags, such as breakout, with process tags, such as late-entry. Creating a new category for every outcome leaves you with groups that are difficult to compare.

Journal filters support symbol, tag and minimum rating. Review the full set of entries for a setup first. Filtering only for high ratings can exclude exactly the cases you need to understand.

If you use ratings to assess adherence to a process, define each score beforehand. A losing trade can follow the rule, while a winner can violate it. Stars do not calculate that distinction automatically.

Leave a record of the weekly review

Choose a period, count relevant entries and summarize repeated errors, missing information and cases that contradict the hypothesis. Count trades separately from observations. Also record what you decided not to change.

Turn a testable question into a bounded parameter experiment or a walk-forward evaluation. The journal preserves the reasoning; subsequent tests add new evidence.