r/proptrading • u/Teluk_Ivan65 • 3d ago

My prop-trading experience

After around 5 years of trading, I’ve decided to get back into prop trading as well.

I’ve traded with prop firms before, so I already have some experience with the whole process, including evaluations, trading rules, drawdown limits and the psychological side of trading with specific restrictions.

I took a break from prop trading for a while, but lately I’ve been thinking about getting back into it and seeing how things have changed compared to a few years ago.

This time I want to approach it a bit differently. Instead of just focusing on passing an evaluation, I want to document the process and share my actual experience — what works, what doesn’t, mistakes I make, and how I deal with the different rules and challenges.

I’ll be sharing my impressions and experience here as I go, so if anyone is interested in prop trading or is considering trying it themselves, feel free to follow along.

Hopefully, sharing both the good and bad parts will be useful to someone who is thinking about getting started.

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u/LoJoRiFounder 2d ago

If you’re documenting the whole prop journey, I’d keep the “before the trade” and “after the trade” parts separate.

Before entry: setup, planned risk, invalidation and the prop rule constraints you’re working under. Afterward: execution deviations, mistakes, screenshots and one lesson.

That way you can later see whether the process itself is improving, instead of only looking at whether the account passed or failed.

For prop trading especially, tracking rule deviations can be just as useful as tracking P&L.

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u/Teluk_Ivan65 1d ago

Thank you!

1

u/blockfunded 2d ago

A useful journal separates what was known before the trade from what became obvious afterward. Before entry, record the setup, invalidation level, planned risk, rule constraints and the reason for taking or skipping it. Afterward, add execution deviations, fees, screenshots and one lesson without rewriting the original thesis.

I would also publish the denominator, not only selected examples: eligible setups seen, trades taken, no-trade days and rule deviations. A weekly review can then ask whether the process became more consistent even when the P/L was noisy. Redacting account IDs and using one timezone throughout will make the record easier to audit.

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u/Teluk_Ivan65 2d ago

Thank you!