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Today’s guest is Tim Racette—founder of EminiMind and a seasoned E-mini S&P futures trader known for his calm, process-driven approach. In this interview, Tim breaks down what actually changed (and what didn’t) through low-volatility stretches, the pandemic whipsaws, and the influx of new retail traders. Why he matters: Tim has spent years proving that tighter filters, fewer trades, and consistent journaling can grow both confidence and P&L without turning trading into a full-time grind.
In this piece, you’ll learn Tim’s practical day-trading blueprint for the E-mini S&P: how he narrows to high-probability setups, sizes around expected range, and lets a simple trade log sharpen intuition over time. You’ll see why fewer, better trades often beat more screen time, when to scale down after a drawdown, and how “mechanics over money goals” keeps you from constantly tweaking exits. If you’re a beginner looking for a clean, repeatable strategy—and a mindset that survives both slow grinds and wild runners—Tim Racette lays out a straightforward path you can start using today.
Tim Racette Playbook & Strategy: How He Actually Trades
What Tim trades when he shows up
Tim Racette focuses on intraday futures, especially the E-mini S&P (and micros for sizing practice). He’s big on keeping screen time tight and only taking the best looks, not “more trades because more volatility.”
Here’s how to apply that rhythm without burning out or overtrading.
- Trade the E-mini S&P (ES) or start with MES while you refine execution.
- Limit your active window (e.g., first 60–120 minutes). More screen time ≠ , more edge.
- Fewer, better trades: predefine the 1–3 setups you’ll actually take today.
- Adjust expectations to the day’s range; small ranges → smaller winners, big ranges → faster moves.
Entries and setups (keep it simple)
Tim’s bias is toward simple, repeatable structures over “Franken-systems.” He treats any strategy as a lens, then filters for context and repeats what resonates.
Use this to build a small, durable playbook.
- Pick one lens (price action, a moving-average pair, or fibs) and stop stacking indicators.
- Define exact triggers for your A+ setup (e.g., “only after higher low + reclaim prior swing”).
- Pre-tag market condition (trend, balance, expansion) before you trade; only deploy setups in their condition.
- Journal each trigger with screenshots so you can spot repeatable tells later.
Risk and trade management (the non-negotiables)
Tim’s approach barely changed in a decade: small, consistent risk, a tight stop, and a first target that “grabs a couple points” to smooth the P&L. Consistency in exits matters more than tinkering after every trade.
Bake these rules into your platform so they fire automatically.
- Hard stop per ES position: 2.00 points (he evolved from 1.50 → 2.00). Don’t widen it.
- First target: scale some at +2.00 points to smooth equity curve; then manage remaining per your plan.
- One exit protocol, always the same—no ad-hoc changes after a big winner/loser.
- If price jumps your stop, accept the slip and reset; never “pull the stop.”
Daily and weekly cutoffs (protect the month)
He sets thresholds to stop trading when things go off track. If Monday–Tuesday are rough, it can be smarter to shut it down and protect the month than to dig deeper.
Install these brakes so emotion can’t drive your position size.
- Pre-set a platform-enforced daily loss lockout (fixed $ or R). When hit, you’re done.
- Two losing days to start the week? Consider standing down until next week.
- After a nasty open, reduce size or go to sim for the rest of the session.
Position sizing and progression
Tim prefers scaling after a drawdown, not during euphoria. Newer traders can build with micros, then step up deliberately.
Grow without blowing up by tying size to process, not P&L spikes.
- Start at MES; graduate to ES only after 20–30 sessions of rule-clean execution.
- Increase contracts post-drawdown recovery, not after hot streaks.
- Know your worst historical losing streak (e.g., 6 in a row) and size so that streak is survivable.
Journaling and review (how intuition is built)
His “intuition” isn’t magic—it’s the by-product of a simple trade log and side-by-side review of winners and losers under similar conditions.
This is how you turn screenshots into an actual edge.
- Log every trade in a spreadsheet with: date/time, setup name, context, entry, stop, target(s), and result.
- Batch-review by condition (e.g., trend days together) to find common tells.
- Tag recurring mistakes and convert each into a rule (e.g., “no widening stops,” “no entries against immediate structure”).
Consistency, discipline, and lifestyle design
Tim treats trading like athletic training: show up, do focused reps, plan off-seasons, and don’t let trading consume your entire day. Consistency builds confidence, which builds discipline.
Use these habits to make discipline automatic.
- Commit to a fixed daily trading window and honor it—even when you “don’t feel like it.”
- Pre-plan breaks (holidays, stressful life weeks) to preserve longevity.
- Keep trading time short to limit damage and decision fatigue. Less can be more.
Goal setting and metrics that actually help
Rather than dollar targets, he focuses on what he can control and uses expectancy and R-multiples to set realistic growth paths that fit a broader net-worth goal.
Let the math guide your process, not hope.
- Track average trade (expectancy) and reward-to-risk; improve one lever at a time.
- Build from small, repeatable gains (singles and doubles), not daily dollar quotas.
- Tie trading goals to overall cash-flow/net-worth plans so trading is a contributor, not the only engine.
New-trader on-ramp
If you’re starting from scratch, Tim’s advice is to start tiny, simplify, and execute daily like a practice plan—not a get-rich sprint.
Here’s a clean way to begin without blowing yourself up.
- Trade an hour a day, same time, and cap yourself at 1–3 planned setups.
- Use a tiny account or micros as a built-in failsafe while you learn.
- Focus on taking action: learn → practice → get feedback → repeat.
Trade Fewer, Better Setups: Lock a Daily Window and Walk Away
Tim Racette’s edge starts with saying “no” to most trades. He blocks a tight daily window, scans for his A+ conditions, and refuses to stretch just to be active. By limiting time and setups, he protects focus, decision quality, and emotional capital. The point isn’t to catch everything; it’s to catch the clean ones with full attention and leave the rest alone.
Before the open, Tim defines exactly what qualifies: the pattern, the context, and the stop/target math. If those criteria don’t show, he sits out—no “just in case” entries. When a valid setup triggers, he executes, manages per plan, and shuts it down once the window ends or the day’s objective is hit. This routine reduces revenge trades, FOMO entries, and tinkering, letting discipline—not impulse—compound over time.
Size by Volatility: Use Micros, Tight Stops, and Fixed R
Tim Racette sizes positions to the day’s expected range so a normal wiggle doesn’t nuke the trade. He starts small with micros when refining a setup, then graduates in size only after execution is clean. Each trade risks a fixed R, so winners and losers are comparable across sessions. Tight, pre-planned stops keep losers small and make decisions binary—hit the level or you’re wrong. This keeps the account curve steady even when markets speed up or slow down.
When volatility expands, Tim reduces contracts or widens stops only if the math keeps R constant; when it contracts, he does the opposite. He never widens a stop mid-trade to “give it room,” and he doesn’t add size to dig out of a drawdown. The goal is predictable damage control, not hero trades. By matching size to conditions and enforcing fixed risk per idea, Tim Racette lets expectancy—not adrenaline—do the heavy lifting. Over time, that structure turns small edges into durable returns.
First Target, Then Trail: Mechanical Exits That Smooth the Curve
Tim Racette takes some off at a predefined first target to bank a base hit and calm the mind. That partial locks in progress and prevents the “all or nothing” swings that wreck confidence. He then shifts to a rules-based trail on the remainder—no gut calls, no chasing. The goal is consistency first, optimization second.
By separating the trade into “secure” and “seek,” Tim permits himself to let the runner work without babysitting. He never widens a stop after entry and won’t cancel the trail because a candle looks scary. On trend days, the trailer captures distance; on chop days, the banked first target keeps the equity curve from yo-yoing. Over dozens of sessions, this mechanical exit routine is how Tim Racette converts decent entries into a steady, tradable P&L.
Protect the Month: Daily Loss Locks and Weekly Stand-Down Rules
Tim Racette treats risk brakes like seatbelts—you click them before you drive. He sets a hard daily loss lock that shuts him down automatically, removing the option to “earn it back.” If the week starts with back-to-back red days, he stands down instead of pressing. The goal is to preserve mental capital and keep the month’s math intact.
Tim also scales down after a rough patch rather than chasing with bigger size. He resets expectations, reviews the mistakes, and returns at a smaller clip until execution is clean. By enforcing these guardrails, Tim Racette keeps one bad morning from snowballing into a bad month. Protect the month, and the year tends to protect itself.
Diversify by Play, Not Ticker: Trend Day, Balance, Expansion Modes
Tim Racette doesn’t diversify by chasing more symbols—he diversifies by having multiple “plays” for different market moods. He classifies the session first: trending (one-direction drive), balance (range compression), or expansion (range break with energy). Each mode activates a different entry, stop, and target plan, so he isn’t forcing a trend setup in a choppy box. This keeps him aligned with what the market is actually offering, not what he hopes to see.
Within each mode, Tim varies duration and strategy rather than hunting new tickers: a quick scalp in balance, a hold-and-trail on trend, a staged add-on expansion. He may downshift to micros to practice a new play without risking wrecking risk, then scale up once the stats prove out. The result is smoother equity—small wins in balance, occasional runners on trend, and controlled stabs during expansions. By diversifying his playbook instead of his watchlist, Tim Racette stays consistent while the market rotates through its phases.
Tim Racette’s core message is refreshingly simple: win by doing less, better. He time-boxes his day, hunts only for A-setups in the E-mini S&P, and lets the rest go. After more than a decade, his playbook barely changed—just small refinements like moving a 1.5-point stop to 2.0 points—because consistency beats constant tinkering. He smooths the equity curve with a predefined first target, then trails the remainder mechanically so one trade is both a base hit and a shot at a runner. The result is steadier P&L and a calmer head.
Risk is where Tim refuses to compromise. Each idea risks a fixed R; he sizes to volatility (micros when refining, scale only after execution is clean), and he never widens a stop mid-trade. He caps damage with platform-enforced daily loss locks, and if Monday–Tuesday start red, he’ll often stand down and protect the month. He studies his worst historical drawdown to calibrate size so losing streaks are survivable, not account-ending. Discipline is engineered upfront—through rules, not willpower after the fact.
Process turns into intuition through deliberate practice. Tim journals trades with context, then reviews winners and losers side-by-side by market condition—trend, balance, or expansion—to spot repeatable tells. He diversifies by play, not ticker: different entries, stops, and targets for each session type. Beyond the screen, he aligns trading with broader net-worth and lifestyle goals, favoring short, focused sessions so trading adds to life rather than consumes it. Learn a bit, practice a lot, get feedback, and keep the loop turning—that’s how Tim Racette actually trades, and why the approach is durable for real traders.
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