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In this YouTube interview, trader Albert Burgess lays out how he built a repeatable, risk-first approach that moved him from scattered setups to consistent execution. He’s candid about the mistakes that slowed him down, the routines that tightened his edge, and the practical habits that let him treat trading like a profession. If you’re tired of indicator hopping and want a grounded way to think about entries, exits, and risk, Burgess is a refreshingly no-nonsense voice worth hearing.
In this piece, you’ll learn the core strategy pillars Burgess emphasizes: defining your A-setup, sizing by volatility, protecting downside with simple rules, and sticking to a clean execution checklist. We’ll unpack how he filters trades, times entries without overcomplication, journals with intent, and evaluates prop challenges without chasing hype. By the end, you’ll have a beginner-friendly blueprint to turn ideas into a disciplined, testable trading strategy.
Albert Burgess Playbook & Strategy: How He Actually Trades
How Albert Chooses What to Trade (and When)
Before any chart work, Albert filters for the cleanest opportunities so he isn’t forcing trades. This section shows how he picks instruments and sessions that match his style, so you spend your attention where your edge is highest.
- Trade a short list you know cold (e.g., 2–3 FX majors or 3–5 liquid equities/indices); remove anything with erratic spreads or news-driven whipsaws.
- Define your “A-market profile”: tight spreads, robust liquidity during your session, and a clear daily structure (higher highs/lows or a clear range).
- Confine entries to your high-liquidity window: first 2–3 hours of your primary session; if nothing sets up, stand down.
- Skip days with major event risk if your setup depends on quiet structure; otherwise, plan to trade reaction, not anticipation.
- Track a weekly “tradeability score” (1–5) per instrument based on average range vs. noise; only trade scores ≥3.
The A-Setup: Structure First, Signal Second
Albert treats the setup as a small checklist he can recognize at a glance. This section breaks down the structure he looks for before any indicator or trigger gets a vote.
- Start on the daily chart: mark trend (up/down/range), last week’s high/low, and nearest obvious liquidity (equal highs/lows, untested breakout levels).
- On the 1H/15M, demand a clean 3-step structure: (1) impulse away from a key level, (2) controlled pullback, (3) signal to continue. No 3-step = no trade.
- Only trade at pre-defined levels: prior day high/low, weekly open, session VWAP deviations, or a well-tested supply/demand zone.
- Require confluence: level + structure + timing (session open or scheduled catalyst window).
- If the pullback retraces >61.8% of the impulse or takes out the origin, downgrade to B-setup or pass.
Risk & Sizing the Albert Way
Edge dies without a consistent risk. Here’s how Albert keeps losses small and predictable so one trade never dictates the day.
- Risk a fixed at 0.25–0.50% of equity per A-setup; B-setups get half size or are skipped.
- Place stops beyond structure, not feelings: beyond the swing that invalidates your idea or ≥0.8× ATR(14) on your entry timeframe—whichever is farther.
- Target at least 1.8R on A-setups; if structure only offers 1.2–1.5R, reduce size or pass.
- Daily max loss = 1.5R; hit it and you’re done for the day. Weekly max loss = 4R; hit it and you go to sim until next Monday.
- Use a sizing table pre-computed for your account so you never “math it out” under stress.
Entry Triggers & Timing
Albert waits for the market to “prove it” at the level, then commits with mechanical triggers. This keeps entries consistent across days.
- Longs: after a pullback into the level, wait for a bullish engulfing or a break-retest of a micro-swing high; enter on limit at the retest or on stop above the trigger bar.
- Shorts: mirror the long rules with bearish confirmation; avoid entering mid-bar to chase momentum.
- If the spread widens or the trigger prints outside your session window, skip the trade.
- No more than two entry attempts per level; if the second fails, the level is likely compromised.
- If price runs without tagging your limit by >0.5× ATR, let it go; chasing erodes R multiples over time.
Managing the Trade in Real Time
The goal is to let winners breathe while cutting losers as planned. Albert codifies management so there’s no improvising mid-trade.
- Move stop to breakeven only after price closes beyond the first structure target (e.g., prior high/low or 0.5R).
- Scale out 50% at 1R only if volatility is high and structure is choppy; otherwise, hold for the full target.
- If a strong counter-signal prints at your level before 0.5R is reached, consider an early scratch at -0.3R to conserve mental capital.
- Trail behind swing lows/highs on trend days only; on range days, fixed targets outperform.
- Cancel unfinished orders 15 minutes before major scheduled releases.
The Playbook & Review Loop
Albert treats each trade like a repeatable “play” he can rehearse. This section helps you build the same muscle: capture, refine, and redeploy.
- Keep a one-pager per setup: context, level types, triggers, invalidation, and management rules.
- Journal outcomes by setup type—not by instrument—and track hit rate, avg R, time in trade, and reason for pass/fail.
- Tag each trade with “structure grade” (A/B/C) and “execution grade” (A/B/C); only scale risk when both average ≥B for 20+ samples.
- Run a weekly audit: print the charts, mark the exact decision point, and write the single change that would have improved expectancy.
- Purge: if a setup drops below 1.2R expectancy over 40 trades, retire or re-specify it.
Session Routine & Mindset
Consistency starts before the open. Albert keeps a light but strict routine to anchor his focus and reduce tilt.
- Pre-market (20–30 min): mark levels, define today’s “if-then” scenarios, set alerts, and write maximum exposure for the day.
- During session: trade in blocks (e.g., 90 minutes on, break, 60 minutes on); no new trades after your end time.
- Post-session: screenshot winners and losers (same template), log emotions (1–5), and write a one-sentence lesson.
- If you break any cardinal rule (oversized, revenge trade), auto-lock the platform for the rest of the day.
- Protect sleep, hydration, and breaks as “edge inputs,” not luxuries.
Handling News & Volatility
News can be an opportunity or a landmine. Albert chooses his battles and defines exactly how to respond.
- Maintain a simple calendar of high-impact events for your instruments; color-code “avoid” vs. “trade reaction.”
- For “avoid” events: flat 5 minutes before; re-assess levels after the first 15-minute candle closes.
- For “trade reaction” events: wait for the spike, mark the wick extremes, and only trade a break-retest of that range.
- Double spreads = half size or no entry; never widen stops to accommodate bad fills.
- If VIX (or equivalent vol gauge) jumps above your threshold, switch to A+ setups only and reduce risk by 25–50%.
Building Toward Scale (Funding & Size)
Albert prefers scaling a proven process, not gambling for big days. Here’s how to grow without breaking your edge.
- Increase size only when your last 40 trades show ≥55% hit rate and ≥1.5R average winner; otherwise, stay put.
- Limit simultaneous exposure: max two correlated positions; if both trigger, split risk (e.g., 0.25% + 0.25%).
- Treat funded accounts like client capital: same rules, smaller daily drawdown, and zero “just testing” trades.
- Withdraw a fixed percentage of monthly profits to reduce pressure and anchor consistency.
- Keep a “de-risk switch”: after any 3R down day, next session trades at half size until you recover.
A Quick Example Blueprint You Can Copy Today
Sometimes you just need a template. Below is a plug-and-play flow that mirrors Albert’s style—modify tick values and levels for your market.
- Pre-market: mark prior day high/low, weekly open, nearest untested breakout, and session VWAP bands.
- Bias: only long above weekly open with higher-low structure; only short below with lower-high structure.
- Trigger: break-retest of 15M micro-swing at a pre-marked level with an engulfing confirmation.
- Risk: 0.5% per trade; stop beyond invalidation swing or 0.8× ATR(14).
- Management: partial at 1R in chop; otherwise hold to 1.8–2.2R; stop to BE after a close beyond first target.
- Max attempts: two per level; daily stop after -1.5R; weekly stop after -4R.
- Post: journal immediately with chart, grades, and one lesson to carry into tomorrow.
Size Risk First: Fixed R, Asymmetric Targets, Never Average Losers
Albert Burgess starts by sizing risk before he even thinks about setups, because the only thing we can truly control is the downside. He fixes R per trade—small, consistent, and immune to mood—so every decision downstream serves a clear, measurable expectancy. Stops live beyond invalidation, not feelings, and targets are built to be asymmetric, where one clean winner pays for several scratches without stress.
He drills a hard line on never averaging losers, preferring to re-enter only if structure revalidates after a clean stop. That discipline lets him focus on execution quality instead of nursing hope. When volatility expands, position size contracts and targets stretch; when volatility contracts, size can normalize and profit-taking tightens. The net effect is simple: protect the floor, let the ceiling take care of itself.
Trade the Mechanics, Not Predictions: Structure, Timing, and Confirmation
Albert Burgess treats price like a machine, not a mystery to forecast. He frames the market with a higher time-frame structure first, then zooms in on the session where liquidity is strongest. Instead of guessing direction, he waits for the price to interact with a pre-marked level and show its hand. That shift—from “I think” to “if-then”—kills impulse trades and forces repeatable execution.
For timing, Burgess anchors entries to moments when participation spikes and spreads stay tight, then demands a clean confirmation like a break-retest or engulfing close. If the structure blurs or the trigger prints outside his window, he passes without hesitation. He’d rather miss a move than fund a bad habit, because process compounds while predictions don’t. The result is a calmer playbook: map the level, let the market confirm, and trade the mechanic—not the hunch.
Let Volatility Lead: ATR-Based Stops, Adaptive Position Sizing
Albert Burgess builds every decision around volatility so his risk stays real, not imagined. He uses ATR to park stops beyond noise, then sizes the position so the same fixed R is at stake whether the market is calm or wild. When ATR expands, he shrinks in size and widens stops; when ATR contracts, he normalizes size and tightens profit-taking to keep R multiples intact.
Burgess also aligns expectations with the session’s projected range, aiming for targets that fit inside what the market typically gives. If a setup can’t deliver at least ~1.8R within that expected move, he passes instead of forcing trades in tight conditions. In sudden spikes, he either stands down or scales partials faster to bank R before the tape reverts. By letting volatility lead, he keeps the downside consistent and lets the upside breathe when the market actually has room to run.
Diversify Smartly: Underlying, Strategy Type, and Holding Duration
Albert Burgess diversifies the way a practitioner does—by separating what actually reduces risk from what just adds noise. He spreads exposure across a few uncorrelated underlyings, then mixes defined-risk and directional plays so one tape regime doesn’t dominate results. If indices are trending, he might pair momentum continuations with mean-reversion on FX; when FX compresses, he pivots weight to index or commodity opportunities with clearer structure. The point is simple: don’t put all your eggs in one market mood.
Burgess also diversifies by holding duration, staggering quick intraday plays with occasional swing holds when higher-time-frame structure supports it. He caps simultaneous correlation—no more than two trades that rhyme—and trims size if positions share drivers like USD strength or broad risk-on. Each strategy keeps its own rules, metrics, and risk budget, so a cold streak in one doesn’t contaminate the rest. By diversifying across underlying, strategy type, and time horizon, he smooths the equity curve without diluting expectancy.
Process Over Hype: Pre-Market Plan, Session Rules, Post-Trade Review
Albert Burgess wins his day before the bell by writing a simple pre-market plan: bias, key levels, “if-then” scenarios, and maximum risk. He keeps it short enough to use under pressure, then sets alerts so the chart has to come to him. When the session opens, he follows a small set of rules—trade only during his liquidity window, two attempts per level, stop trading after the daily loss cap—so discipline isn’t a decision, it’s the default.
After the close, Burgess does a fast post-trade review to turn executions into lessons. He grades structure and execution separately, screenshots the decision point, and writes one sentence on what to keep or cut tomorrow. The focus isn’t therapy; it’s expectancy—am I following the process that actually prints R? By reducing hype to checklists and feedback loops, he builds a machine that improves even on quiet days.
Albert Burgess’s message lands the same way a clean chart does: simple lines, no noise. He sizes risk first, fixes R per trade, and lets ATR dictate how wide his stops sit so losses reflect real volatility—not hope. He trades mechanics over predictions, mapping structure on higher time frames, then waiting for session-time confirmation, like a break-retest or engulfing close at a pre-marked level. When the tape is wild, he shrinks in size and stretches targets; when it’s tight, he keeps size modest and expectations realistic. No averaging down, two tries per level, and a hard daily/weekly loss cap keep the edge intact when emotions want the wheel.
Burgess also diversifies like a pro operator: by underlying, by strategy type, and by holding duration—so one market mood doesn’t own his P&L. He starts the day with a short, usable plan (bias, levels, if-then scenarios), trades inside his liquidity window, and finishes with a fast review that grades structure and execution separately. Funding, scaling, and withdrawals are treated as risk projects, not victory laps. Put together, the lesson set is clear: protect the floor with disciplined sizing and rules, let volatility guide the details, and build a repeatable playbook that improves a little every single session.
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