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On this episode of the Words of Rizdom podcast, host Riz sits down with longtime friend and coach Tomas Males, who flew in from Brisbane by way of Nottingham roots. Tomas isn’t just another voice in the trading space—he’s the grounded, no-fluff problem-solver who helps traders and entrepreneurs clear mental roadblocks, build foundations, and actually follow through. Their history goes back more than a decade, and that trust shows; this conversation is a rare blend of real backstory, practical money habits, and how mindset translates into results.
You’ll learn how Tomas built a six-figure net worth by 25 without a flashy paycheck or lucky moonshot—just disciplined saving, living below his means, and treating cash as runway for better decisions. More importantly, we connect those same fundamentals to trading: resilience over hype, choosing inspiring challenges, managing emotions during drawdowns, and surrounding yourself with a circle that actually pushes your execution. If you’re a trader hungry for a strategy that starts with foundations—money management, mindset, and consistent process—you’re in the right place.
Tomas Males Playbook & Strategy: How He Actually Trades
Core Framework: What He Trades and Why
This section gives you the big picture of how Tomas approaches markets—his instruments, timeframes, and the logic behind picking his shots. It matters because clarity on “where you play and how you win” keeps you from chasing noise.
- Focus on liquid majors/indices (e.g., GBPUSD, ES, NQ) and a short A-list of names you know cold.
- Primary timeframe: H1/H4 for structure; M5/M15 for execution.
- Trade only when ATR(14) on the execution timeframe is above its 20-day median—volatility is a prerequisite, not a bonus.
- Align with the dominant daily trend; counter-trend only at higher-timeframe levels with confirmation.
- Avoid the first 5 minutes post-major data; re-engage once spreads/volatility normalize and the first impulse leg is defined.
Pre-Market Routine: Build an Edge Before the Open
Your day should start with a defined checklist so decisions are made with a calm brain, not on impulse. This routine reduces randomness and ensures you’re only hunting your high-quality conditions.
- Mark the prior day’s high/low, weekly high/low, overnight range, and the H4 swing that controls structure.
- Plot anchored VWAPs from the week’s open and from the most recent news impulse high/low; note confluence with H4 levels.
- Note scheduled catalysts (CPI, NFP, PMI/ISM, rate decisions); tag each as “trend amplifier” or “mean-reversion risk.”
- Set volatility gates: no trades if VIX < 13 (for indices) or if 5-day average ATR is in the bottom 20% of its 6-month range.
- Pre-define one A+ setup per instrument for the day; disable the rest to prevent overtrading.
Risk & Sizing: Stay Solvent, Then Get Paid
Tomas treats risk like oxygen—non-negotiable. These rules make sure a bad hour doesn’t ruin a good year.
- Risk per trade: 0.25%–0.5% of equity; scale down to 0.1% during event weeks until post-news structure is clear.
- Use structure-based stops (beyond the invalidation swing or AVWAP band) OR 1.2× ATR(14) on execution timeframe—whichever is larger.
- Max open risk at any time: 1% total across all positions; correlated instruments count as one.
- Daily drawdown guardrail: stop trading at −1.5R or −1%; weekly at −3.5R. Review first, trade later.
- If slippage on entry > 0.4× ATR(1), cancel the idea; poor fills are a legitimate invalidation.
Entry Triggers: From “Idea” to “Order”
Ideas don’t make money—entries do. Use these conditions to press only when the market confirms your read.
- Break-and-retest of H1/H4 level with M15 higher-low (uptrend) or lower-high (downtrend); enter on the first M5 pullback that holds AVWAP.
- Momentum confirmation: price above rising 20EMA and 50EMA (longs) or below falling 20/50 (shorts); no “knife-catching” without a base.
- Volume/impulse check: look for an expansion leg that closes beyond the level and pulls back no deeper than 50% of the impulse.
- News-leg continuation: after a major release, trade the second push only if the initial AVWAP holds on the retrace.
- If the candle that would trigger the entry closes with a long wick against your direction (>40% of range), skip the signal.
Trade Management: Let Winners Breathe, Cut Losers Fast
Great entries still need smart management. These rules help Tomas let the math work without emotional sabotage.
- First scale at +1R; move stop to breakeven only after structure confirms (e.g., a new M15 higher-low for longs).
- Trail below/above swing structure or the rising/falling 20EMA on M15; never tighten just to “lock something in.”
- If price returns inside the broken level and the AVWAP flips against you, exit remainder—assume you’re early/wrong.
- Add-on only when the previous add is at least +1R unrealized and structure continues (pyramid into strength, not into chop).
- Time stop: if trade hasn’t reached +0.5R within 60–90 minutes in active sessions, reduce exposure by half—opportunity cost matters.
Playbook A: Trend Pullback at Anchored VWAP
This is Tomas’s bread-and-butter: join trend after a clean impulse and a respectful pullback to the AVWAP or 20EMA.
- Context: D1 trend aligned; H1/H4 show higher-highs/higher-lows (uptrend) or the inverse (downtrend).
- Setup: Impulse leg breaks a key level; pullback tags AVWAP from impulse origin or the 20EMA and stalls.
- Trigger: M5 engulfing in trend direction or break of pullback micro-structure.
- Stop: Below/above pullback low/high or 1.2× ATR(14) M5.
- Targets: First at +1R near prior impulse high/low; second at +2–3R into next H4 level.
Playbook B: Range Break-Retest With Volatility Expansion
When markets compress, Tomas waits for the spring to load, then trades the first clean retest with expanding ATR.
- Context: Multi-session range with declining ATR; catalysts on deck.
- Setup: Break beyond the range with two closes; pullback holds the broken boundary and AVWAP from the break.
- Trigger: M15 trend line break in the direction of the original breakout; rising tick/volume or strong candle body.
- Stop: Outside the opposite side of the former range or 1.5× ATR(14) M15.
- Targets: Mid-range measured move = range height; trail remainder with H1 swing structure.
News & Catalyst Rules: Volatility Without the Whiplash
News can be a gift or a guillotine. These guardrails let you harness the move without guessing the print.
- Flat 3–5 minutes before top-tier releases; do not hold new positions into the number.
- Post-news, anchor VWAP to the first impulse candle; only trade with the side that defends this VWAP on the first pullback.
- If the first impulse retraces >61.8% within 10 minutes, stand down—the market rejected the move.
- For trend continuation days, look to join on the second leg after the initial pullback holds above/below AVWAP.
- Half size for the first post-news trade; restore normal risk only after one green trade or a clean higher-timeframe close in your favor.
Psychology & Discipline: Process Over Prediction
Edge dies when emotions take the wheel. Tomas uses simple rules to keep execution consistent, especially during drawdowns.
- One decision log per trade: thesis, level, trigger, stop, target, exit reason; write it before you click.
- No revenge trades: if you break a rule, close the platform for 30 minutes minimum.
- Weekly cap: 3 “C-grade” trades allowed; exceed it and you trade A-grade only for the rest of the week.
- Environment check: trade only when rested and distraction-free; no trades if sleep < 6 hours.
- Celebrate process metrics (rules kept, A-setups taken) alongside P&L; consistency is the KPI.
Review & Metrics: Upgrade the System, Not Just the Chart
Your data is your coach. This section explains how Tomas measures what’s working so he can do more of it—and cut the noise.
- Track by setup (A/B/C), session, instrument, and volatility regime; compare hit rate and expectancy across buckets.
- Maintain rolling 30-trade stats per setup; pause any setup with expectancy < 0.15R or win rate < 38% (unless avgR > 2.5).
- Record MAE/MFE to refine stop placement and scale-out logic; aim to reduce average MAE without choking winners.
- Quarterly deep-dive: remove the bottom 10% of trades by process quality, not P&L, and rewrite the checklist accordingly.
- Keep a “couldn’t lose” folder: screenshots of perfect A-setups you didn’t take; study them weekly to reduce hesitation.
Execution Play-By-Play: From Alert to Exit
Here’s the minute-to-minute workflow Tomas follows so nothing gets missed when it’s game time.
- Alert fires at a marked level → check volatility gate and trend alignment.
- Pre-place stop and target; size auto-calculates to risk %.
- Wait for the trigger candle close; no entries mid-bar unless news-leg continuation rules apply.
- After entry, set the first scale at +1R; trail under structure; update the decision log with reasons, not feelings.
- Post-trade, tag the outcome and one improvement to test next time—tiny tweaks, compounding over weeks.
Size Risk First: Protect Capital Before Chasing Any Setup
Tomas Males starts with risk, not entries. His point is simple: if your downside isn’t defined, the setup isn’t real. Before he even looks at a trigger, he decides the maximum loss per trade, checks correlation across positions, and confirms that today’s volatility won’t push the stop into fantasy land. That’s how Tomas keeps bad days small enough that good weeks can still matter.
He sizes positions with structure-based stops and volatility in mind, not gut feel. If spreads spike or ATR jumps, he shrinks size, not standards. When he’s down on the day, he cuts risk further, because the goal is survival first and compounding second. And if two trades move the same way, Tomas treats them as one risk, not two separate lottery tickets. This is how the account stays in the game long enough for Edge to show up.
Trade Volatility, Not Vibes: Allocate More When ATR Expands
Tomas Males treats volatility as the fuel that makes edge visible, and he measures it instead of guessing. When Average True Range expands, he selectively increases allocation on A-setups because the distance to the target justifies the risk. If ATR compresses or ranges tighten, he cuts size and expects mean reversion, not home runs. This way, Tomas lets the market’s current energy—not his mood—dictate how aggressively he plays.
He also adjusts stops to volatility so they’re outside normal noise rather than snug dreams. When spreads widen around catalysts, Tomas waits for the first impulse and only joins if the price respects the post-news anchored VWAP. If a day’s realized volatility underperforms the open’s promise, he scales expectations down mid-session instead of forcing trades. By aligning size, stops, and expectations with ATR, Tomas Males avoids overtrading quiet tape and presses only when the tape can actually pay.
Diversify Smartly: Mix Underlyings, Strategies, and Holding Durations
Tomas Males spreads risk across symbols, playbooks, and time horizons so no single idea can sink the ship. He pairs a core trend-following approach on majors with a mean-reversion intraday plan, letting one thrive when the other struggles. By rotating through FX majors, a couple of equity indices, and the occasional commodity, Tomas avoids being hostage to one macro narrative.
He also staggers holding periods—scalps that pay the bills, swings that pay the month—so P&L isn’t capped by one tempo. If two instruments are highly correlated, he treats them as one exposure and splits the size rather than doubling the risk. Tomas Males reviews results by “bucket” (underlying, strategy, duration) and cuts whichever bucket drags expectancy below his bar. The result is smoother equity curves, fewer emotional drawdowns, and the freedom to keep pressing when other traders are stuck in one-mode markets.
Mechanics Over Predictions: Rules for Entries, Stops, and Scaling
Tomas Males doesn’t waste time forecasting; he executes a checklist. He waits for price to confirm direction with a break-and-retest, then enters on the first clean pullback that respects his anchored VWAP or 20EMA. Stops live beyond the structure that would prove him wrong, not at round numbers or wish-list levels. If the trigger candle closes with a long wick against his bias, he skips the trade—no exceptions.
Once in, Tomas scales at predefined R-multiples, not at emotional points on the chart. He trails beneath the new swing structure only after the market prints it, letting winners breathe instead of strangling them early. Adds happen into proven momentum, never into chop, and only when open profit already covers the new risk. If the trade stalls and can’t reach a modest profit threshold in its expected window, he cuts exposure and moves on. For Tomas Males, the edge isn’t the prediction—it’s the discipline of repeating these mechanics flawlessly.
Define Your Risk: Avoid Undefined Blowups and Enforce Process Discipline
Tomas Males treats undefined risk like a fire hazard—he doesn’t step into a room that might explode. Every position begins with a hard stop placed beyond structural invalidation, and the size is calculated from that stop, not the other way around. He bans naked exposure to gap risk around top-tier news and refuses martingale or “widen the stop” logic. If slippage pushes the effective risk beyond his limit, Tomas cancels the idea rather than pretending the plan still fits.
Process discipline is the second firewall. Tomas Males logs the thesis, trigger, stop, and exit plan before entry, then grades the execution afterward to reinforce behavior, not just results. Two broken rules in a session end the session—no negotiations with the part of your brain that wants action. He caps daily and weekly drawdowns to protect decision quality, then returns with a smaller size until the groove is back. By defining risk upfront and enforcing simple, non-negotiable rules, Tomas keeps small losses small and lets competence—not luck—compound.
Tomas Males’ core lesson is simple: strong money foundations make strong traders. He frames “wealth” as how long you can survive without income, a mindset he adopted early and proved by building disciplined savings long before any trading spotlight. That bias toward solvency shows up in how he coaches and trades—start with risk, protect the downside, and let compounding do the heavy lifting. His journey runs through Nottingham to Brisbane and into the Words of Wisdom studio, where he connects practical habits to market execution: save first, define risk, respect volatility, and only scale when the tape can actually pay.
Equally important, Tomas treats performance as a product of mindset and environment. He began by helping people with money coaching around August 2020, then leaned fully into coaching as a problem-solver—rewiring habits, reducing mental blocks, and guiding traders back to basics when emotions take over. The throughline is service and structure: invest in yourself, surround yourself with people who lift your standards, and run a rule-based process you can repeat on any chart. That’s the “secret sauce” he actually models—foundations first, execution second, and prediction a distant third.
