Table of Contents
This opening dives into a candid interview with Rob Booker on the Desire To Trade podcast, hosted by Etienne Crète. Rob’s a veteran FX trader who openly explains why he stopped discretionary trading, handed execution to robots, and focused on helping traders build lives—not adrenaline habits. You’ll hear why his energy is aimed at traders (more than trading), how he moved to fully automated systems, and why routine beats the “one big trade” fantasy.
You’ll learn Rob’s core plays for consistency: replacing impulse with structure, letting robots run a simple divergence approach, and accepting that steady profits come with a steady drawdown. He unpacks why system-hopping kills results, how a small daily edge compounds, and why “make money slowly” is the real power move. Expect clear takeaways on routine, risk, expectations, and the mindset shift from chasing excitement to building a process you can live with.
Rob Booker Playbook & Strategy: How He Actually Trades
Core Philosophy: Small Daily Edges, Routinized
Rob Booker treats trading like running a coffee shop: same hours, same menu, steady margins. The goal isn’t jackpot wins—it’s a repeatable edge that compounds while protecting mental bandwidth. This section lays out the principles that keep his process calm, simple, and scalable.
- Aim for modest, repeatable targets (e.g., 0.3%–0.8% a day) rather than home runs.
- Trade a small playbook of patterns you can explain in one minute.
- Default to rules and automation; reduce on-the-fly decisions.
- Keep a fixed daily trading window; stop when the plan says stop.
- Track only a handful of metrics: win rate, average R, time-in-trade, and drawdown.
- Avoid “system hopping” for at least 90 calendar days—optimize only monthly.
Markets & Timeframes: Liquidity First
He prefers liquid instruments that behave well with rules and automation. You’ll see majors, gold, and a couple of indices that offer tight spreads and steady flow. The mix below keeps slippage manageable and setups plentiful.
- Focus list: EURUSD, GBPUSD, USDJPY, XAUUSD, and one index future/CFD (e.g., US100).
- Primary timeframes: 15m and 1h for entries; 4h for directional bias.
- Trade the active sessions only (London/NY overlap is prime).
- Skip instruments with unstable spreads or news-driven gaps that break rules.
- If spread > 1.5x normal, pass the trade—edge depends on costs.
Setup Template: Trend + Divergence + Level
Rob’s bread-and-butter template stacks a higher-timeframe bias with a simple momentum divergence and a nearby level. The idea: enter where energy is fading into structure, then let rules take over.
- Bias from 4h: trade only long above the 200-SMA; only short below it.
- Draw key levels: prior day high/low, session high/low, and round numbers (00/50).
- Momentum: confirm RSI(14) divergence (price makes a new extreme; RSI does not).
- Trigger: on 15m/1h, enter on the first candle close back inside the prior range or through a micro-trendline break.
- No divergence? Allow a moving-average pullback: price returns to 20-EMA in trend and rejects with a close in trend direction.
- One setup per market per session; ignore duplicates to prevent overtrading.
Entry Rules: Make It Binary
Entries are mechanical: either the condition prints or it doesn’t. This cuts hesitation and keeps the data clean so you can iterate rationally.
- Place a stop order 1 tick/pip beyond the trigger candle (above for longs, below for shorts).
- If not filled within 3 bars on your entry timeframe, cancel the order.
- Never chase; if the price runs away, it wasn’t your trade.
- Use a fixed initial stop: below/above the most recent swing plus spread/commission.
- If the spread widens past your max threshold at the moment of entry, skip.
Exits: Partial, Trail, Done
Exits are where discipline pays. Rob emphasizes getting paid early, then letting a piece run with structure—while refusing to give back the day.
- Take 50% off at +1R; move stop to breakeven on the remainder.
- Trail the rest behind the 20-EMA or last confirmed swing (new swing → stop hops).
- Time stop: if not at +0.5R within X bars (e.g., 12 bars on 15m), scratch.
- Hard daily stop: if realized, P&L hits −1R on the day, stop trading.
- Daily profit lock: when daily P&L hits target (e.g., +1–2R), close runners at next structure and shut down.
Risk Sizing: Keep the Robots Alive
The goal is to stay in the game long enough for small edges to matter. That means tiny sizing, capped portfolio heat, and no martingale.
- Risk per trade: 0.25%–0.5% of account; max open risk across all trades: 1.5%–2.0%.
- Position size = (Account * Risk%) / (Stop distance in ticks * tick value).
- No adding to losers—ever.
- Scale in only after +1R is banked and a fresh signal prints; new trade = new risk.
- Cut size by 50% after any−3R week; restore only after a +2R week.
Automation Game Plan: Turn Rules Into Buttons
Rob’s approach shines when automated: rules become parameters, and emotions sit on the bench. This layout is ready to hand to a developer—or to implement in your own platform.
- Inputs: session start/stop; max spread; 200-SMA bias; RSI divergence toggle; MA pullback toggle; risk% per trade; time stop bars.
- Filters: no-trade during high-impact news window (e.g., 15m before to 15m after).
- Order logic: place stop order at trigger; auto-cancel after 3 bars; slippage cap = X ticks.
- Exit logic: partial at +1R; BE move; trail behind 20-EMA or swing; time stop.
- Safety: if drawdown in the last 24h > 2R, system disables until next session.
- Logging: record every decision (why entered, why exited, spread, slippage, MA distance).
Session Routine: Same Hours, Same Checklist
Consistency beats intensity. A short checklist keeps you honest and stops you from inventing trades that aren’t there.
- Pre-market (10 minutes): mark 4h bias; draw levels; note scheduled news; confirm spreads are normal.
- During session: scan focus list; wait for trigger; take the first clean signal only.
- After session: export trades; tag reasons (divergence, pullback, news filter); update equity curve.
- Weekly: review losers for “rule breaks”; adjust only one parameter at a time.
Drawdown Control: Automatic Damage Limits
He prioritizes capital protection over ego. These circuit-breakers keep bad days from becoming bad months.
- Daily hard stop: −1R realized; platform auto-locks until next session.
- Weekly limit: −4R from Monday’s start → size halves for the following week.
- Strategy stop: if a setup logs −8R rolling across 60 trades, disable and paper-test revisions.
- Cool-off: after any revenge trade or rule break, end the session immediately and journal it.
Edge Stacking: Time, Level, Momentum
Stacking small advantages creates a durable edge. Combine when possible; pass when you can’t.
- Require at least two of three: trend bias, level, momentum signal.
- Give priority to trades at session opens or retests of prior day levels.
- Avoid first touch during major news windows; take second-pass signals after volatility normalizes.
- If two markets show the same setup, choose the one with a tighter spread and clearer level.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
These are the behaviors that rob consistency. Make them binary: allowed or not allowed.
- No discretionary overrides after entry—exits follow the plan only.
- No stacking correlated trades (e.g., EURUSD and GBPUSD simultaneously) unless total heat stays under 1.5% and both have independent levels.
- No moving stops farther “to give it room.”
- No adding size to “get back to target.”
- No parameter changes mid-week; schedule tweaks for Friday review only.
Size Risk Small, Win Often: Daily Edge Over Home-Run Hype
Rob Booker pushes traders to think like operators, not gamblers. He sizes tiny on each idea so no single trade can wreck the week, then lets repetition do the heavy lifting. A typical target is modest—just enough to build a daily edge without forcing action. The magic isn’t the setup; it’s the compounding from lots of small, controlled decisions.
In practice, that means risking a fraction of a percent per trade and capping total open risk at any moment. If the day hits a small loss limit, you stop; if it hits a small win, you also stop and keep the money. Booker’s point is simple: consistency beats adrenaline, and survival beats bravado. The trader who lasts lasts into profitability.
Trade the Session, Not Your Mood: Process Beats Prediction Every Time
Rob Booker insists that edge lives in the hours you’ve committed, not in how you feel. He works a fixed trading window with a short checklist, then executes only what the plan allows. If the signal prints, he takes it; if it doesn’t, he logs off without drama. Predictions are optional—process is mandatory.
He also hard-stops when the day hits a small win or a predefined loss, so emotions never get to negotiate. No chasing, no “one more trade,” no tweaking rules mid-session. Booker’s routine squeezes out FOMO and replaces it with repeatable decisions. The result is fewer impulsive trades and a cleaner equity curve built from consistency, not guesswork.
Stack Trend, Level, Divergence: Simple Rules For High-Quality Entries
Rob Booker keeps entries mechanical by stacking three simple ingredients. First, trade with the higher-timeframe trend so you’re not fighting the flow. Second, anchor at a clear level—prior day high/low, session open, or a round number—so risk is obvious. Third, wait for momentum to fade via RSI divergence, then trigger on the first close back inside the structure.
This combo makes the decision nearly binary and cuts second-guessing. If the trend, level, and divergence don’t align, Rob Booker skips the trade and keeps powder dry. When they do align, he places a stop order beyond the trigger candle and lets the plan work. Clean context plus a precise trigger equals fewer trades, better quality, and tighter feedback for improving the system.
Diversify By Instrument, Strategy, And Time: Cap Portfolio Heat Rigorously
Rob Booker spreads risk so no single idea, market, or moment can dominate results. He mixes a few liquid instruments with different drivers, pairs a primary pattern with a secondary one, and staggers entries across sessions. The aim is simple: uncorrelated edges add up while correlated pain gets capped fast.
Rob Booker also limits “portfolio heat,” so multiple trades don’t quietly stack into one big bet. If two symbols are highly correlated, he picks the cleaner setup and passes on the duplicate exposure. Total open risk stays within a tight ceiling, and size is cut after down weeks until the curve cools. Diversification plus strict heat limits make performance smoother and keep the strategy survivable when markets get weird.
Define Risk, Lock Partial Profits, Trail Smart: Let Runners Pay You
Rob Booker treats risk like a cost of doing business—priced in before the trade. He places the stop at a logical swing plus costs, sizes the position from that distance, and accepts being wrong quickly. Once the price moves in his favor, he banks a partial at +1R and moves the stop to breakeven. That early payout de-risks the idea and keeps him calm for the next decision.
From there, Rob Booker lets a trailing rule do the work instead of gut feel. He’ll trail behind a short moving average or recent swing, so the market has room to breathe while protecting the open gain. If momentum stalls by time-in-trade, he scratches rather than donate profits back. The philosophy is simple: define the downside, take cash when it’s offered, and let the occasional runner make the week.
Rob Booker’s core message lands hard: replace excitement with execution. Across the interview, he explains why he stopped discretionary trading and handed the wheel to rules and robots—one system, one way, small trade size, small gains compounded over time. He frames success as impulse control: define the hours, follow a simple checklist, and let the plan run without mid-trade negotiations. When trading becomes routine instead of a thrill ride, the equity curve stabilizes and decisions get cleaner.
He’s blunt about risk and expectations. Cap daily damage, cap total open risk, and don’t let correlated trades stack into one disguised bet. Winners are managed, not chased—take money when the plan says, trail what’s left, and scratch when momentum dies. Most of all, Rob Booker argues that the real edge isn’t a secret indicator; it’s a boring, mechanical process you can repeat on Tuesday, next month, and next year. Build that machine, protect it with risk rules, and let time—not adrenaline—do the compounding.
