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This interview features Yvan Byeajee—author, coach, and fund manager—digging into the mindset edge behind consistent results. Recorded on a trading podcast, Yvan explains why embracing uncertainty beats chasing certainty, how mindful awareness steadies execution, and why scaling exposure should follow the “progressive overload” logic you’d use in the gym. His take is refreshingly practical: control your process, risk, and reactions—because the market’s distribution of outcomes is never yours to control.
In this piece, you’ll learn the trader strategy Yvan actually uses: build composure with short daily meditation, detach from P&L to stay process-driven, and size small until consistency is locked—then scale step by step. You’ll see how to replace outcome obsession with rules that survive randomness, why “emotions and money are oil and water,” and how independence of thought keeps you from copying trade calls and sabotaging your edge. Read on to turn mindfulness into measurable execution.
Yvan Byeajee Playbook & Strategy: How He Actually Trades
Core Philosophy: Process Over Outcome
This is the lens Yvan uses for every decision: you don’t control outcomes, only preparation, execution, and risk. When you anchor to process, randomness stings less and wins compound more predictably.
- Define success as “followed plan flawlessly,” not P&L.
- Before market open, write one execution goal (e.g., “enter only on full signal confluence”).
- After market close, grade each trade A/B/C strictly on rule adherence.
- If you break a rule, reduce the size by 50% on the next two trades.
- Never change rules intraday; log issues and iterate after the session.
Market Selection & Playable Conditions
Yvan’s edge lives where conditions fit his playbook, not the other way around. He filters for instruments and sessions that deliver clean structure and repeatable behavior.
- Trade 1–3 products you know cold; avoid “tourist markets.”
- Define “playable” with two metrics (e.g., ATR >= X and spread <= Y).
- If ATR falls below the threshold or the spread widens, switch to “observe-only.”
- Pre-map levels: prior day high/low, session open, VWAP, and first reaction zone.
- Stand down on the first 15–30 minutes if opening volatility is disorderly vs. your setup.
Set up Criteria: Only Act on Full Confluence
Clarity beats frequency. Each setup has objective components that must all be present—no partial credit, no “gut” overrides.
- List 3–5 binary conditions per setup (e.g., trend alignment on H1/M15, pullback to value, confirmatory wick).
- Add one “quality” filter (e.g., impulse leg > 1.5× average swing).
- Require a clear invalidation level visible on the chart—if you can’t see it, pass.
- Minimum R multiple pre-trade: 2R for continuation, 3R for reversals.
- If a condition is missing, tag “almost-there” and do nothing.
Risk & Sizing: Keep the Oxygen Tank Full
Risk is the only variable fully under your control. Small, consistent risk lets you outlast randomness and keep your mental bandwidth intact.
- Fixed fractional risk per trade: 0.25%–0.5% until 60 consecutive A/B-grade trades.
- Place stops at the structure level that invalidate your idea, not at arbitrary pips.
- If stop > max risk distance, reduce size—never widen stops to fit size.
- Hard daily max loss: 1R–1.5R; hit it and you are done for the day.
- During drawdown > 5R, cut risk per trade in half until you reclaim highs.
Entry Tactics: One Trigger, Zero Hesitation
Narrow triggers remove dithering. The plan decides; you execute.
- Choose a single trigger per setup (e.g., break-and-close beyond level, or limit at FVG edge).
- Enter immediately when all conditions + trigger align—no “one more candle.”
- If price moves > 0.5R away before trigger, cancel the idea.
- Use bracket orders so the stop and target are in from the start.
- Never chase; log FOMO and wait for the next rotation.
Trade Management: Pre-Decided Paths
Ambiguity mid-trade is where emotions sneak in. You’ll script exits before you’re in, then follow the script.
- For 2R targets: move to break-even at +1R only if structure confirms (e.g., HL forms).
- For trend trades: scale 1/3 at +1.5R, 1/3 at +2.5R, trail last 1/3 under swing lows.
- For mean-reversion: all-out at fixed target; no trailing.
- If a news spike violates structure, flatten—“event risk override.”
- One management plan per setup; never mix methods.
Mindset & Emotional Regulation: Train the Operator
Calm execution is a trainable skill. You’ll build micro-habits that lower arousal and widen your response window during uncertainty.
- 8–10 minutes of breath-focused meditation pre-session.
- Name the feeling before clicking (e.g., “impatient,” “euphoric”) to break fusion.
- 90-second “reset protocol” after any loss: stand up, breathe 4-7-8, re-read rules.
- Write a 1–2 sentence “acceptance statement” before the open: “I accept randomness and will act only on plan.”
- No equity curve checking during live trading; review P&L after close.
Journaling That Improves P&L
Journaling is not a diary—it’s a laboratory. Capture only the variables that change your behavior or expectancy.
- Log: setup name, confluence checklist, R planned vs. R realized, emotional label at entry.
- Attach a pre-trade screenshot with markups and a post-trade screenshot with the outcome.
- Weekly: compute win rate, average R, and rule adherence rate; fix the lowest metric first.
- Tag errors (impulse entry, moved stop, revenge) and create one “if/then” patch per error.
- Archive “best-in-class” examples in a playbook folder for spaced review.
Scaling Plan: Earn the Right to Size Up
More size multiplies both profits and mistakes. You’ll scale only when your process can carry the load.
- Requirement to scale: 30 trade samples, +5R net, >85% rule adherence.
- Increase risk by the smallest increment (e.g., 0.25% → 0.35%) for the next 20 trades.
- If equity drawdown > 3R after a scale-up, revert to prior risk immediately.
- Add a second instrument only after two profitable 30-trade samples on the first.
- Keep the daily R target constant; bigger size replaces more trades, not adds to them.
Drawdown & Recovery Protocol
A written recovery playbook prevents spiral behavior. The goal is to shorten drawdowns and protect confidence.
- At −5R from equity high: switch to half-risk and “A+ setups only” for 20 trades.
- At −8R: move to SIM for 5 sessions focusing on checklist execution and calm entries.
- Ban discretionary rule changes until you print two green weeks in a row.
- Conduct a post-mortem: identify the top 2 error categories and write new if/then patches.
- Reintroduce full risk only after rule adherence > 90% for two consecutive weeks.
Daily Routine (90 Minutes Total)
Consistency outside the market fuels consistency inside it. This routine keeps your state stable and your edge sharp.
- Pre-market (25 min): meditation (10), levels & context (10), intention note (5).
- Live (focused blocks): 45–60 minutes of “A-setup watch,” then a 10-minute break regardless of activity.
- Post-market (15–20 min): mark screenshots, grade trades, pick one improvement for tomorrow.
- No discretionary screentime after the trading window; protect mental recovery.
- Weekly review on the weekend: rebuild playbook pages with best/worst examples.
Playbook Maintenance & Evolution
Edges decay or drift; your playbook should breathe with the market. You’ll evolve deliberately, not impulsively.
- Change only one variable per month (e.g., entry filter or target), test for 30 trades.
- Keep a “retired setup” section—don’t delete, archive with notes on why it stopped working.
- Quarterly: check expectancy per setup; cut bottom performer if < 0.2R avg over 50 trades.
- Maintain a “no-trade catalog” of patterns you consistently misread to avoid costly curiosity.
- Rehearse your primary setup visually 5–10 times before each trading week.
Guardrails for News & Environment
External noise can hijack execution. These guardrails keep you from trading the narrative instead of the tape.
- Predefine “no-trade windows” around high-impact releases and actually block them on your calendar.
- One trusted data dashboard only; close social feeds during sessions.
- If the desk environment changes state (fatigue, interruptions), switch to observe-only.
- Cap caffeine before the session; hydrate and eat light to avoid jitter or crash.
- Use noise-canceling or a single ambient track to reduce cognitive switching.
Execution Checklist (Print This)
A final micro-routine removes hesitation and inconsistency. Read it aloud before clicking.
- Context aligned? (trend/timeframe/levels)
- Full confluence? (all setup boxes checked)
- Invalidation crystal-clear? (structural stop, position size computed)
- Management plan selected? (fixed or trail; no mid-trade invention)
- Emotional state neutral enough? (if not, 90-second reset first)
Size Risk First: Let Position Sizing Drive Every Trade Decision
Yvan Byeajee hammers home that sizing is the steering wheel of your strategy, not an afterthought. He treats every trade as one bet in a long series, so the goal is survival and repeatability, not hero shots. That means defining risk in cash terms before you even think about entry, anchoring size to the distance to invalidation rather than forcing a fixed lot size. By making the size mechanical and pre-computed, he keeps emotions out of the click.
He also ties position sizing to market conditions so trades don’t all “weigh” the same on your equity curve. When volatility expands or structures get messy, Yvan reduces size automatically, protecting mental bandwidth and capital at the same time. When conditions align with his playbook, he allows modest, pre-planned scaling, but only after a sample of clean execution proves readiness. The payoff is consistency: a process where small losses are routine, big losses are impossible by design, and winners show up because the math finally gets room to work.
Trade Volatility, Not Opinions: Allocate More When Conditions Are Favorable
Yvan Byeajee builds his allocation around what the market is actually doing, not what he hopes it will do. When volatility expands and structure is clean, he leans in; when ranges compress and chop returns, he leans out. A simple read like rising ATR, expanding session range, or a steady VWAP slope is enough to signal “conditions are on,” while narrowing ranges or whipsaw wicks tell him to lighten up. The point is to let the tape set the throttle, not your ego.
He keeps the rules mechanical, so there’s zero debate mid-session. For example, he might use a two-step plan: base size in neutral conditions, +25–50% size when volatility and structure meet his checklist, and −50% when they don’t. Yvan also caps maximum exposure, so even “green lights” don’t turn into overconfidence. By syncing risk with volatility instead of opinions, he protects capital in dull regimes and compounds faster when the lane is open.
Diversify By Underlying, Strategy, And Duration To Smooth Equity Curves
Yvan Byeajee treats diversification as risk engineering, not asset collecting. He avoids stacking the same bet in disguise by mixing underlyings (e.g., a currency pair, an index future, and a commodity) that don’t all move for the same reason. Just as important, he diversifies by strategy—pairing a trend-following setup with a mean-reversion or breakout play—so one style’s cold streak doesn’t sink the week. Finally, he staggers duration, running a core swing sleeve alongside a tighter intraday sleeve to keep opportunity flowing across regimes.
Practically, Yvan caps total exposure to any one driver and checks rolling correlation, so he isn’t “diversified” in name only. He sets separate risk budgets for each sleeve, so a rough patch in mean-reversion can’t drain capital reserved for trend trades. If one position is on, he’ll throttle or skip highly correlated ads, choosing the highest-quality signal instead of collecting lookalikes. He also reviews expectancy by sleeve each month and prunes the laggards, ensuring only independent, positive-edge components stay in the playbook. The result is a smoother equity curve where wins come from different places and losses stay compartmentalized.
Follow Mechanical Rules; Skip Prediction And Let Edge Play Out
Yvan Byeajee emphasizes that prediction seduces traders into improvisation, while rules protect them from it. He predefines entries, stops, targets, and management so the market can’t bait him into “just this once” decisions. If a condition is missing, he passes without negotiation, accepting that no trade is also a strategic choice. This creates a stable feedback loop where results reflect the rules, not mood swings.
He also limits discretion during live trades to a few if-then statements that can be executed instantly. Yvan reviews outcomes only after the session, adjusting the playbook with data rather than hunches. By letting the rule set express his edge over a large sample, he allows variance to even out and expectancy to shine. The less he predicts, the more consistently he performs.
Prefer Defined Risk Setups; Preplan Exits And Enforce Process Discipline
Yvan Byeajee favors trades where the invalidation is obvious on the chart and the maximum loss is pre-committed in cash terms. He decides to stop location first, then sizes the position to fit, so no scenario forces him to widen a stop after entry. Before clicking, he scripts the full path—initial stop, target, and management triggers—so there’s nothing to debate mid-trade.
He keeps enforcement simple: if the plan breaks, he’s out; if the plan holds, he lets it work. Yvan treats slip-ups as process violations, not market problems, and responds by temporarily cutting size and re-centering on the checklist. With defined risk and preplanned exits, he eliminates tail-losing behavior and preserves emotional bandwidth for the next clean opportunity. Over a long sample, that discipline turns randomness into a manageable cost and lets expectancy do the heavy lifting.
Yvan Byeajee’s core lesson is simple and relentless: treat trading like a process you can control, not a puzzle you’re supposed to solve. He centers everything around defined risk, a mechanical checklist, and a routine that keeps emotions from hijacking execution. Position sizing comes first, invalidation lives on the chart, and stops are never widened—ever. That discipline turns losses into small, expected costs and keeps the oxygen tank full for when the right conditions show up.
He pairs that with a pragmatic read of volatility and structure: size down when the tape is messy, size up slightly when it’s clean, and never let opinions override what the market is actually printing. Diversification isn’t just more symbols; it’s mixing underlyings, strategies, and durations so one cold streak doesn’t sink the month. Journaling is a laboratory, not a diary—log confluence, grade adherence, patch recurring errors, and evolve one variable at a time. When drawdowns hit, he follows a written recovery protocol—half risk, A+ setups, SIM reps if needed—until adherence rebounds. Put together, Yvan’s playbook replaces guesswork with repeatable mechanics, letting expectancy—not prediction—do the heavy lifting.
