How to Create a Weekly Trading Plan That Actually Works
When I started trading, I didn’t have a plan. I’d just show up, open my charting platform, and try to “catch something.” Not surprisingly, I lost money — and I was frustrated. Everything changed when I started building a weekly trading plan that was simple, clear, and based on real habits that I could repeat. This post walks you through exactly how I do it — and how you can use the same approach, especially if you’re trading with a small account.

Table of Contents
Why You Need a Trading Plan Every Week
Most people lose money in the market not because they’re unlucky, but because they’re unprepared. A good plan gives you direction, limits impulsive decisions, and helps you avoid noise. I’ve found that a weekly plan actually gives me more freedom — because I know what I’m looking for before the market even opens.
Step 1: Define Your Market Outlook
Every Sunday night, I sit down with my laptop and check the overall market direction. I don’t use indicators — I just look at price action, major news headlines, and whether we’re trending up, down, or sideways. This helps me decide if I should be aggressive that week or stay more defensive.
Step 2: Scan for Clean Setups
Using free stock screeners, I look for momentum, volume, and tight consolidations. My goal is to build a watchlist of 6–8 tickers max. I don’t overwhelm myself with 50 stocks. I explain exactly how I do this inside my ebook, where I show my personal checklist and the tools I use.
Step 3: Mark Key Levels
Once I have my watchlist, I go chart by chart and mark important price levels. Support, resistance, pre-market highs, and key zones. This helps me know exactly where I’d consider an entry or exit. I don’t guess in real time — I make those decisions the night before.
Step 4: Plan Entry Scenarios
For each stock, I write down a basic idea: “If this breaks this level with volume, I’m in. If not, I wait.” I stick to clean breakouts or pullbacks. No guessing. No FOMO. This has saved me countless losses by keeping me focused on high-probability trades.
Step 5: Set My Risk Limits
I always set a weekly risk cap. I know how much I’m willing to lose before I stop trading for the week. This protects my account and gives me peace of mind. It’s not just about entries — it’s about knowing when to sit out.
Step 6: Choose Your Trading Days
I don’t trade every day. In fact, I only trade 2–3 times per week. My plan includes which days I’m most likely to trade based on the news cycle, earnings calendar, or market conditions. The rest of the days? I observe or review my trades.
Step 7: Review and Adjust
Every Friday or Saturday, I review my performance. Did I follow my plan? What worked? What needs to be improved? This weekly reflection keeps me accountable and helps me keep growing — without the need for expensive courses or alerts.
Why This Works Better Than Any Course
Most beginner traders want someone to hand them a setup. But the truth is, when you learn how to create your own plan, you become independent. You stop chasing alerts, and you start trusting your process. That’s how I was finally able to use simple setups to start paying my bills.
If you’re tired of overcomplicated strategies, my ebook breaks this all down. I show exactly how I prep before 9:30AM and how I find the stocks I trade every week — without indicators or guesswork.
Final Thoughts
A weekly trading plan isn’t just for pros. I built mine from scratch by focusing on what actually matters: preparation, focus, and simplicity. It works — because it fits my lifestyle, not someone else’s signal service. If you want to take control of your trading, start building your weekly plan today. You’ll be surprised how much clarity and confidence it brings.
One thing I learned early is that consistency matters more than intensity. It’s better to have a repeatable routine that you follow every week than to randomly go all-in when you “feel” the market is hot. That’s why my weekly trading plan is simple — because I can actually stick to it.
I also keep a trading journal, not just to log results, but to capture my mindset. Was I distracted? Did I follow my plan? Was I chasing? These small notes help me correct behavior, not just numbers — and that’s what leads to real progress.
Another mistake I see often is people copying someone else’s plan. What works for them may not work for you. Maybe they trade full-time and you have a job. Maybe they like risk and you don’t. Your weekly trading plan should fit your schedule and goals, not someone else’s.
One routine that helps me is creating a “No-Trade List” — stocks I specifically avoid that week due to news, low volume, or choppy price action. This keeps me from being tempted by tickers that don’t meet my criteria.
If you’re using a small account, your margin of error is small. That’s why planning ahead becomes even more important. I don’t rely on signals or chatrooms. I rely on preparation. And that has made all the difference.
Inside my ebook, I walk through how I set up my watchlist and how I decide which days are best to trade based on pre-market data and structure. This is key for avoiding overtrading and focusing on setups with real potential.
Sometimes I plan for trades I never take. And that’s okay. Not every plan becomes a trade — but every trade I take starts with a plan. That mindset shift helped me protect capital and avoid revenge trading.
Over time, I noticed I became calmer. I wasn’t waking up at 9:25AM in panic mode. I already knew what I was looking for. And if it didn’t show up? I didn’t force anything. That kind of trading discipline came from following a plan — week after week.
I also stopped trying to trade new stocks every week. There’s power in trading familiar names. If I traded AAPL, AMD, or TSLA before, I already know how they move. My plan focuses on repeating patterns, not finding brand-new hype.
A lot of traders overlook news catalysts when building their plans. I always check earnings calendars, Fed announcements, and major economic events before choosing my trading days. These events shape volume and volatility — and can make or break a setup.
I include “review time” in my weekly plan. Whether I win or lose, I go back to the charts and ask: What could I have done better? That habit — done every week — has helped me grow faster than any course or guru ever did.
If you’re serious about simplifying your trading and finally getting consistent, build a weekly routine that works for you. My ebook is a great place to start. It’s not fluff. It’s the exact routine that took me from losses to paying my bills with stocks.