Enrique Abeyta:

4 Trading Habits You Can Start TODAY

We all know that most New Year's resolutions don't work.

Around 90% of people who make them abandon their goals in just a few weeks. And it's not hard to understand why.

After weeks of eating poorly and drinking excessively during the holidays, most people don’t start the year with a great mindset for making (or keeping) their goals.

As a trader, the situation is similar. Most of the time, the end of the year is pretty quiet for the stock market, and it often ends on a high.

But those types of conditions don’t last long, so you shouldn’t use them as a model for your process.

As we enter 2026, I want to share four trading resolutions that will help you succeed over the next several months.

#1: Establish Your Trading Goals

What is the goal of your trading portfolio? There can be a lot of different ones, and they’re all valid.

Sure, we all want to make money. But we may have different risk tolerances and time frames depending on our individual situations.

Understanding how much you are looking to make, how much you are willing to lose, and your timeline can improve your process.

And remember that having fun is a valid goal too. It may sound frivolous, but we tend to do better at things when we enjoy them.

Figure out how to make your trading process a joyful part of your life, and your returns will improve.

#2: Quantify Your Trading Goals

Next, establish clear deliverables around what you aim to accomplish.

At most people’s jobs, they know what they need to deliver to succeed. A sales goal or a project completion.

Putting together clear, tangible goals for your trading will help you improve your process over time. It will also bring out the competitor in you.

An example might be that you aim to achieve a 20% absolute return on your overall trading portfolio over six months, with no drawdowns exceeding 20%.

The goals will be specific to your unique situation, but having clear goals laid out is a big part of success.

#3: Document Your Trading

When you enter a trade, write down a list of 5 to 10 reasons why you are doing the trade. To the best of your ability, try putting them in order of importance.

This will enable you to understand both your thought process over time and how it is playing out in the stock market.

Before you can analyze your process, you need data. This provides you with the data to figure out how to become a better trader.

#4: Learn From Your Trading

This is a simple concept, but it’s an underutilized skill for most individual investors.

At the end of every month, quarter, and 6-month period, take each of your positions and sort them into the biggest winners and biggest losers.

Examine the winners and try to identify what they had in common.

Were there certain types of trades you did better at? Certain industry groups?

Do the same thing with your losers. Do they share similarities? Are you making the same mistake over and over?

Write down three takeaways for both winners and losers, then put them on a note and tape it to your screen.

When you are looking to do your next trade, look at the note and ask yourself, “Am I making the best decision?”

This should be a continual process.

While some lessons may be personal to you, you can hopefully overcome them over time.

Other lessons, though, will tell you about the specific market environment. Don’t ignore that data.

If you’re serious about improving as a trader, this is the moment to step back, study your habits, and start adjusting with intent.

The market may not be forgiving, but it is consistent. And it rewards traders who take their process seriously.

Stick to these resolutions as we enter 2026. Happy New Year!