Since June, I’ve been sharing a lot about building a trading plan and making it the backbone of your trading and investing actions. More recently, I’ve talked about AI, digital tools, and how they can make that process smoother.
Those benefits still stand.
But there’s something unbelievably hard about sticking to your plan — even after you’ve built it.
In the First 40 Trading Club, many members have already created their plans and are testing them. Others are still in “build” mode, or feeling nervous about committing.
I get it. A trading plan — even one tailored just for you — can feel overwhelming at first. It’s essentially an entire business plan for your trading, covering the good, the bad, and everything in between.
Here’s one simple step that can make following your trading plan much easier: print it out.
Don’t Save The Trees
In an age where everything is digital, I want you to go backwards in time.
Blow the dust off your printer and create a hard copy of your trading plan. Not a PDF. Not a file on your tablet. An actual, physical, printed-on-PAPER copy.
Why?
Because it does two powerful things:
- It keeps you from making unnecessary edits mid-test.
Your printed trading plan is your “current” plan. It reminds you to stick with it until it’s truly time to adapt. - It puts your most important information right in front of you.
Your prep steps. Your setups. No extra clicks. No switching tabs. Just a constant, visual reminder.
If full-size pages don’t work for you, jot your setups on index cards or Post-its. The format doesn’t matter as much as the fact that it’s physical and in your immediate trading space.
A True Story From the Club
One First 40 member realized he’d skipped this step. The very next day, he printed his trading plan out on paper.
On Tuesday, he was trading a prop account in an unsure, hesitant state.
By Wednesday, he was live — confident, calm, and structured. In just one day, he made enough progress toward his prop account target that he’s already halfway to full funding!!!!
This came up during an Elevate mindset session with coach Megan. I was there as an observer, cheering him on in the chat and continuing the conversation in our First 40 private Discord.
His shift wasn’t just from printing — it was the combination of the right plan, the right systems, and the right support. But the printed copy was the tangible anchor that made it all CLICK.
Simple, But Game-Changing
If you’ve built a trading plan but struggle to follow it, print it out on paper.
If you forget your setups in the heat of trading, print them out on paper — and keep that page in front of you.
I recommend pulling out your core setups (Section 3 in our First 40 Trading Plan framework) — which includes your buy or bullish setups and your sell or bearish setups — and keeping those visible, in front of you, while you trade.
Your complete trading plan will probably run 5–10 printed pages (less if you print double-sided). That’s a small price to pay for the clarity and consistency it brings.
When you make a real update, print out a fresh paper copy — but you shouldn’t be rewriting your plan constantly. Your trading journal is where you note adjustments and ideas for future revisions.
This is one of the rare times I’ll say it’s worth not sparing the trees.
A printed trading plan can turn “I know what to do” into “I’m doing it!!!” — and that’s where results happen.
Do you keep a printed copy of your trading plan? I’d love to hear how it changes the way you trade — share in the comments below. And if you’re looking for more ways to strengthen your process, check out some of my past blogs.
~Hima
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