Curries, chutneys, snacks – I could handle them all until this happened.
Growing up, I ate a lot of Indian food—especially Telangana style since that’s where my parents are from. I loved it. And when we were younger, my siblings and I could really handle the spice.
But then came college, where the dorm cafeterias dulled my palette. .
And now, in my adult years, my spice tolerance has definitely changed. My mom still makes all those amazing dishes, but she dials back the heat for me these days.
I cook Indian food at home occasionally, but I don’t make all my favorites. So my husband and I go out to eat, and we’re lucky—there are great restaurants in Austin that serve the exact cuisine we both grew up with.
And every time we go? I order extra on purpose.
Leftovers are part of the plan.
But here’s the twist: whether I order a non-veg curry or a spicy lentil stew like sambar, I always hunt down the red chili and remove it before storing the leftovers.
Those whole dried red chilies add great flavor. But if I leave them in overnight, by the next day the dish is so SPICY I can’t enjoy it—or worse, I’ll end up with an upset stomach.
So I started pulling them out before I packed my to-go containers—and it worked.
I could eat those leftovers for days, totally fine.
And that got me thinking…
There are red chilies hiding in your trading charts, too.
What I Mean By “Chilies” in Your Charts
These are elements that may have added value or flavor at one point—like a perfect trendline, a marked-up candlestick, or a peak in your indicator.
But left too long, “chilies”can start to clutter your charts or cloud your decisions.
If you don’t clean them out regularly, they’ll mess with your clarity—and your results.
So here’s how I “dig out the chilies” in my own trading process.
1. Start with Your Main Time Frame
For me, that’s the 3-minute chart of the E-mini S&P 500 futures.
At the end of each trading day, I take a few minutes to clean up the chart
- Deleting trendlines that have broken or are no longer useful
- Clearing out labels on RSI Power Zones peaks and troughs that have already played out
- Removing any candlestick patterns annotations—like the ones I teach in the Gann Candlesticks Trading System—that have already fulfilled their potential
You don’t need to hold onto every mark-up forever.
Let your chart breathe so it’s ready for the next day’s action.
2. Move Up One Time Frame
Next, I do the same thing on my higher time frame—the 60-minute chart.
Even if I’ve annotated it separately, I still want to reset what my brain is seeing.
So I proceed with:
- Keeping only the most relevant candlesticks support and resistance “nano” levels, especially those that matter for the overnight session
- Reassessing any patterns, indicators, or forecasting tools I’m using
- Letting go of anything that’s no longer contributing to the big picture analysis
Your higher time frame might not be where you trade—but it still shapes how you think.
So keep it clean.
3. Revisit Your Trading Plan Monthly
This is the hardest one—but it’s the most powerful.
At least once a month, I look at my actual trading plan—not just my charts. And I ask:
“Is there anything I’ve applied to my charts right that I’m not actively using anymore?”
And here’s the truth:
It’s totally OK to let go of something that’s not serving you.
Even if someone else swears by it.
It just might not be the right chili for your trading recipe.
When you do this kind of honest cleanup, you’ll start to have these little aha moments. Your charts get clearer. Your thinking sharpens. You stop second-guessing yourself so much.
Don’t Let Yesterday’s Flavor Overpower Today’s Trade
We’re not trying to make our charts “empty.”
This isn’t about going minimalist for the sake of it.
It’s about keeping the right elements—the ones that help you now—and releasing the ones that no longer serve your strategy.
Just like pulling the red chili out of a dish so it doesn’t overpower your leftovers, you can extend the shelf life of your trading plan by managing the heat.
That’s how you stay sharp, focused, and consistent—day after day.
💬 Your Turn
What’s a “chili” you’ve found in your charts lately—something that used to help, but now just clutters or confuses?
Drop a comment below and let me know. I’d love to hear what you’re clearing out to trade more clearly.
~Hima
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