When I was learning to trade with my dad, I used to get so impatient.
We’d sit down together and go over charts — sometimes in the evening, sometimes during live market hours — and I’d see a candle almost finish.
“Dad, that one looks done! Are you gonna take the trade?”
He’d smile and say, “No. I’m going to let the candlestick complete.”
That one habit taught me more than any textbook ever did.
The Candle That Teaches Patience
Back then, I didn’t get it.
To me, it felt obvious. “It’s seconds away! You know what the candle is going to look like.”
But my dad was clear: guessing how a candlestick will finish — even if it’s close to done — is a slippery slope. You start trading on assumptions instead of confirmation. And that’s a fast track to developing bad habits.
He said, “If I’m using a 2- or 3-bar pattern, I want all of those bars complete before I act.”
Confirmation over prediction — every time.
I Tried to Outsmart the Rule…And Paid the Price
Of course, once I started trading solo, I thought I knew better.
I told myself, “I’ll be the smart one. I’m going to trade when I see a Bearish pattern or Bullish pattern, even before the candle finishes — get in earlier, snag the best entry price.”
Sometimes that worked.
Until it didn’t.
There was one day I’ll never forget — I placed a short trade right before 2:00 PM Eastern, totally forgetting about the FOMC news release.
At the top of the hour, the announcement dropped. The E-mini S&P 500 futures market whipped around like crazy.
That trade didn’t fail because of the news — it failed because I jumped in before the candle on my 5-minute chart finished. I didn’t wait for confirmation.
And it wasn’t a one-time mistake. That pattern of behavior crept in and kept costing me.
The Fix? Four Simple Words
Eventually, I had enough!
I needed something simple to keep me grounded in my plan.
So I came up with this:
Let the bar finish.
I chose “bar” because sometimes I was using candlestick charts, sometimes OHLC bar charts. Either way — same rule.
No matter what kind of chart you use, wait for the bar to close before acting on a pattern.
How to Use This Rule in Your Trading
This isn’t just for one type of trader. It applies whether you’re:
- Scalping: executing trades that last seconds to minutes, thriving on fast decisions and tight setups
- Day trading: holding for minutes to hours, most importantly exiting positions by the end of the session
- Swing trading: pursuing multi-day opportunities fitting trading around your job or lifestyle
Whatever your primary decision-making timeframe is — that’s the one where you need to wait for the bar to finish.
This doesn’t mean trades must happen only at the open of a new candle. What matters is this – if your pattern needs a completed bar for confirmation, you wait to act until you have it.
Get Practical: Make It a Habit
You don’t need to babysit every candlestick.
- Daily chart traders can check charts on weekday morning or evenings, the market open or on the weekends
- On shorter timeframes, use a timer. Step away. Come back when the bar is about to close.
Whatever helps you build trust in the process.
Build Protection Into Your Plan
Even when you do wait for confirmation, not every trade will work out. That’s okay.
That’s why I always emphasize: your risk/reward protections should be baked into your plan.
Sometimes, the next candle negates your setup. That’s part of the game. You’ve protected your capital with a live stop order or a defined max risk (ex cost of an option contract) and lived to trade another day.
It’s not about being right every time. It’s about staying consistent with your rules.
Your turn!
Now that you know wee Hima’s tale of trading on unfinished candlesticks, what will you bring into your trading strategy (or keep doing) to help you make sure you “let the bar finish” when trading patterns? I’d love to hear it!
~Hima
PS We've updated our events calendar! Find out how you can learn from me Hima by visiting himareddy.com/events anytime
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