Look, trading isn’t about being the loudest guy in the room who nails the 300% gain. It’s about consistency, process, and sometimes—yeah, sometimes—it’s about walking away with the first fish you catch. That’s the lesson I’m reminding myself of this week after closing the QS trade for 32%, only to watch it rocket into the stratosphere.
Let’s rewind a bit. I had my eye on QuantumScape (QS) for a while…
The stock wasn’t doing much. Lots of ghost prints, lots of chatter, not a lot of price action. Then finally, we got that pop—volume surged, the breakout began, and I took it. Closed it on strength. Banked the gain. I’ve said it a thousand times in Ghost Prints: “Sell into strength, don’t wait for weakness.” And I stuck to it.
Now, did it sting a bit when QS squeezed another 200% after I exited? Of course it did. Some folks held longer and bagged a big win. But here’s what I’ll say about that: the strategy didn’t fail. It worked. The trade met the conditions I had set—target timeframe, entry above average volume, and a solid return. And that’s the part so many overlook. You don’t have to catch the entire move to be a great trader. You just need to catch your move.
We talk a lot about blow-off tops and float turnover, and QS was showing every sign of it—volume spiking, float getting chewed through, options going wild. But you can’t always wait for the grand finale. Not if it means risking a pullback you can’t roll through, especially with time decay working against you.
Here’s the deal: the market doesn’t care about your feelings. It doesn’t owe you anything. So if you’re in this game to prove something to the guy on Twitter or to your cousin’s buddy who “made a killing” last week, you’re playing the wrong game. Trade your plan, not your pride.
Now, I get it. Everyone wants to say they held through the squeeze. But here’s what’s rarely said out loud: most of those who try, end up underwater more often than not. The guy who held QS through the squeeze? Maybe he wins this time. But will he have the discipline to cut when the next one fails? Probably not. That’s where the edge erodes.
And if you’re in Ghost Prints, remember this: the prints don’t dictate how you trade. They inform the opportunity. The strategy dictates how you execute.
So yeah, I caught the first fish in QS. I didn’t wait for the lake to dry up. I didn’t get greedy. And maybe that’s not as sexy as a 300% headline—but it’s repeatable. And repeatable is how you build a trading career, not just a story.
Discipline wins. Always has. Always will.
by Brandon Chapman, CMT