A pre-market routine reduces improvised decisions and writes down the conditions you expect before session pressure begins. It does not need to be long; it needs to be repeatable.
1. Context and calendar
Review relevant events for the markets you trade, special schedules and conditions that may affect liquidity or volatility. The goal is not to predict the reaction, but to know the context.
2. Scenarios, not rigid forecasts
Define what you would look for if price accepts, rejects, breaks or returns to important areas. Preparing scenarios reduces the need to invent an explanation in real time.
3. Enabled strategies
Review the exact conditions of the setups you are allowed to execute that day. If a required condition is missing, the trade should not become “almost valid”.
4. Risk and limits
Confirm risk per trade, maximum daily risk, maximum attempts and any predefined size-reduction rule.
5. Operational readiness
Include practical factors: connection, platform, data feed, pending orders and anything that can affect execution. If you record a personal self-check, use it as a descriptive variable rather than a diagnosis.