What is Daily Review?
Daily review is a structured session-end ritual where a trader closes the trading day by logging final notes, grading execution, and comparing outcomes to the morning plan. It captures context while memory is fresh — before the next session overwrites details.
What daily review covers
A complete daily review answers: Did I follow my plan? Which setups worked or failed? What was my emotional state? What is one rule for tomorrow? It is shorter than weekly review but mandatory on every active trading day.
Indian market context
NSE sessions with gap opens, RBI announcements, or expiry afternoons produce outlier days. Daily review tags these sessions (event, expiry, ban-name) so weekly stats are not skewed by one-off volatility.
Close the review with one concrete rule for tomorrow — not five vague intentions. TradeLyser discipline widgets and emotion grades only help when daily notes are filed the same day; next-morning recall is unreliable after volatile F&O sessions. Treat skipped reviews as a rule break worth logging.
Worked example — daily review template
| Field | Example entry |
|---|---|
| Closed P&L | −₹4,200 |
| Open MTM at close | ₹0 (flat) |
| Rule breaks | 1 — oversized second entry |
| Emotion grade | Impatient after first loss |
| Tomorrow focus | No second entry without A-grade setup |
Common mistakes
- Reviewing only P&L without process grades.
- Skipping review when ashamed of losses.
- Writing novels instead of structured fields — inconsistency breaks analytics.
- Not tagging expiry or event days.
How to validate
- Validate Daily Review with a written rule and at least 20 tagged examples.
- Ask whether the reading changed because of process or one outlier trade.
- Compare two independent time windows before adjusting position size.
- Document validation date in weekly review notes.
How to track in TradeLyser
- Mention Daily Review in trade comments when it influenced the decision.
- Mirror the term in weekly review questions for consistency.
- Filter trades mentioning the concept during monthly analytics.
- Cross-link to related glossary terms in mentor notes.
Best practices
- Teach Daily Review the same way to mentors and peers — shared vocabulary.
- Re-read this page after major rule changes to Daily Review usage.
- Prefer one improvement per month over ten simultaneous tweaks.
- Link learn articles when Daily Review needs deeper study.
Common pitfalls
- Using Daily Review buzzwords without measurable journal tags.
- Copying another trader’s Daily Review rule without sample size context.
- Skipping weekly review because the term feels “basic”.
- Letting social media redefine Daily Review mid-quarter.
How to use this in TradeLyser
Use TradeLyser end-of-day note template: P&L, rule breaks, emotion grade, one tomorrow rule. Streak-track daily review completion like journaling streak.
Reference guide
| Context | Value | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| Timing | Same day within 30 minutes of last trade | Skipping review on losing days |
| Focus | Process grades and one improvement for tomorrow | Only recording final P&L number |
Related terms
A discipline score is a quantified measure of plan adherence calculated from the proportion of trades that followed all predefined rules — entry criteria, stop-loss placement, position sizing, and exit discipline. A score of 100% means every trade in the session matched the plan; lower scores identify where deviation occurred.
An emotion grade is a subjective rating (typically 1–5 or a categorical label such as Calm / Nervous / Overconfident / Revenge) that a trader assigns to each trade or session to capture their emotional state. Over time, emotion grades reveal which states correlate with rule breaks, overtrading, or underperformance.
A pre-trade checklist is a fixed list of conditions that must be true before order placement — covering setup validity, risk size, stop location, daily loss headroom, and emotional readiness. It converts discretionary impulses into pass/fail decisions.
A trade post-mortem is a deliberate replay and write-up of a single trade (or session) to extract durable lessons — covering setup quality, execution timeline, emotional triggers, and alternative actions. It goes deeper than a one-line post-trade note.
A trading journal is a systematic record of every trade a trader takes, documenting instrument, setup, entry and exit prices, position size, P&L, emotions, and rule adherence. It is the primary tool for identifying patterns, diagnosing mistakes, and proving whether an edge exists after costs on NSE and F&O books.
A weekly review is a dedicated 30–60 minute session at the end of each trading week during which a trader examines their journal entries, calculates key metrics, identifies rule breaks and emotional patterns, and documents lessons and adjustments for the following week.
By trader level
Start here — essential concepts
New to trading or journaling? These are the core terms you need to understand before anything else.
FAQ
How long should daily review take?
Ten to fifteen minutes for most intraday traders. Longer on event days when you document lessons from unusual volatility.
Daily review vs weekly review?
Daily captures session context; weekly aggregates patterns across days. You need both — daily is input, weekly is analysis.
Should I review on green days too?
Yes — winning days hide process flaws (oversize, no stop, luck). Grade execution on green days the same as red days.
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