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Trading Journal Template — How to Use
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by TradeZella · tradezella.com
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HOW TO GET STARTED
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Step 1: Go to the Trade Log tab
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Start entering your trades in row 4 onward. Fill in the date, ticker, side (Long/Short), strategy name, entry price, exit price, stop loss, and number of shares or contracts. The last 4 columns (Gross P&L, Fees, Net P&L, R:R, Result) auto-calculate.
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Step 2: Add notes to every trade
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Use the Notes column to write why you entered, what you saw on the chart, and what you would do differently. This is where the real learning happens.
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Step 3: Check the Dashboard
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Switch to the Dashboard tab at any time. It updates automatically as you add trades. Look at your win rate, profit factor, and which strategies are making or losing money.
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Step 4: Do a weekly review
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Every weekend, spend 30 minutes reviewing the Dashboard. Identify your best and worst setups, check if you're honoring your stop losses, and look for patterns in your wins and losses.
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Step 5: Customize if needed
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You can add extra columns to the right of the Trade Log (like emotional state or market conditions). Just don't move or delete the existing columns, since the Dashboard formulas reference them by position.
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WHAT'S INSIDE
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Tab 1: Trade Log
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The core of the journal. Log every trade with 14 fields: date, ticker, side, strategy, entry/exit prices, stop loss, position size, and notes. P&L, risk-to-reward, and win/loss are calculated automatically.
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Tab 2: Dashboard
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Pulls all data from the Trade Log and shows your performance in real time. Includes 8 key metrics (win rate, profit factor, net P&L, etc.), 6 risk metrics, and 4 charts (equity curve, P&L per trade, win/loss breakdown, strategy performance).
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Tab 3: Upgrade to TradeZella
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A side-by-side look at what the spreadsheet does vs. what TradeZella offers, including auto broker imports, trade replay, AI insights, and 50+ reports.
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TIPS
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Log every single trade, even the ones you're not proud of. The data only works if it's complete.
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Review your journal before the trading day starts. It helps you avoid repeating yesterday's mistakes.
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When you outgrow the spreadsheet, TradeZella auto-imports trades from 500+ brokers so you never have to log manually again.
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Log every single trade, even the ones you're not proud of. The data only works if it's complete.
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Ready to upgrade? Visit tradezella.com to auto-import trades, get AI insights, and access 50+ performance reports.
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