What did futures trading teach you this year, and what are you doing differently in 2026?

Doing some end-of-year reflection after my first year trading. My biggest lesson was less is more. To stop sleeping on small moves.

I’ve had much more success being really picky with set ups that ultimately might result in catching modest moves, but with higher confidence. It basically started with the realization that if I consistently captured 4 points on ES per day, later I can increase profits by increasing the number of contracts instead of increasing number of trades. I was losing money trying to catch home runs and increase profits by increasing the number of opportunities I took. Thankfully, I’m taking the “less is more” lesson into 2026 and beyond.

How about you?