# Journal columns

Use `journal-columns.csv` as the header row in a spreadsheet, a Notion table, or any tool that can export CSV. Fixed columns are the point: the weekly reviewer can only find patterns in columns that are filled the same way every day. The three example rows are illustrations, not results.

Log every **decision**, not only every trade. A passed card is a row too (`took_trade = N`). Passing on a score-2 plan is the system working, and it belongs in the record.

| Column | What goes in it | Allowed values |
|---|---|---|
| trade_id | Unique ID | e.g. 2026-W41-03 |
| date | Session date | YYYY-MM-DD |
| session | Which session | e.g. NY AM, London |
| instrument | What you traded | e.g. MNQ, EURUSD |
| setup_name | Exact name from your setup sheet | one of your setup names |
| card_id | Which trade card | A, B, or none |
| team_score | Decider score | 1–5, or none |
| risk_verdict | Risk Manager's trade check | CLEAR, BLOCK, none |
| took_trade | Was it executed? | Y / N |
| direction | Long or short | long / short |
| entry, stop, target | Prices as placed | numbers |
| size | Contracts or lots | number |
| risk_money | Money at risk if stopped | number |
| risk_r | Risk in R (should be ≤ 1) | number |
| result_r | Result in R | number, filled after close |
| exit_reason | Why it closed | target / stop / time / kill switch / card cancelled |
| rules_followed | Every rule in rules file and risk sheet followed? | Y / N |
| rule_broken | If N: which rule, in the rule's own words | text |
| state_1to5 | Calm and rested, 1–5, before the session (the tilt check verdict can go in notes) | 1–5 |
| time_in, time_out | Entry and exit times | hh:mm |
| notes | One line. What you saw, what you felt. | text |
| screenshot_link | Chart at exit with entry/stop/target marked | link |

## Three rules for the journal
1. Fill it the same day. A row written next week is a story, not a record.
2. `rules_followed` is binary. "Mostly" is N.
3. Never edit a past row's decision fields. If you learn something later, add it in notes with the date.