How to Make Money in Intraday Trading

Author: Ashwani Gujral and Rachana A. Vaidya Categories: Day Trading, Technical Analysis

Quick Summary

A practical Indian market-focused guide covering the 3Ms of trading success: method, money management, and mindset. The book covers moving averages, pivot systems (including floor pivots and the Central Pivot Range), candlestick analysis, trend trading entries/exits, counter-trend trading, gap trading, news-based trading, and the daily discipline required for consistent intraday profits.

Detailed Summary

Ashwani Gujral, one of India's most prominent market analysts and a CNBC TV18 regular, co-authored How to Make Money in Intraday Trading (2018, Vision Books) with Rachana A. Vaidya as his third book on trading. The work is packed with over 200 real market examples and charts from Indian exchanges.

The book is structured around the "3Ms": Method, Money Management, and Mindset. The methodological core begins with market basics: identifying the two kinds of markets (trending and ranging), understanding different participant types and their behavior, the two market phases (impulse and correction), and how the economic business cycle drives sector rotation.

Moving averages receive detailed treatment, covering types (SMA, EMA), their characteristics, and how they function as dynamic support/resistance. The candlestick analysis section classifies candles into three types based on size: Lilliput/XXS-sized (signaling indecision), Giant/XXL-sized (signaling strong conviction), and Reversal/Rejection candles (signaling potential turning points). Each type has specific trading rules.

The pivot system coverage is particularly thorough, spanning two full chapters. Floor pivots provide daily support and resistance levels calculated from the prior day's high, low, and close. The Central Pivot Range (CPR), a more sophisticated tool, provides a zone around the pivot that helps traders assess whether the day is likely to be trending or range-bound. Multi-timeframe analysis using pivots adds another dimension.

Chapters on trending market tactics cover four specific entry methods, initial stop loss placement, trailing stop methods, and trade management techniques. Counter-trend trading, gap trading, and news-event trading are addressed as distinct strategies with their own rules and risk parameters.

The money management and psychology sections emphasize position sizing, risk-per-trade limits, and the daily discipline required for consistent intraday performance, including morning preparation routines and post-market review processes.