Original question: In some of your articles and Q&As you briefly mention, “working an entry” or “working a trade” and “during the process of establishing an initial position size, it is not always just a straight-out full-size order”. Can you please elaborate more on how you go about doing that and include an example with an intraday chart?
In most cases I do buy a full position right away, but I sometimes do this in anticipation of a setup. A proper setup, such as QTS, should close the day with a QTS bar in place. When I try to anticipate a setup I enter and then work the trade by cutting and adding when price loses or regains support on an intraday basis. Once it becomes clear that the setup will remain valid into the close I make sure to have a full position.
There are no rules to how I act. I simply react to PLLs, MAs and or other technical levels. I do use intraday charts for this (mostly 15min).
The momentum gap setup (MGS) is all about working the entry on the gap up day as I never enter with a full position right away:
https://thweis.com/faq/how-do-you-go-about-entering-a-trade-on-a-powerful-breakaway-gap/
https://thweis.com/faq/what-role-does-intraday-charts-play-in-your-trading/
I also test setups intraday with the idea to gain traction, this is mostly on a discrete basis.
I also have to test liquidity in smaller names. I buy some to see how quickly my buy order is absorbed.