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How I Set Up My Charting Workspace for Day Trading

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You don’t need a spaceship to trade.

Just a clean bench, sharp tools, and a habit of showing up.

Over the years, I’ve stripped down my charting workspace the same way a good kitchen gets streamlined: fewer gadgets, more flow.

Here’s how I set up my TradingView layout — not because it’s the “right” way, but because it helps me think clearly, act quickly, and stay out of my own way.

1. One Workspace, One Focus

I use just one main layout in TradingView.

No split screens. No distractions. One chart at a time.

Each pair (USD/JPY, AUD/USD, etc.) gets its own tab, saved with the same template.

The idea is simple: when I switch pairs, the structure stays familiar — like walking into the same room, even if the furniture shifts.

2. The Timeframes I Actually Use

I trade short-term moves, so these three are all I need:

  • 1-hour: for structure and levels
  • 5-minute: for entries and executions
  • 15-minute: as a bridge (mostly during London open)

I keep these stacked vertically. Not fancy — just efficient.

I want to see the context, the setup, and the trigger in one glance.

3. Clean by Default

No watermark. No clutter.

Just price, candles, and key levels.

Most days, I keep indicators hidden until I’ve done my top-down read.

This stops me from anchoring my bias too early.

(I’ve learned the hard way that an early MACD opinion is not always a good thing.)

Once I’ve marked my zones and potential setups, I’ll toggle on:

  • VWAP with 1–2 standard deviations
  • A basic ADR range (custom script)
  • Sometimes the session box, if it’s a choppy week

All of this is saved in my TradingView template. I load it. Review it. Get to work.

4. Colours That Don’t Scream

I use muted colours — black background, soft greys for levels, pale blue for boxes.

Bright red and neon green? No thanks.

If I need drama, I’ll watch Netflix.

The whole point is to stay calm. I want the chart to fade into the background until something important stands out. The way a good chart should.

5. Alerts > Watching

I don’t babysit candles.

Once I’ve got levels drawn, I set price alerts directly on TradingView. If price comes near an area I care about, I get a ping.

Otherwise? I walk away.

This one habit probably saved me from dozens of FOMO trades.

Side note: if you’re rebuilding your charting workflow, TradingView offers customizable features that might be a good place to start. I’ve tried others. I stuck with this.

Final Thoughts

Your workspace should reduce friction, not add to it.

The more time I’ve spent trading, the more I’ve learned to value simplicity.

It’s not about showing off a fancy setup. It’s about knowing exactly what I’m looking at — and why.

TradingView helps me do that. That’s why I use it. That’s why I recommend it.

Not as a pitch — but as a tool that works.

I’m not here to teach chart hacks. Just sharing what’s worked for me.

If you’re streamlining your own setup, start small. Clean first. Then tweak.

—
Gav

Want to try out TradingView?

You can set it up right here.

Coffee Thoughts – Don’t Trade to Prove Something

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At some point, I stopped trading the market and started trading my ego.

I wouldn’t have said that out loud back then.

But looking back, it was obvious.

I wasn’t trading setups. I was trading to prove I was smart.

That I could bounce back.

That I was right and the market was wrong.

That I could silence the doubt in my own head, or someone else’s voice.

You can guess how that went.

Forced trades. Oversized positions. Revenge entries that made no sense.

All because I needed the win; not because the trade made sense.

When your identity gets tied to the outcome of one trade, you’re not a trader.

You’re just a gambler in denial.

This game doesn’t reward pride. It rewards process.

Now? I trade what’s there. Not what I wish was there.

I let the win or loss be what it is, data.

Not a statement about me.

The market doesn’t care what you’re trying to prove.

And the more you try to prove, the worse your decisions get.

So here’s a quiet reminder:

You don’t need to prove anything.

Just trade well.

— Gav, with coffee

Side note: If you’re working on detaching emotions from execution, check out my Back to Basics of Trading series — it’s built for that.

Brewing Patience – What Espresso Taught Me About Timing My Trades

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Some mornings, I get impatient.

I grind the beans. Heat the machine. Pull the shot.

Too fast.

The crema’s thin. The taste is flat. I drink it anyway, but I know I rushed it.

Espresso doesn’t like to be rushed.

The machine needs time to heat. The pressure needs to build. The extraction needs to flow at just the right pace.

Skip any of that, and it shows in the cup.

Trading works the same way.

I’ve learned this the hard way, especially with setups I want to be ready.

The price is moving. The level is near. I think I see the pattern forming. So I enter early.

Then it rolls over. Or chops around. Or stops me out before it ever takes off.

All because I couldn’t wait.

I’ve learned to treat my entries like I treat my coffee.

  • Let the conditions warm up
  • Watch the flow
  • Wait for the moment, not the noise

Because forced trades taste just like rushed espresso.

Bitter.

There’s a rhythm to both.

You don’t need to be fast. You need to be in sync.

Brew slow. Trade slow. Let it come to you.

Good things rarely arrive early — but they often arrive if you’re still waiting.

Coffee Thoughts – Clean Charts, Clear Mind

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Ever walked into a messy kitchen first thing in the morning?

Plates everywhere. Spills on the counter. Half a cup of cold coffee from yesterday.

That’s how most trading charts look.

Overloaded. Cluttered. Confusing.

I used to stack indicators like I was building a sandwich — RSI, MACD, Bollinger Bands, moving averages from five different timeframes.

It felt like I was doing analysis.
But really, I was just hiding behind the mess.

Too many lines blur your thinking. Too many signals create noise.

A clean chart forces you to see price action for what it is, not what you hope it’ll be.

Once I stripped it down, I started to see structure. Clarity. Flow.

It wasn’t just easier on the eyes. It made my decisions sharper.

Clean charts, clean trades.

Try it. Ditch the clutter. Keep what earns its place.

— Gav, with coffee

Side note:
If you’re rebuilding your charting workflow, TradingView has the flexibility and tools that make a solid place to start.

The Only Trading Tools I Actually Use (And Why Less Is More)

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That One Knife in the Drawer

Every kitchen has it.

The one knife you reach for every single time. It’s not the flashiest. It doesn’t have a fancy Japanese name. But it works.

It’s sharp, it fits your hand, and you trust it.

Mine lives in the second slot from the left. I’ve tried others — gift sets, chef-grade stuff, even a cleaver phase (don’t ask).

But I always come back to the same knife.

Trading’s the same.

I’ve tested a lot of tools. Indicators, scripts, heatmaps, you name it.

Some were useful for a while. Some just looked good. A few flat-out distracted me.

But over time, I narrowed it down to the ones I actually use. The ones that help me see price, not overthink it.

  • VWAP
  • Volume zones
  • Key levels
  • One or two price action patterns

That’s it.

No dashboard full of signals. No rainbow of trendlines. Just clean tools that fit my process.

The trick isn’t collecting tools.

It’s knowing which ones earn a permanent spot in your workflow.

Same way you don’t need ten knives. You need one that stays sharp and reliable.

So ask yourself this week:

What’s your go-to?

And what’s just taking up space?

Because in both kitchens and charts, clutter cuts slower than clarity.

Coffee Thoughts – The Problem is You, Not the System

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I’ve lost count of how many systems I’ve tested.

Breakouts, pullbacks, trend following, mean reversion. You name it.

Every time something didn’t work, I blamed the system.
“This doesn’t suit the pair I trade.”
“It’s not made for Asian session.”
“Maybe I need a different indicator.”

Sound familiar?

Eventually, I ran out of systems to blame — and had to face the actual issue:
It wasn’t the strategy.
It was me.

I wasn’t following rules.
I didn’t log my trades.
I sized up too quickly.
I avoided journaling because I didn’t want to see the truth.

No system can fix poor execution.

That’s when the shift happened.

I stopped hunting for the “perfect setup” and started fixing my habits.
Same system — different results.

So before you toss out your strategy and jump to the next shiny thing…
Ask yourself:
Am I the problem?

It’s not a fun question. But it’s a necessary one.

— Gav, with coffee

Side note: If you’re rebuilding your foundation, check out my Back to Basics of Trading series.