How To Build a Trading Journal In Notion

Introduction

Tracking your trades is one of the most important habits you can develop as a trader. It helps you learn from mistakes, refine your strategy, and stay disciplined.

Without a clear record of your trades, you’re essentially flying blind, unable to pinpoint what’s working and what’s not.

A trading journal can be a game-changer, and when it’s set up in Notion—a powerful and flexible workspace tool—it can help you organize everything in one place.

Notion is great for this because it’s customizable, easy to use, and allows you to track every detail of your trades.

From entering trades to reviewing your performance, a Notion trading journal keeps you focused and accountable.

If you’ve never built one before, don’t worry—this guide walks you through everything step by step.

What Is a Trading Journal?

A trading journal is a detailed record of your trades. It’s where you log every trade you make, the reasons behind it, and how it turned out.

This lets you analyze your performance, understand your patterns, and improve over time. A good trading journal isn’t just about numbers—it’s about learning and growing as a trader.

Why Use Notion for a Trading Journal?

There are lots of tools for tracking trades, like spreadsheets or paid apps, but Notion stands out for a few reasons:

Customization: You can create templates, add tags, and design your journal to fit your needs.
Organization: Keep your strategies, trade logs, and notes in one place.
Ease of Use: Drag-and-drop features, pre-built templates, and flexibility make it beginner-friendly.
Free Plan: Notion’s free version has more than enough features for a solid trading journal.

How Do I Build a Trading Journal in Notion?

1. Set Up a New Workspace

Start by creating a new page in Notion. If you’re new to Notion, sign up at notion.so. Name the page something like “Trading Journal” and decide how you want to structure it. Notion lets you build pages, databases, and sub-pages, so you can get creative.

2. Create a Table for Your Trades

The core of your journal will be a table where you log trades. Here’s what to include:

Date: When the trade happened.
Asset: The stock, crypto, or other instrument you traded.
Position Size: How much you invested.
Entry Price: The price at which you entered the trade.
Exit Price: The price at which you exited.
Profit/Loss: The outcome of the trade.
Reason for Trade: Why you entered the trade.
Notes: Any lessons or observations.

In Notion, use a database table for this. Add columns for each of these details and set the property types (e.g., text, numbers, dates).

3. Track Your Strategies

Create a section to log and evaluate your trading strategies. Use a table or a list to describe each strategy, its rules, and how well it performs over time. For example:

Strategy Name
Market Conditions: When this strategy works best.
Success Rate: How often it works.
Adjustments Needed: Notes on improving the strategy.

4. Add a Weekly or Monthly Review

Reviews are essential for growth. Create a section where you summarize your trading activity over a set period. Ask yourself questions like:

What went well?
What didn’t go well?
Did I follow my rules?
What will I change next time?

5. Include Visuals

Graphs and charts can make your journal more insightful. Notion doesn’t have built-in charting, but you can link to tools like Google Sheets or upload screenshots from trading platforms. Use visuals to track things like:

Win/Loss ratio
Profit over time
Mistakes by category

6. Incorporate Tags and Filters

Tags can help you sort and analyze your trades. For instance, use tags for different strategies, emotions (like fear or greed), or trade setups. Filters make it easy to see patterns, like which strategies perform best in specific market conditions.

7. Add Resources and Learning Materials

Include a section for helpful articles, videos, or notes from books. You can embed YouTube videos, link to articles, or upload files directly into Notion.

FAQs

Q: Do I need to pay for Notion to build a trading journal?

A: Not at all. The free version of Notion has everything you need to create a great trading journal. If you want advanced features, like unlimited file uploads or more collaborators, you can consider upgrading.

Q: How often should I update my trading journal?

A: Ideally, after every trade. Consistency is key. If daily updates feel overwhelming, try doing it weekly but don’t let trades pile up without being logged.

Q: Can I use templates instead of starting from scratch?

A: Absolutely. Notion has plenty of free templates you can tweak to fit your needs. Search for “trading journal template” in Notion’s community, or create your own.

Conclusion

A trading journal is one of the most powerful tools you can use to improve your trading skills. When you build it in Notion, you’re setting yourself up for success with a system that’s organized, easy to use, and completely customizable.

By tracking your trades, analyzing your performance, and refining your strategies, you’ll gain the confidence and discipline needed to trade smarter.

So, are you ready to take control of your trading journey and start building your journal today? What features are most important to you in a trading journal?