The Last Trade of 2025 — Why I Will Close the Year on December 19 and Stay Out Until January

Introduction

December 19, 2025 will be my last trade of the year. Not December 20. Not December 31. December 19. After that, the screens stay off until the first Monday of January. No exceptions in seven years. I call it the Hard Stop. One chosen exit. Then silence. This is why it exists and why it will never change.

The Rule — Simple and Absolute

The last trading day of every year happens on or before December 19.

If I have an open position → it is closed by 19th close, profit or loss
If no position → I may take one final A-setup on the 19th only
After that → platforms logged out, apps deleted from phone, journal archived

December 20 to January 1 is market-free by design.

How It Feels When December 19 Ends

It feels like:

the year actually finishes
breathing drops another level
the remaining days become wide and empty
money thoughts dissolve
Neutral Zone has no object left

Relief. Not celebration. Just completion.

Why December 19 and Not Year-End

Because:

Holiday noise begins December 20
Liquidity thins, behavior distorts
The mind wants closure before the world slows
Forcing trades in the last ten days has never once improved a year
Early closure protects the entire year’s work

I learned the hard way. Twice I traded past the 19th. Both times I gave back more in two weeks than I had protected all year. Never again.

The Exact Closing Sequence (Same Every Year)

December 19, final session:

Normal pre-market routine
Normal size, normal rules
Any open trade closed by 20:00 CET regardless of P&L
Final journal line: “2025 closed. See you next year.”
Platform logout → account removed from device
Physical notebook closed and one-page survivors go into the burn folder
Walk away

No countdown. No drama. Just done.

What Actually Happens in Those Final Twelve Days

Sleep improves within 48 hours
Family time feels real again
Market thoughts drop to near zero by Christmas
The Annual Journal Burn (Dec 28–30) feels cleaner because the year is already sealed
January return is calm, curious, and almost beginner-like

The year ends stronger because I stop early.

The Only Exception That Ever Existed

I let myself trade December 23 “because it was quiet.” Lost focus. Lost money. Lost neutrality. Wrote the Hard Stop in red the next day. Never tested it again.

Final Thoughts

The Last Trade of 2025 is not about the trade. It is about the stop. A deliberate, premature ending that says: This year is finished. The work is done. The money is enough. The Neutral Zone deserves silence too. On December 19 I will place whatever trade is there, or none at all, and then I will close the book. The market will keep moving. I will not. Some years the account is green. Some years it is flat. Every year it is protected. Because I stop while I still can. See you in 2026 — clean, quiet, and already gone. Happy holidays.